After spending the morning exploring the Forbidden City, we continued our sightseeing tour on 28 September 2018 with a visit to the Great Wall of China.
Our destination was Mutianyu, a section of the Great Wall surrounded by wooded mountains outside Beijing.
We had already done a considerable amount of walking that morning, especially with our young son, but I was excited about finally seeing the Great Wall.
It turned out to be another unforgettable part of our Beijing trip.
A Slightly Frightening Chairlift Ride
To reach the Wall, we took a chairlift up the hillside.
I hadn’t expected the ride to make me so nervous.
With our young son beside us, I was very conscious of the open space beneath the chairlift and the gaps through which a small child might slip.
The ride was beautiful, but I couldn’t completely relax. I was more concerned about keeping him safe than enjoying the scenery.
Fortunately, we reached the top without any problems.
And once we were on the Great Wall itself, the view was magnificent.
Walking Along the Great Wall
We couldn’t have asked for better weather.
It was a lovely day, and surprisingly, there weren’t many people around. We had plenty of space to walk and enjoy the surroundings without having to make our way through large crowds.
The Wall stretched across the mountains, rising and falling along the ridges, with watchtowers appearing at intervals.
Seeing it in person was extraordinary.
I had seen photographs of the Great Wall countless times, but standing on it and looking at how far it extended across the hills was something else entirely.
The scenery was magnificent, and so was the Wall itself.
Of course, walking along it wasn’t quite as easy as admiring it from a distance.
Some sections were surprisingly steep. With our son still young, I had to carry him whenever he became tired.
Climbing those steps while carrying him became increasingly challenging after a while. Between the steep sections and the walking we’d already done at the Forbidden City, it was quite a workout.
But the views made the effort worthwhile.
I remember stopping to take in the scenery and feeling glad that we had made the trip.
Faster, Faster, Daddy!
If the chairlift ride up had made me a little nervous, the journey down was a completely different experience.
Instead of returning by chairlift, we took the toboggan down the hillside.
My son absolutely loved it.
As we made our way down the winding track, he kept shouting, “Faster, faster, Daddy!”
I can still remember his excitement.
After spending so much of the day walking, climbing and carrying him, it was wonderful to see him enjoying himself so much.
For me, the Great Wall was about its history, extraordinary scale and magnificent scenery.
For my son, I suspect the toboggan ride might have been the best part.
And I wouldn’t be surprised if that was the memory he carried home from Mutianyu.
An Unexpected Lucky Streak
After returning to Beijing, I remember spending some time at a shopping mall.
Our son enjoyed playing at an indoor children’s play area, and we wandered around the shops.
There were also claw machines filled with soft toys.
I decided to try my luck.
Somehow, I managed to catch three toys in about five attempts.
It was just one of those lucky moments when everything seemed to go right.
A few children nearby noticed what was happening and became quite excited. They even started asking me to play the machines for them.
I didn’t play for the other children, but I found the whole situation rather amusing.
I certainly wasn’t an expert at claw machines. I had simply been unusually lucky that evening.
Looking back, it was a funny way to end a day that had begun among the grand halls of the Forbidden City and continued along one of the world’s most famous landmarks.
A Day to Remember
That Friday was easily our busiest sightseeing day in Beijing.
We had walked through the enormous Forbidden City, climbed the steep sections of the Great Wall, enjoyed a thrilling toboggan ride and finished the evening at a shopping mall.
There were plenty of memorable moments, but two stand out most clearly.
The first was looking out from the Great Wall, taking in the magnificent mountain scenery and the Wall stretching across the ridges.
The second was hearing my son shouting, “Faster, faster, Daddy!” as we rode the toboggan down.
One was something I had wanted to experience for myself. The other was an unexpected moment of happiness shared with my son.
Both are memories I still treasure from our Beijing trip.
Departure Day: 29 September
