Springtime at the Great Wall
My favorite springs to watch unfold, as I have blogged here before, were those two that I spent in Kentucky. I just caught myself almost writing the same introduction to this post that I had to that one. I had just started typing something about the redbuds glowing as though they were on fire in those last rays before the sun had lowered enough in the sky to be called setting, but then I had a weird feeling that I had typed all this before. I am surprised it was FOUR years ago, and not, uh, last week. It's a good thing this blog is searchable. I'd hate to repeat myself.
Anyway, there are worse places to experience spring than Beijing, I am sure, and being out at the Great Wall somewhere is as good a place as any to watch it all unfold.
More after the jump
We normally spend our time at Great Wall locations that are a little out of the way and less accessible to the big tour groups. Our times at the Wall anymore are occasions of quiet and solitude, luxuries in someplace like Beijing. Once in a while find ourselves at one of the more tourist heavy locations, and back in early April we spent a short afternoon at the Shuiguan Great Wall. We didn't want to miss the flowering trees, so being short on time we had to go somewhere close.
I remembered why the Badaling-area Great Wall are still popular with tourists. These sections are fairly accessible, and provide lovely views.
A couple of weekends later we were at Zhuangdaokou, in the Huanghuacheng area. Since it was after mid-April I was surprised but so happy to see there were still fruit and nut trees flowering.
And then the next weekend after that we went to a section that is between Huanghuacheng and Sancha. We saw few if any flowers, but lots of green. There were even a few tiny green peaches.
As the brambly bushes and trees get thicker with leaves in the coming weeks, these paths will be more difficult to get across. I'm glad we did this in the spring.
And so passes for us another Great Wall spring.
Anyway, there are worse places to experience spring than Beijing, I am sure, and being out at the Great Wall somewhere is as good a place as any to watch it all unfold.
More after the jump
We normally spend our time at Great Wall locations that are a little out of the way and less accessible to the big tour groups. Our times at the Wall anymore are occasions of quiet and solitude, luxuries in someplace like Beijing. Once in a while find ourselves at one of the more tourist heavy locations, and back in early April we spent a short afternoon at the Shuiguan Great Wall. We didn't want to miss the flowering trees, so being short on time we had to go somewhere close.
I remembered why the Badaling-area Great Wall are still popular with tourists. These sections are fairly accessible, and provide lovely views.
A couple of weekends later we were at Zhuangdaokou, in the Huanghuacheng area. Since it was after mid-April I was surprised but so happy to see there were still fruit and nut trees flowering.
And then the next weekend after that we went to a section that is between Huanghuacheng and Sancha. We saw few if any flowers, but lots of green. There were even a few tiny green peaches.
As the brambly bushes and trees get thicker with leaves in the coming weeks, these paths will be more difficult to get across. I'm glad we did this in the spring.
And so passes for us another Great Wall spring.
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