Great Wall of China at Badaling

[darktiger]

The Great Wall of China (literally "The long wall of 10,000 Li) is a series of stone and earthen fortifications in China, built, rebuilt, and maintained between the 5th century BC and the 16th century to protect the northern borders of the Chinese Empire during the rule of successive dynasties. Several walls, referred to as the Great Wall of China, were built since the 5th century BC, the most famous being the one built between 220 BC and 200 BC by the first Emperor of China, Qin Shi Huang. That wall was much further north than the current wall, built during the Ming Dynasty, and little of it remains. The Great Wall is one of the existing megastructures and the world's longest human-made structure, stretching over approximately 6,400 km (4,000 miles)[1] from Shanhai Pass in the east to Lop Nur in the west, along an arc that roughly delineates the southern edge of Inner Mongolia. It is also the largest human-made structure ever built in terms of surface area and mass.















More pictures from my China trip can be found here http://themoores.zenfolio.com/f480140271/

[ShutteredEye]

Yup. Definitely on my list of places to visit.

Nice shots!

[LoungeLizard]

Oh...I want to go back...I want to go back...

[AllenAyres]

Great shots, make me wanna go :)

[hmiles619]

what makes that particular portion of the wall so popular?

[KrazyKevin]

Same question here. No doubt it's a place I'd love to see and tour, but, all the people walking on it, where do you walk to? Seems like a very very long walk from one point to another. Are you walking to higher points to see the landscape? Or, are there things to read and actually learn about at different points? Different battles and such? This one section does seem very crowded. Nice pictures also.

[LoungeLizard]

It is popular because it is easily accessible and where all the tour buses go. Only way to go to other places is by private transportation and hiking!

[darktiger]

Some of the other ones are for the common people/soldiers. So they are more steep, but less crowded. I went for the scene and to learn some of the history. One reason it was crowded is because that week in may is one of their labor weeks. Something like a national holiday where a lot of people get a week off from work...