Eric's Beijing Diary

Bu dao Changcheng, fei hao han The students taught me this today. It means, "You're not a real man until you've been to the Great Wall." It's actually pretty easy to get there. You take the subway to Donzhimen, then catch bus number 916 to Huairou. Then you have to hire a cab to take you to the wall. But that's just the beginning. Once you get there, you have to climb the steps. Lots of steps. About a thousand of them. Unless you take the cable car. The "cable car" is actually a chair lift, but if you really don't want to do the climb, it does take you right to The Wall. I like hiking, and I don't like heights, so I took the steps. It really isn't too bad, you just have to take your time.

It is quite an experience to see something that is not only old, but ancient. The wall was brought together as a unified entity by the Qin emperor (roughly 200 BC), but it began hundreds of years before that. But the form of the wall that is seen today was developed in the Ming dynasty (14th to 17 centuries). The wall stretches for 6000 kilometers as the crow flies. Recent controversy centers around whether or not the Wall can be seen from space. Chinese school children have been told for generations that the Wall can be seen from outer space. But the recent taikonaut said that he did not see it. This made the government decide the elementary school books should be revised. But American astronaut Gene Cernan was in Singapore recently. Naturally, someone asked him the question. He said that yes, you can see the Wall from space. He said you could also see the Houston Astrodome if you know how to look for it.

Well, this generated considerable discussion about what should be done. Some have suggested that Chinese taikonauts be given special training so they can see the Wall. Others have suggested that giant lights be mounted on the wall so that it would be more visible from space. Don't know why it matters. There aren't that many people out there.

When we left the wall, we decided to take the toboggan run down the hill. They give you a little sled with wheels and a hand brake. And they station workers along the run who are constantly telling you to slow down. Don't know why...must have had trouble with someone going to fast at one time. Aside from being a lot easier than the climb, it's just plain fun. Switch back and forth down the mountain, then out across the ravine over a small bridge, and down to the entrance, a few paces from the parking lot.

It really is an eerie feeling to stand in the fortress tower and look out across Manchuria, and across the centuries. But of all the things that can be said about the wall, one stands out as the most significant: It didn't work. The Manchu's breached the wall in 1644, bringing an end to the Ming Dynasty. Someone forgot to heed the ancient warning: "For by strength shall no man prevail."