Headed out of Beijing towards Badaling. Witnessed the aftermath of a car crash on the freeway and suffered the nerve-shredding weaving between lanes and overtaking on blind bends of our driver.Resisted the sales pitch at the obligatory jade factory before we got our first sight of the Great Wall.
Henry gave us an hour and a quarter and we set ourselves the challenge of climbing the wall as far as the eye could see in both directions.
At times it was astonishingly steep, and the handrail was clearly constructed by the same people who fitted the ceilings in the hotel, barely knee-high.
Truly spectacular views.
After coming down from the wall, we visited the nearby Ming tombs and Sacred Way, where we were informed that what looked like a giant turtle (pre-dating Terry Pratchet and his disc-world by a couple of millennia) was in fact a mythical Bixi.
Mark temporarily abandoned his vegetarian principles to try the dinner of Peking Duck - well, when in Peking...? Actually, the vegetarian options we we given throughout the trip were often at least as good, if not better, than the meat dishes.
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