The Great Wall

Ni hao, friends and family. We just returned to Beijing after an exhilarating three day trip to a small village at the base of the Great Wall of China. To reach the village, we hiked along a little known and unrepaired section of the wall-- it took us about 4 hours to reach the village from where our van dropped us off. The village had ten families, one of which--the He family-- has a few rooms they open for travelers. Kaitlin, Shibani, Grace, Shelby, Catey, Molly, Allegra, and Meridith all shared one large "kang" style bed. The boys split up into three rooms and shared beds of their own, with Harrison, Jake, and Sam on one kang, Brett, Jeremy, and Ben on another, and Eric, Jacob, Daniel, and Dan on the final kang.

The He family was amazingly friendly. We had a long talk with Mr. He about his life on the farm and his hopes for his son. He was open and honest, sharing his feelings about everything from the economy, to politics, to music. He asked for some help on the farm, so we cleared a small field of weeds and planted beans, then helped plant walnut trees. It was hard work!

Mrs. He was just as kind. She taught us how to cook jiaozi, or pot-stickers. We also got to meet Grandpa He, an 85 year old man who has seen just about everything.

Life in the village was a welcome change of pace from the hectic schedule of Beijing. The village was high enough in the mountains that the evening weather was chilly, and the skies were a brilliant blue (after the smog of central Beijing). We spent a lot of time playing traditional Chinese games, including mah-jiang and "kill the landlord."

Our first stop upon our return to the city: Peking Duck! We followed up our rustic, country-side adventure with an extravagant meal at Beijing's best and most famous restaurant.

Tomorrow, we head back into the country-side to an orphanage. More busy days ahead!

Goodnight, and we miss you all,

The China Crew