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Dispatches from the Field:
Exploring the Great Wall
By Ryan Ferrell
Aug. 6, 2007
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| Ferrell poses on the Great Wall, which continues to sneak through China's mountains behind him. |
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Since the last time I wrote, I've settled into my neighborhood and explored more of China. Last summer, I neglected to visit the Great Wall with UCSD’s Education Abroad Program. I have since been scolded for my neglectful traveling, which ran in complete opposition to this country's popular saying: "bu dao chang cheng, fei hao han:" “if one has not been to the Great Wall, one is not a true man.”
So, I took my first step into manhood just a few weeks ago – on a section of the Great Wall known as Shanhaiguan's First Pass Under Heaven. The end of the Ming Dynasty was plagued by rebels (or freedom fighters, depending on your perspective), who eventually kidnapped the concubine of the general controlling this part of the wall. Worried about his pickle, the general opened the wall to the Qing army, which came from Manchuria, and exacted revenge on the rebels. Ironically, the Qing, who had been kept out of China by the wall for many years, were so successful at squelching the rebellion that they went on to set up their own imperial dynasty.
Even though this section of the wall is restored (my code word in China for tacky reconstruction; in this case slapping obviously new bricks and bright white grout together), the sheer import of the history underneath my feet was overwhelming. The second section of the wall I explored, called Simatai, had a less compelling history, but was marvelously ancient and surrounded by panoramic, jaw-dislocatingly magnificent views of unmarred mountainous landscape. Leaning out of the watchtowers’ windows to gaze at the wall snaking into the horizon between sharp mountain peaks, I could imagine and appreciate the strength that allowed Chinese civilization to build such a long defensive fortification, which stretches from the Gobi Desert to the Pacific Ocean.
These direct encounters with the continuity of civilization define my experience in China. But the warmth of my neighbors is even more charming than history. Nearly every day since I last wrote, I've eaten baozi (pork-filled steamed buns) from a small restaurant (just double the width of its door) run by two cooks, brother and sister, from the southern city of Hangzhou. They enjoy hearing about where I go and ask worried questions if I miss their baozi for a day. This friendliness is the China I love. I'm quite lucky to wake up to it for two more months.
Editor's note: Due to inforseen circumstances, Ferrell had to cut short his PRIME internship in China. This is his last dispatch.
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Ferrell studies in Beijing and visited Mt. Taishan. |
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