The Great Wall, Badaling, China

Here we are at the wall that can be spotted from space. Getting to the Great Wall was nothing short of a Great Adventure. This morning we were found lurking around Tiananmen Square negotiating a good deal for a day trip to the Wall. But we forget we're in China.

After a series of furious discussions wherein we're pointing, drawing, gesturing, and talking (in English) to a man who is pointing, drawing, gesturing, and talking (in Mandarin), we finally strike a deal. We're getting on a tour bus that is immediately on its way to the Great Wall. But lo and behold instead of boarding the bus (that by the way was nowhere in sight), the three "tour agents" push us into an enclosed three wheeler van with two tiny seats. Completely dumbstruck, we squeeze into the tight seats followed by another guy who packs himself in before shutting the door. He's standing, no falling on top of us, yelling speedy instructions to the two guys on the driver's seat. The toy-like van is now hurtling down the streets of Beijing at break neck speed. Only there's no place in there to move our necks or breathe or even think. Surely this is not what they call a bus, right? So much for striking a cheap deal, this two hour ride will be the death of us! As usual, Kavita is conjuring up images of being kidnapped in China... but who would they call for ransom? We're not carrying that much money either to justify this grand robbery effort.

We manage to turn our heads a little a get a sneak peek as to where we are. Our toy van is still rolling at break neck speed, only we're headed completely against the busiest Beijing traffic. Gulp! All we can do is close our eyes and ears as the guy huddled with us continues to yell, his excitement quadrupling with each screeching turn. There's little to do but pretend we're in a Jackie Chan movie.

Fifteen minutes of drama later, we're dropped off in front of our bus. So much for the language barrier. But this is not all, we board the bus only to realize that we're the only non-Asian folks in there. Of course, the tour commentary is entirely in Mandarin all the way. Nagesh and Kavita console themselves with the thought that they need no commentary to understand the wall that can even be seen by aliens.