The journey to the Great Wall

I had now settled in China, with a renewed mindset, a different perspective of the world altogether. I had associated with many Africans and others from the UK, Pakistan, and Australia. We went to a church called the Beijing International Christian Fellowship. Several Africans meet there on Sundays to practice their faith. It was during these meetings that we organized a visit to the Great Wall.

We left the school by bus with several church members and we had planned to spend a week at a resort near the Great Wall. We started seeing this big wall on our way. In my experience and my wildest dreams, I had never imagined something like that. I mean, how on earth can a human build something so strong yet so long, and yet so high in such difficult mountainous places? Seeing things on television is fine, but the experience of doing it personally is another thing. I am talking about hiking the Great Wall. I was with my countrymate and other church members the day we decided to take the wall. I wore the nice light shoes that I had bought in Beijing, some sweat pants and a long sleeve shirt. I was worried the sun would roast my hands again like it did when I arrived. We were advised to carry a lot of water instead of juices, and something to snack on our way up the wall. So here is the deal. The wall was built to protect the Chinese, historically from conflict. Those who built the wall did not use cement as we do nowadays. They rather used rectangular blocks of rocks. The Great Wall is too long, with official figures around over 21,000 km. We only explored a portion of the wall, and moreover, no one can finish it in a day.

On this day, I was a happy soul, beginning to talk the first step going up the wall. I can not explain the feeling. When you stand below the wall and look back, all you see is the other part going behind and curving into the mountains. With my bag on my side, I took the liberty of taking my first selfie with my phone. Up I went, in a mild rush, taking the rocky steps two at a time. Little did I know that if I proceeded like this I was going to run out of gas before going anywhere. Luckily, we had some individuals who had toured the wall before. They advised us to slow down and check our desires. We wanted to go, as far as the wall could take us. I had not known how long this structure was.

Here and there we would wait for each other and take pictures. By midday, I was beginning to feel my muscles asking me for a break. I sat on a rock of my choice and ate a few chocolates to get more energy. People passed by, and as I re-energized, I could hear others ululating from a distance. The thing with the Great Wall is that the further you go the more you become curious to see more. Also, once there are people ahead of you, they will always make you feel like you can not miss what they are seeing. Yes, and it is that curiosity which then kept me going. After reaching each tower I would pause and take a picture.

This I was going to use to count how many towers I have covered. The Great Wall was built with towers at random spacings. These were used by watchmen to see the enemy from a distance before they attack. Each tower, however, was designed differently：the height of the tower, the windows, and the sizes are some of the things that bring curiosity. You would want to know what the next tower looks like. I hiked until I met my other colleagues and we gathered in a group to take a picture and share some food. Some of us then decided to proceed while others declined. I went further, and the happiest moment of my life at the Great Wall was about to begin. I was hiking and approaching one of the tallest towers from what we had seen at the resort we were staying in. When I arrived, I climbed inside the tower and then realized there was a way up and to the top of the tower. I climbed, there I was, and started whistling and yelling to those who were behind me. The joy that I felt seeing people getting excited coming to the point I was shouting at made me feel like a hero for a moment.

In my mind, I was asking myself if what I saw then was real. I saw several towers behind, each at a distance from each other. I saw the mountains, the green vegetation, the settlements down the mountains, the river flowing, and the people who were fishing. I saw a broken queue of people hiking the Great Wall towards my direction, every one of them sweating and drinking water, washing off their faces, all to see what was beyond the tower!

When the whole crew arrived, we sang little songs, took some pictures, shared some funny stories and some food. To this day, sharing those best moments on the Great Wall has been my greatest experience in China. Thereafter, the sun was about to set. We then began descending the wall to arrive in time for dinner. Well, in my opinion, hiking the Great Wall might have been difficult, with a lot of thirsts, sweat, brushes from trees and rocks, but nothing beats using your whole body to brace yourself when you are going down the wall. I have to say that this part might be more exhausting than going up. And, if one is not so careful with what they step on, the probabilities of falling are extremely high. Occasionally I would take pictures on our way down.

My bag was now lighter, with all the water and food finished. We made it to the guest house at around 5:00 pm. Straightway I jumped into the cool shower before I put on some clean clothes. I joined other colleagues at the dinner table. I could tell that everyone had a story to tell, the excitement in the room, and how I felt it was almost tangible. However, the muscles would not let us get away with it, and everyone had to retire to their rooms and sleep. That night, I think I had the deepest sleep I had ever done in my life.