- My amazing parents, who are, at this point in my life, also fantastic friends and supporters. I am so lucky to have such an amazing relationship with each of them.
- My amazing friends and family. Alix and Jag have been my rocks through the last few months of tough times, but my dozens of other friends and family sending me love and support (and gifts!) warms my heart and shows me how good people can be. Thank you all very much.
- My pugs. Because they're cute, and even when they're a pain in the ass, they give me dog love.
- My job, which is not only interesting and challenging, but surrounds me with smart and wonderful people, who are much like a family. I also am appreciated and rewarded for doing good work, and since I enjoy the work, it's like bonuses on my bonus.
- My house. It is a place of comfort and even though I could move without much drama (I'm a nomad from childhood), I really enjoy the space I have.
- My health. Both physically and mentally, I have had a strong year and I hope to continue that.
- My future. So bright, I have to wear shades.
And on to the day....
Well, I did it. I climbed the Great Wall of China. The weather today was really icky compared to the last few days, so I'm sad that my pictures consist of a lot of grey fog. But some of them are cool, and I certainly took many.
The tour group (and most tour groups here are) was state sponsored, so you are forced to stop at factories (in our case, a jade factory, plus a place that makes cloisonne), and you get a rather ho-hum lunch. But we went to the 13 Ming Tombs in the morning and the Great Wall at Badaling in the afternoon. My group of 6 wasn't very talkative, but I made friends with a German guy, probably a few years younger than me, and his father. The two were vacationing together and were very nice. They probably know way more about me than they want to, but I just can't spend the entire day in silence!
So our morning was the drive out to the Ming Tombs. Then we walked around the tomb of the 3rd Emperor for a bit, and saw some relics that came from the 13th Emperor's tomb. The buildings were similar to what I've seen, but there was some lovely scenery and interesting tidbits about the area and the Emperors. I think the most interesting building was the Tower, which stands in front of the actual tomb.
Then we did the Jade factory, where I bought stuff I probably shouldn't have.
And then lunch. I was hoping for wow Chinese food, but it was pretty much like what I've gotten in good Chinatown places (certainly better than NH places, but NH Chinese is pretty bad).
After that it was off to the Great Wall. When I booked they told me we would be going to Mutainyu, but it turned out to be Badaling, which is supposed to be more full of annoying sales people. Sadly, it was full of annoying sales people. But my method of a firm "No" and not making eye contact or even saying hello seemed to work pretty well. Plus, if I stuck by the Germans, the sales folks would think we were a family and pester the German dad. He was way too nice with them...
Anyway, we hiked up the hard part to the topmost tower. At one point the stairs are so steep that you feel like you're going straight uphill. And when you come down, it's quite scary. Easy place to get vertigo!
So, despite the fact that it was very cold and very cloudy, I'm pleased that I did it and it was quite a decent way to spend my Thanksgiving if I couldn't be with my family.
I wish I could write more poetically about it, really, but with the weather and the fog and the sales people, I only had a few moments of peace and joy while actually on the wall. I'd like to come back and visit some of the less busy places (though we were lucky that there weren't that many other tourists today). Still, one more wonder of the world down!
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