Tuesday, Nov. 17
In the same way the Forbidden City failed to meet expectations, the Great Wall exceeded them. I expected to see a really long wall. Whoop-tee-do. Wrong! The magnificence of the Great Wall is they didn't try to overwhelm or conquer nature in building the wall. They went along with it.
The Forbidden City sought to extinguish nature and rebuild it better in its own image. The gardens are paved over with little holes for the trees to grow out of. The river that runs through the city is encased in stone. Even the "wild" parts are clearly structured and tamed.
Not the Great Wall. It's out in the mountains and valleys and surrounded by beauty and no-man's land. It looks like the Spine of the World. Looking out, nature is unspoiled but for a path that follows the easiest route over the top of the mountains.
My son and I ran the wall until he tired. We climbed up steps to a peak and photographed from above. It was fantastic and unbelievable to run as father and son down the Great Wall.
As we were driving, I saw a hotel shuttle bus with the name "Beijing 100% Perfect Hotel." I quickly pointed out that they have a lot to live up to and my son promptly states," I don't believe they're 100% perfect because they don't have peace, holiness and fellowship." I laughed even harder at his private Christian school education when he adds (for his father's benefit), "But I won't tell them. I'll give that to them and know it's wrong in my mind."
My discerning and wise diplomat!
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