The Great Wall of China Gubeikou to Jinshanling Hike, Hebei Province, China

Look! It's just there behind the corn!

The cooler weather is slowly moving in across Beijing and the nights are getting progressively cooler!

So this weekend we ventured further out of the city to explore an older, non restored section of China's Great Wall, which is located around 150kms North East of Beijing.

After scouring several travel blogs and websites we decided to do an overnight hike from Gubeikou to Jinshanling. This is a wild section of the Great Wall and although it is supposedly frequented by other hikers we didn't meet anyone this weekend bar an old lonely goat herder! Getting to the wall was relatively easy, even with our awful Chinese.

Kara checking the interesting brick work

Hiking on one of the most broken areas

We took an express bus to a small township (Miyun) and from there an even smaller country bus to Gubeikou in the Hebei Province. Finding a trail was the hardest bit as it was well down a small local road and then we had a mad scramble up through the undergrowth over a collapsing goat track and over a few prickle bushes.

A old section of the wall that hasn't broken down

Following the path along the wall

Looking down from a watch tower

But overall we were impressed with our timing, taking us only 4 hours to reach the start of the track from leaving Beijing! Being a wild section the track wasn't signposted nor were there any markers.

We got a little lost in the overgrown bush and then again later in a corn field. We did however have the umm.. 'pleasure' to meet some absolute scary looking spiders and later Kara found a freshly peeled snake skin on her boot (yes- seriously!).

Prepping for the next climb

Our humble abode for the evening

When we found the wall, it really only looked like a very compressed hill of orange dirt with the odd brick stuck in.

Apparently many of the original bricks were taken by locals many decades ago for whatever purpose. However as we ventured further into the mountains, sections of the wall grew more solid.

We climbed for a few hours up and down the wall as it navigated the ridges. Around 5pm we stopped for a delicious dinner and to watch the sun go down at one of the highest watch towers. Being the occasion it was (a night on the Wall), John came prepared with a mid-size bottle of spicy cab-sav- which was enjoyed thoroughly!

View back towards Gubeikou

The sunset wasn't as spectacular because it was a reasonably cloudy over cast day but we were treated with the birds singing their final song over an amazing, peaceful and serene landscape. 

Basic sleeping arrangements

Later we ventured down the wall's several watch towers, to one that we had seen with relatively flat flooring and set up our camp (meaning- laying our self inflatable air mattresses) before a few hands of cards on the roof and a munch on some sunflower seeds.

The night was unfortunately very long, very dark and VERY cold. Although we didn't have sleeping bags we dressed very warm and would recommend doing the camp much earlier in the year, when the nights are warmer. It could be a tad uncomfortable if you're not prepared. However, the next morning we rose early (not before the chickens at a far off farm though) and hiked up over another mountain to watch the sunrise. It was just beautiful, quiet and tranquil. 

Looking North in the sunrise

Sunrise over the mountains

Onwards and upwards! 

From there some of the wall was closed off with large (DANGER! Military) signage so we headed North into the bush to detour that area. The detour was longer than we thought and after almost two hours, swaddling through corn fields and up dusty rock paths we made it back to the wall. Here we sat and very much enjoyed our well deserved breakfast of canned sweet porridge beans overlooking the panoramic views towards Jingshanling and further afield- Simati. We had made it to the start of Jingshanling!

From here we clambered back onto the wall and within 3 kilometers we were on a section that had been restored back in 1984 by the government. It was very relaxing to climb the even stoned stairs and wander along the perfect paths but it was here that we decided to jump off the wall and head back to Beijing!

Looking back from Jingshanling

Visiting the wall is a must for anyone who comes to Beijing! This was most likely our last trip to the wall for the year and we had a ball! For those who want to escape the more touristy restored sections and get a feel for the ancient China or just to marvel at the absolute engineering feat it must have been to build the wall we hope you make the journey too!

Looking onwards towards Simatai

(Please be aware getting a bus back to Beijing from Jingshanling can be somewhat difficult- if you are not prepared to 'negotiate' the exorbitant prices from the taxi men it's another 5km walk to the closest bus stop.)

Tot siens,
John and Kara

Qingdao, Shandong Province, China

Qingdao bathing breath #6

Happy Mid-Autumn festival!


This weekend we celebrated the middle of Autumn and a very important date in the Chinese Calendar, the traditional beginning of the annual harvest.

Old German streets in the centre of Qingdao

During this time families celebrate by coming together and eating 'moon cake' a pastry treat filled with almost everything imaginable. The first moon cakes were used by an emperor to deliver hidden messages during war time and today symbolise the sharing of messages of love and prosperity.

With the shortening of our days, we decided to head out of Beijing and catch the last of the sunshine at the seaside. Qingdao is a very popular spot for a weekend break and is only 5.5 hours south of Beijing by bullet train (travelling at over 300kms per hour). 

Qingdao has a very interesting (and long) history. Archeological findings have put human presence in the area first over 6000years ago! But a city was only formed during the Eastern Zhou Dynasty and then grew into a large and prospering fishing village at the end of the Qing dynasty (200BC). The city was ceded to the Germans in 1897 after two missionaries were murdered. The town then flourished under German organisation and was transformed into a large port city, the once small seaside fishing city grew substantially.

Exploring the fresh food market

Schools, churches and the now famous Tsingtao brewery were built. During the First World War Germany fled the area and lost the town to Japan, the population then stagnated for many decades. Under treaty, the area came under Japanese rule until 1922 when it was returned to Chinese control and named Qingdao. During the Second World War the Japanese again entered the area but it was later returned at the end of the war in 1945. 

Seafood everywhere! 

Today Qingdao is a holiday hotspot and a large metropolitan city with a population of over 9 million. During the summer Chinese tourists flock to swim, eat seafood, eat more seafood and drink jugs of the local larger (which you can also get take away in a plastic bag). There is a real holiday vibe to the old part of the city. Qingdao is fishy.
There is a magnitude of live seafood outside every restaurant and trash cans overflowing with carcasses all mixed with the salty ocean air.

Although seafood is a speciality of the area the vast amounts of it everywhere make you question it's origin and having seafood in buckets of shallow water outside in such hot weather sure had us questioning whether it was safe to eat.

Low tide at Bathing beach #3

After leaving Beijing early on Monday morning we arrived at Qingdao around lunch time. We walked from the train station towards our hostel (a refurbished church built in the 1900) and wandered around the old town area. Qingdao was like the China we had imagined 'China' would be. The old city was a real eclectic mix of old European style buildings covered in power lines, neon lights and washing.

Mass feeding grounds....

When we first arrived, Qingdao reminded us of the Chinatowns we have experienced in different cities. 

Later that evening, (on accident) we ordered a very large and somewhat uncooked mixed seafood dish at a local restaurant for dinner. It was so weird and we still don't know what half of the 'meat' was!

Seafood medley! 

We explored the local pier and wandered through the old German city (noticeable by its distinct orange roofs). We had some light rain in the evening and returned back to the hostel after dinner. 

Paddling at the end of the Zier Pier 

On Tuesday it was a beautiful day, the air was clear and the weather wasn't nearly has hot and humid.

After a heavy noodle breakfast we set off to walk the coastline. The tide was out and (shockingly) all of the rock pools were like some kind of mass animal feeding ground. Some folk had brought live crustaceans down and were selling them off in little pools but everyone else had little sticks and were poking at the minuscule mussel and oyster shells along the rocks.

Stout, Larger, Ale...mmmmm, Tsingtao Brews

Temple hopping on Zhongshan Mountain

The whole lack of respect for earths ecological and environmental system was disappointing. We moved on and walked along the rocky coast to 'bathing beach no1'. The smell of the ocean was amazing and made us both homesick for NZ. Everything else was very different though; from the swimsuits to the touts every 10meters and just the amount of people in general.


From there we ventured up Mount Zhongshan which is home to the Qingdao TV tower with views across Qingdao and over the China Yellow Sea.

It was nearly dark by the time we returned and prepared ourselves for a spot of local Tsingtao beer tasting. Mmmmm... Not bad! Our day certainly ended on a flavourful note!

Enjoying the view over Qingdao

Wednesday brought a tremendous amount of sunshine and after some potato sandwiches (carb loading) we caught a local bus to Fushan mountain. We heard about some very old Japanese and German military tunnels built under the mountain but after several hours climbing along the saddle we couldn't figure how to get in! With the fear of a growing sunburn and an unquenchable thirst, we returned back to the old town for a final paddle in the China Yellow Sea and an early dinner.

Climbing the saddle peak of Fushan Mountain

Visiting the seaside was hugely relaxing. However, It makes us terribly homesick and so grateful for the clean, people free beaches we had in New Zealand.

We won't have the opportunity to return to the China Yellow Sea in the near future so we really made the most of our time and definitely recommend Qingdao for a weekend break!


Tot siens,
John and Kara

Starfish for sale in the rockpools 

Spices for sale at the market!

Feasting on moon cake

Longqing Gorge, Yanqing County, China

Looking down across Yanqing County

Yesterday was an untypical, irregular and fantastic Beijing day. It rained. It rained all day! But with a positive weather forecast for today we prepared ourselves for an adventure to Longqing gorge. 

So this morning, we woke early to an amazing bright and fresh morning. The rain had fully cleared and the sky was bluer than how most people feel on a Monday. 

The tacky dragon escalator 

The air quality was outstanding and so we set off at 6.30am with our horrendous translated directions to find the gorge.

Five hours later, one cramped train ride, one KFC watery iced coffee, three regional buses and a substantial amount of arguing with taxi drivers that although, yes, we didn't know where we were going exactly, we knew we would get there by bus (Wo bu yao, xie xie -I don't want, thank you), we arrived.

At first we weren't sure we were in the right place, it looked deserted, empty and abandoned. This can't be, we're in CHINA! Where are the people? Perhaps they were hanging around at the Great Wall today? We weren't exactly early anymore either. We didn't ponder on it long, but took advantage just to meander slowly to the ticket office and up to the gorge.

Cruise along the gorge

The gorge hides behind the 70metre Longqing dam which is accessible via a large, tacky and quite funny escalator dragon thing. 

Crossing over the dam you can opt to take a boat cruise down the gorge (highly recommended!). By the time we made it to the boats, there had been some poor folk waiting in the hot sun for quite some time (due to lack of passenger numbers). However the boat left quite promptly after we boarded. 

The Longqing gorge can be considered the same if not more beautiful than the Three Gorges of the Yangtze River with substantially steeper mountainous cliffs and cleaner, deeper and greener water. 

Beautiful Longqing gorge

Another photo op! 

The boat cruised down through the S-bends and we got the opportunity to admire the amazing limestone cliffs and forested nature. It was spectacular and surprising unlike anything we have seen in China. 

The boat looped around and stopped at a dock so we adventurously followed some people off and after we took photos of the departing vessel we realised we were alone! 

Climbing the mountain! (Spot John)

Reaching the illusion pavilion

There were several attractions on the hill, and a sign about a Pavilion of Illusion. We didn't know when the next boat would be back so we had nothing to lose walking up to the pavilion! After a strenuous 900m climb up the cliff face we made it! The view was outstanding! It was around this time Kara's sun hat attracted some happy go lucky wasps and somehow our earlier prepared picnic lunch was accidently thrown on the ground. 

Deep, green and stunning! 

The downward climb wasn't memorable but the remainder of the boat trip back to the dam was just beautiful. We wandered around the dam and walked through a cliff tunnel and back up the tacky dragon escalator a second time. We didn't really want to leave, it was so beautiful. At the dam entrance is a colourful cable car heading up the hill side so we wanted to check out what was up there!

Of course we took the more active option and hiked up!.. and the view was just breathtaking!

The view from the immortal taoist temple

Our trip home unfortunately wasn't much shorter than it took to get there. This time one bus, one long walk and one train trip! It's really a bit of skill to consistently miss your bus and drag what should be a 2 hour max journey into 5 hours. Hahaha!

Turning through the S-bends

We loved Longqing gorge and hope that if you visit Beijing in the future you have some time to go!

Tot siens,

John and Kara

Looking down on Longqing gorge