Beijing: The Great Wall- Part Two

The sky started to darken and it felt like a storm was about to bubble overhead. I ducked into a KFC to use their toilet. The line was long, I waited 15 minutes. A woman was staring at me. I stared back at her. I didn't like her stare. I looked away. She started staring again. I returned her ugly stare and started cussing her in Arabic. I wanted to make sure that she knew she would be dealing with a crazy. I was ready for a fight if that's what she wanted, hair pulling, eye gouging, he works. In the end I left without using the toilet. The line was long, the smell was unbearable.

I texted the couchsurfing host, telling him I'd be an hour early. I'd had enough of Beijing. I followed his instructions. I had to take line 5 to the end then get on a bus for 2 stops. The entire journey lasted 1 hour. I had to stand up the whole way. My feet were killing. Why didn't I just find a hostel, which would be just as cheap, near the centre (Lin Sie had suggested that. For me she has also tainted chou fan (fried rice) and those crisps I ate. Whenever I eat/see them, I think I will remember her).

I finally made it to the end of the journey and I found myself waiting for this man on the side of a busy motorway, in the dark. Is it possible for things to get any worse?

Location: motorway in the middle of nowhere

Location: motorway in the middle of nowhere

Location: motorway in the middle of nowhere

Location: motorway in the middle of nowhere

To be fair, I should have done more planning with where I would stay. I decided to go on this trip at the last minute, wanting to avoid the increasingly colder weather of the next few weeks.

There was a car beeping behind me. 'If that is the host then he can suck it', I thought. If I come all this way and he can't get out of his car, then I'll go back and stay in whichever hole I can find. Maybe I'll even take up the Tunisian's offer. But most likely not.

Finally, I saw him across the road. I crossed the road and shook hands with him. My instincts registered: trustworthy. Good, I thought, I couldn't handle taking the bus and subway all that way back.

He told me he was from Boston and that the next morning he would be joining other Beijing-Boston expats to watch some important Baseball game or another. Awkwardly he had stopped walking, and we were talking in the middle of the traffic island. 'Is this some sort of test?' I thought. Finally we started walking to his home.

There were no street lights in the apartment complex he lived in, but we had a nice chat about the Middle East. In the end I realised that his only interest in the Middle East came from his own self-interest. "I want to be able to go on holiday and not worry that I will be taken hostage'. Inconsiderate bastard, is all I thought, who gives a damn about other people when his holiday plans are thrown out the window.

'There's a Chinese girl staying as well. You'll be on the couch' he said as he opened the door. Although it is called 'couchsurfing', I have used beds quite a lot and for some reason I assume that's what I'll always get.

Inside we had a nice conversation about career plans, he showed me a presentation of what his charity work involves (an Egyptian guy was staying with him before, who was travelling round the World with a huge Egyptian flag, 'promoting' the country) and he told me about his music. My cough was getting pretty bad, and I had some water left. He was reluctant to give me any of this water however. Overall I got the impression that he didn't like giving anything out to Couchsurfers, even water, because of what it wold cost him. I'd never stayed at a Couchsurfers like that before.

Luckily, it was only one night on the couch, I slept in fits. For some reason my mind was working like a filing cabinet. It was flicking through many events and occurrences (I can't remember any of them now, I just remember the process it was going through), trying to glean from any of them other times when I my have been conned. It's bizarre thinking about it. People were noisily using the toilet throughout the night as well, which was a real treat.

The CS host's apartment complex at sunrise

I left at around 6am, just wanted to get out, start the day then get back to my wonderfully friendly Jinan. It was very cold and the sun was just beginning to rise. At the train station I ordered one of my favourite things that I get in Jinan - a thin egg-crepe sandwich with salad and sauce. But in Beijing they do it horribly! I thought at first that it was because everything here is under stricter time-limits but at the Great Wall I saw that that's how they make the sandwich everywhere. Instead of light and crispy, its thick and soggy, I felt like I was eating raw flour. Uggh!

Threw that away and caught the subway. Never have I witnessed such a stampede of people, who would kill their own grandmothers to get a seat. It was vicious, no courteous, no after you, no after you.... no none of that in good old Beijing.

There was a couple in front of me (almost pressed up to me) and the boy would kiss his girlfriend every few minutes. I think he was getting something off her face, or he was deeply insecure about his relationship to her, or they just felt like making me puke in my mouth at 7am in the morning. Eventually they left (thank the lord) and so did I. (How deep.)

I was making my way to JiShuiTan station where I would hopefully get the 877 bus to take me to the Great Wall of China. I was disappointed to read the day before, that the wall can not actually be seen from the moon! All my life I had thought that was true.

The pagoda-type thing near the 877 bus stop

I am not a happy bunny

Hahaha - big forehead

I found the bus quite easily, got on, paid 12RMB and was on my way. There was a Chinese tour guide on the bus, who obviously said something worth commendation because a man in front of me made a feeble attempt at applause.

And to your left is kjndfiushtfuoher

It took just over an hour to get there, a little boy puked into the trash can right next to me, and the man to my left kept elbowing me in an attempt to fish something out of his leather pocket. As soon as the bus parked, I jumped out.

It was freezing and I didn't know where to go. I bought corn on the cob (but the proper way to make it, not steamed but grilled on a barbecue), and made my way to the ticket office. I passed a gateway and to the left was a black bear enclosure! Six bears were trapped there, as visitors threw bits of apple at them. The bears were so close to the people that I am sure either they have done in the past, or one day soon, they will jump at a particularly annoying tourist and maul his face off.

Bears

So many bears

Up hill I walked, hands in my pocket trying to get cold. The sellers and hawkers were not as annoying as in other tourist places, but today no one could annoy me, I was not going to take no crap from nowhere. I munched my apple all the way to the top, oblivious of what anyone wanted from me.

At the ticket office were two prices. 45RMB fr an adult, 25RMB for a student. I took out my Egyptian ID, threw it across the barrier with my money and said xue sheng (student). Within a few seconds I had my discounted ticket. My gran would be proud. Do I feel any guilt? Not at all. That's how the world is I have learnt. Ruthless. You do what you can.

Up, up I walked onto the Great Wall. What a view. I walked the opposite direction to the hoards of orange-capped tourists and found myself all lone with thousands of years of history and culture. After a few seconds of contemplation I decided which side was China and which side was not, then pretended to be a look-out, looking for the incoming army of Mongols or Huns. After that I promptly burst into song of all the Mulan songs I could remember.Walking the wall is very steep, you could be mistaken into thinking that it is vertical at points. At one point I was ready to apply for the Great Wall marathon $200 it would have cost me. I'll have to think about that now, especially since my fitness routine has taken a nose-dive lately.

The air was fresh and crisp, the trees dotted around were turning various shades of red and yellow. The wall snaked and turned magnificently across the tall, unforgiving mountains. I sat there, one leg in China, one leg outside (although nowadays its all China) and felt the breeze on my cheek. All of my problems disappeared and I'd made my peace with Beijing once again.

Beautiful

Ta da!

Majestic

Sikes!

Nature and man come together

This is it

On the way down I bought some squidy dessert thing that I saw being made on my way up to the wall. I didn't like the watery taste, but I ate a second one to be sure. 'Ni xihuan zhege?' I said to a couple of lovebirds sitting beside me. They didn't understand what I wanted but when they did, they smiled, thanked me, and relieved me of my burden. I've wasted alot of money here by ordering strange foods, (like the butterfly larvae) and not eating them, but that's the only way to find out about these new foods.

A woman making squishy dough things

I found the 877 bus and on I got. I slept nicely on the journey back and felt refreshed and re-invigorated. The Great Wall had turned my frown upside down. Next stop: Tiananmen Square.

Why was I going back? For a number of reasons. #1: The first time I didn't actually step foot onto the square. The guidebook at my CS host's house said that standing in Tiananmen Square was like standing in the middle of the Chinese universe. I wanted to stand in the middle of the Chinese universe. #2: I wanted someone to try to con me again. I wanted to study their techniques, play along with them and then con their asses off at the last minute. Of course my second fantasy never materialised. For some reason when you are looking to be conned, you don't get conned. I think I should have looked more lost and vulnerable then happily smiling passive-aggressively.

But I did get to stand in the middle of the Chinese Universe. I tried to find the exact middle, then just stood there. I was picking up some sort of strong energy. Building regulations have meant that buildings around the square must be below a certain height. This gives the square a sense of meeting with the heavens. I did draw the attention of a group of Chinese boys because I was standing in the middle, all on my own, but I left soon after.

So many cameras

Right in the middle of the Chinese Universe

I was really hungry again and tried to ask some police officers where I could eat Beijing duck. They didn't understand me so I walked on. I decided I'd just go to the train station, get my ticket and find some grub there. (P.S. I love food. It makes me so so happy. One day I might set up a restaurant/cafe).

At the station I got my ticket pretty quickly then hunted round for some food. Despite the negative connotations chou fan (fried rice) now had for me, I did want to eat it. After much searching I found a Japanese restaurant which was perfect for me. I ordered fried mushroom rice and it was divine. Not feeling my stomach bulging, I ordered some fried dumplings. They were not as good. I read a little more of 'Brave New World' on my kindle, then headed up to the train station to catch my train.

On the train I tried my Chinese with the nice girl that was eating chicken feet from a vacuum packed bag (the smell wasn't great I'll be honest with you), then thanked the heavens to be going back to Jinan.

The beautiful view outside Jinan West railway station

After two hours we arrived at Jinan West at 6pm. I'd never been to this station before, so I knew getting home would be a challenge. In the end I got on 4 buses. I got on the K58, then jumped off at a random point on my map. I then had a choice between the 13 and the 101. I took the 13. Bad mistake. The 13 turned left when I needed it to continue straight on. I had to walk a while then got on the 101 after all. This took me a considerable distance before I had to get off. Then I took the 123 to the UniMart next to my home where I bought lots of chocolate to stuff my face on. It had been one of those days.

Inside UniMart I met an English teacher I'd never met before, she was going to a Halloween party. A Halloween party would have been the last thing I would have wanted to do. I was planning on going home, curling up on my bed, eating chocolate and watching the Matrix. I did all of that except not in that order. I devoured the chocolate as soon as I'd left the shop and watched only the first art of the Matrix. I have started to notice that lately I am not as convinced to the veracity of Hollywood films as I used to be. I am beginning to see through all of the films, seeing the actors and not the characters. Have I outgrown them? It's a strange feeling.

Back in my bed, my Beijing trip was over. Although it was at times unpleasant, it was a great experience, and I'm looking forwards to my next travelling adventure.I have caught the travel bug once more.

[Disclaimer: You may be thinking this girl is in China right now, hence she is travelling, hence she has the travel bug, but you'd be mistaken. You see I was planning on staying in Jinan for the entire time, I didn't want to see anything else. This was how I felt in Thailand. But now, I see the error of my ways.]