Forbidden City & Great Wall

Wow.  What a day!  I think I feel a little more like we are in China now after climbing the wall but it all has not sunk in.  We both awoke at 5am and could not go back to sleep.  Hopefully we can do that in the morning again since we leave at 6am for the airport.  Yup, that means we are flying to Guizhou where Joyah is.  Tomorrow is Gotcha Day!

Today we visited The Forbidden City, the emperor's palace.  It went on and on, so many buildings, courtyards and people!  It was another beautiful day in the 70s.  It was so crowded there I had to fight into a bathroom stall.  In the US, women make a line and take turns going to the stalls as they open up.  Well,  I did that at first until I realized I would never get in.  I staked out one stall and fought off 2 others trying to squeeze in between.  Good thing that I am taller and bigger than 95% of them.

It took another hour by bus and crazy traffic to reach The Great Wall.  Our entire group of 3 families made it to the top of the section we were on.  The steps are so tall and steep!  It took us over 1 hour to climb up and 30 minutes to get down.  In the picture of us at the top, you can see below us a tiny parking lot.  That is where we started!

Our day ended with another hour and a half drive through traffic the reach the hotel area.  We ate a traditional duck dinner with the group and now it is time to get ready for tomorrow!