Travelogue 9-10 Dateline: Cedarvale, Kangaroo Valley, New South Wales, Australia; May 5, 2010—Just as it began warming up in China, I am sent down under where the Aussies are entering into winter. But Australia’s winter and China’s winter are two very different things…I hope. But there are some unfinished details about China I have to tidy up before telling of kangaroos, wallabies and the like.

After my return from Russia, we decided to have a school outing to the Great Wall. The students were excited, as were the staff. The date was set for Thursday, April 22. Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday of that week were cut and polished in

the womb of weather and came forth prepared for picnics, outdoor weddings, flying kites. But we were in class those three halcyon days. Thursday we awoke to the sound of a steady, cold rain. The surrounding mountains wore mourning veils of gray mist. The staff thought it better we wait till Friday but the students were so excited they all voted to go in spite of the inclement weather, rain and all. We did.

We walked quite a way from the school through a steady drizzle to a main road where we were to catch a bus to Cheng Ping. From Cheng Ping we walked a couple kilometers to the bus line which would take to Badaling, the section of the Great Wall which was our day’s destination. By the time we arrived at the Wall it was pouring down rain. The students? As excited and cheerful as if this was one of the perfect days we had just let slip by.

From sodden huddles under the portico of a large building, the students would

splash through the gauntlet of raindrops to souvenir shops to purchase 2 RMB ponchos of whisper thin plastic. They came in pastel colors so after a while we looked like a lumpy gathering of Easter eggs. I was one of the blue eggs and as they stretched the gossamer film around me, I became a broken egg. They are made for Chinese people, most of whom are rather small.

As the rain abated just a bit the sodden, happy mass of us took off for the entrance to the Wall. It was cold but at last, we were going to mount the Wall. The nerve damage in my left leg was a hindrance but I had a pair of great trekking poles which helped a lot. You have probably all seen pictures of the Great Wall. Massive gray ramparts creasing the sharply undulating hills for as far as the eye can see. How many vanquished prisoners wore out their weary lives hauling huge blocks of rock up these impossible steeps, only heaven knows. Over the many Chinese dynasties in which the Great Wall was built, it has eroded, been built, rebuilt and extended many times. The latest construction took place during the Ming Dynasty (1368-1644) and the length was then over 6,000 kilometer

s. This is the wall often referred as “The Great Wall”. But if all the fortified walls built in the different dynasties around northern China are included, the total length would exceed 31,000 miles. T

hat’s hard for me to wrap my mind around since I have walked the Wall. And America, in 2010, can build a fence to defend its southern border. Shame on us.

Some of the students hovered near me, anxious to help the “old man” up the steep grade to the Hero’s Tower. As miserable as the weather was, I loved every step. When we finally were all gathered at the Hero’s Tower, which was as far as we could go on this portion of the Wall, we opened our packs and had lunch. The rain turned to sleet and then, of all things, it started showing heavily. Somehow it only added to the festival spirit all the students seemed to possess and they had passed it on to all of the staff. There were many people at the wall this day which surprised me. Seems in China, when an outing is planned, you execute the plan.

Well, I am finishing this section up on May 20 and China is far behind. The last day they took me to the Forbidden City, mainly because there were two visitors from Poland there and they wanted to see it so I tagged along. Parting early, I went to the airport to check in for my flight. “Do you have a visa for Australia?” I was asked. I didn’t even think to check if I needed one. So here I was, flying in two hours and no visa. Thankfully the visa is electronic and with a bit of searching, I found a business center and soon was legal to enter the down under country where I have been now for three weeks. More about that later.

God’s blessings,

Don