This spring break I traveled to China. It
was truly a brand new experience. Even though the entire two weeks were
phenomenal, the best part by far was seeing and walking on the Great Wall of
China. The entire trip leading up to the Great Wall was extremely
surreal. Once we got there however, I couldn't help but say "Wow.
We're actually in China!" After we had walked up the first set of
extremely steep, rickety and worn down stairs I couldn't help but stop and
stare. Even though we hadn't climbed very far, all I could think was
"this is a once in a lifetime experience". Despite what many
people believe, the wall isn't 10+ feet tall. Honestly it is only about
3-5 feet tall. The ingenious thing about the wall was that all of it was
built on a hill. If the Mongols, whom the Chinese were attempting to keep
out, had won the battles in the valleys, they would have to walk up an immense
hill to defeat the men on the wall. It was incredible to think of all the
amazing ideas, all the hard work and dedication that this wall took, that
combined with the breathtaking view brought an overwhelming sense of awe.
Up there the air was clean and crisp, which was rare in such a polluted
city. There were blooming cherry blossom trees bordering one side of the
wall. It was phenomenal; I would without a doubt take another 14 hour
trip specifically to see the Great Wall again. Another interesting part
of Beijing was the snack street we visited. It was one of the grossest
things I have ever seen. There were large black scorpions on a stick, as
well as smaller brown/grey ones, there were centipedes, starfish, squid, and
many other unidentified "foods" on sticks. Many vendors were
also selling giant, black, and vile spiders on a stick. I saw a couple of
people eating one of the spiders and a starfish, apparently spider tastes like
charcoal and starfish is just crunchy. Beijing and all of China for that
matter was an entirely new experience for me. Through all the disgusting,
weird and beautiful moments, I loved it, all of it.
