Legs of Steel

Today we paid a visit to Mr. and Mrs. Ming. We went to the tomb of the 3rd emperor of the Ming Dynasty. Thirteen of the 16 Ming Dynasty emperors were buried up in the hills near the Great Wall just outside of Beijing. The art of finding a good burial site was safety and security, which meant this area was perfect because it was surrounded on three sides by mountains. We also walked “The Sacred Way” which is the path the emperor had to walk to visit the tombs of the ancestors on their sort of Chinese memorial day. The walk was filled with huge marble statues of mythical animals.

Who needs a “Legs of Steel” workout video when you’ve got the Great Wall of China? It was built between 400ish to 200ish BC. It originally spanned 3,800 miles and seven sections of the wall were made by seven different kingdoms of China. It was then all connected in the 200s when all the kingdoms were united by Qin Shi Huangdi. Today you can’t actually walk from one end to the other. Many portions of the wall are in ruins, but we did walk a small section at Badaling. I’m not going to lie to you, that wall was steep; some of those stairs were a little wicked (not wicked awesome). Other sections of the wall didn’t have stairs, they had ramped walkways, some of which had a 60 degree incline. Yikes, feel the burn…this wall isn’t for any sissy walkers.

We also stopped at a cloisonne factory...you’re probably wondering what that is…a brass and enamel craft. These artisans work by hand to create fine vases, plates, and other decorative items. I think I’ll let the photos speak…

Dinner tonight was the very traditional Peking Duck. You can't go to Beijing and not get the duck they're famous for...I just wasn't planning on getting the head of the duck too. :)

Last interesting fact I want to share today is on education. Dearest students, think twice the next time you want to grumble when I assign you an essay or any other homework for that matter. You are so lucky to live in a country where public education is free (yeah, aside from the taxes that your parents pay, you know what I mean). Everything I’ve read about education in China was confirmed by our tour guide. He told us that, yes, students are required to have 10 years of education, but the government does not pay for it. The government requires education and they expect the families to pay out of pocket. On average, Li told us that families spend 300,000 Yuan to put a child through school from the start to finish (not including college). Yeah, the conversion on that amount is $38,800 US. Yikes, and it really is a huge financial hardship on many families in China.