This was the day I had been waiting for from the minute we decided to go on this trip. I had visions of Jacob taking the first few steps of his life on The Great Wall. And with all of this dreaming and anticipation, you would have thought I would have ensured I had enough memory on my camera to capture all of our Great Wall moments...wouldn't you? Well, let's just say we had taken so many pictures the first day and a half, that I did NOT, in fact, have enough memory. As soon as we found some flat ground and took Jacob out of the carrier to do some walking, my camera shut off..."Memory Full". Thank Heavens for Steve and Shannon!! They took the majority of the pics on this post.
We spent over two hours on the JuYongGuan Pass. This part of The Wall is the nearest section to Beijing. It was also in the shape of a circle, as it was originally used as a strategic point for the Chinese Army to keep supplies, food, and extra soldiers. JuYongGuan is one of the three greatest passes of the Great Wall of China. The Pass is dotted with multiple Watch Towers.
We believe this this area should be renamed to "The Great Stair Case in China" as there seemed to be more stairs than wall. And the stairs were incredibly steep and uneven. I, luckily, was not carrying Jacob in the backpack, so I cannot complain. :) We all got our cardio workout in that day!
Our timing was perfect. I would want to be there in the summer months. We had all bundled up to brace for the cold mountain air, but after just a few dozen stairs, we all started stripping our layers. In addition, it wasn't nearly as crowded as it can be in the high tourist months.
The views and history surrounding us were breath-taking. We did not take for granted this once in a life time opportunity. Jacob enjoyed the hike up and the time out of the carrier for some Photo-Ops, but he proved that he can nap anywhere as he slept most of the hike down. :)
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