Tour of the Great Wall at Si Ma Tai

The Great Wall of China is without doubt one of the most amazing sights ever built. The Wall is an awesome sight, seen snaking over hills without the end of it in sight. The Great Wall starts from the Shan Hai Guan Pass on the east coast and stretches across to the Jia Yu Guan Pass in the Gobi Desert, way through the west of China. The Great Wall was built way back around 2,000 years ago during the Qing Dynasty (221 - 207 BC).

A defensive structure was designed to keep out foreign armies. The wall was successful for long periods but later failed dismally to keep out foreign armies. The Wall has beacon towers that would use smoke systems to alert other beacon towers about approaching enemies. When peaceful times resumed in China, the Wall was used as a great transportation route that could move supplies and people with little difficulty. A few stretches of the wall around Beijing were re- fortified around the time of the Qing and Ming dynasties.

The Great Wall now attracts thousands of tourists each day and there are 3 parts of the wall near Beijing that are open to tourists. The first part is called Ba Da Ling and is the touristy part, with a cinema, restaurants as well as hawkers selling all sorts of tee- shirts and souvenirs. This part of the Wall is about 70 Km away from Beijing. The 2nd section of the wall is about 90 km away from Beijing and is also very commercial. It is called Mu Tian Yu.

The third section of the Wall that is open to tourists is much quieter and less hectic, although there is a bit of a climb involved, and can be physically challenging. This part is called Si Ma Tai and one needs sturdy shoes to conquer this steep climb.