The Remnant Wall He Bie

I'm always up for a challenge and some adventure. After climbing The Great Wall at Badaling, the hostel hostess suggested I might like to to see the Remnant Wall and go for a bit of a hike. Sure! This sounds amazing. I handed over 100RMB (about $15AUD) for a private driver and a local villager to take me on this trek.

He Bie is about a 30min drive from Badaling - There isn't too much there, from what I could see. It is a rural area with no tourists. We picked up my guide (who didn't speak English, so I couldn't get his name and headed out to the starting point for the trek.

We pulled up pretty much just on the side of the road... looking for a pathway or something, I asked (or gestured) where are we walking... My guided pointed into the thick jungle like scrub... AWESOME!

After about 45min of climbing up the side of the mountain (from what I could work out its close to 1000m high) we finally reach the ruins of The Great Wall. I stood, catching my breath, for a moment and took in the majestic beauty of where I was. In the middle of no-where, on the top of a mountain, staring at the wall.

My guide popped into the bush - I assumed to go to the bathroom, only to return with a can of beer. He had a secret stash! AMAZING! So we sat on the wall for a bit, in the shade... while I was over-coming my dumb-struck view of the world and he sipped on his warm mountain beer.

This by far was the BEST experience I had in China. We hiked up the wall to the 9th tower (before we had to turn back after running out of water)

This is a HARD hike. Most of the time I was crawling on my hands and knees and half of the wall was missing, but it's so amazing! I recommend you do it, it show you a view of the world that will take your breath away.

The Great Wall

We were warned by several travelers we had met along our way through China to avoid going anywhere near Badaling. We were told it is that crowded you can’t even move on the wall. So naturally we were expecting the swarms of crowds with pushing and shoving.

In order to get to Badaling we had to catch an overnight train from Xi’an. The train ride was great. Overnight trains, to me, always scream adventure – This is why we opted to train-it rather than fly this leg. The hard sleeper (which is 6 bunk-beds in a cabin, 3 stacked on each side – no door, with bedding) set us back about 280RMB (about $44AUD). The train ride takes about 12hrs (all depending on which train you get.)

You will get off at Beijing West, the station is a little confusing at first, as it is a ‘country’ train station. You will need to catch a bus to get to the metro or just jump in a cab. This was the first experience we had where we found it hard to communicate. We couldn’t find anyone to speak English and the directions we had were not written in Chinese characters. We managed to find a kind man who was able to write the area we needed to go in Chinese characters for us. We sucked it up and just gave the directions to a cab driver – hoping we would get to where we needed to be.

Two hours later and 300RMB on the metre (about $47AUD) we arrived in Badaling. It was pretty much empty. Where were all the swarms of people?

We stayed for 2 nights at the Great Wall Courtyard Hostel. It was cheap clean and the hostess was amazing. The food was brilliant and they knew the area well and were more than happy to give ideas and tips on things to do. We headed up to check out the The Great Wall at about 3:30pm There were a few tourist walking about but no more than 100 – And that’s pretty much nothing when you consider the size of the wall and how scarcely people are spread out.

I hit the North side first – It’s a hard walk – Straight up with lots of stairs. Its do-able but by no means ‘a walk in the park’ so you can imagine how surprised I was to see some female tourist walking the wall in ridiculously high heels.

By the time I got to the 3 garrison tower the wall was empty. I continued onto the sixth tower and just sat there, on top of the world – alone – overlooking Badaling, on the Great wall of China. Did I mention I was ALONE. Not a single soul past me for at least an hour. 

I watched the sun begin to set and then descended down the wall to the third tower on the south side.

Apparently it is very rare for the wall to be lit up. Our host from the hostel came and chased us down the following afternoon to tell us that a VIP was in town the the Wall would be lit for about and hour. We were lucky to see this - It was extremely pretty and again - Not a soul in sight!

Just a side note - We were here on a Thursday and Friday - So I assume this is why it was so quiet - I imagine the weekends is when it becomes unbearably over-crowded.

 

 

Yes Mom...

Looking for a bite to eat in Sydney?

Are you a veggie head?

Vegan?

Or just like a good break from eating meat?

Well Mother Chu's can cater to you needs! A lovely selection of Chinese vegan and vegetarian meals to dive into. Mother Chu's is located on Pitt Street in Sydney - It is just a few minutes stroll from Central Train station (heading north into the City) or from Town hall station (head south).

Graced with the company of two old and good friends, Gary and Kylie, Mother Chu's is a great place to catch up and share a laugh amongst friends.

As far as price goes, it is a little expensive than other vegetarian places in Sydney, but its still cheap and yummy!

www.motherchusvegetarian.com.au

Gnostic corners of Woy woy

Ah Woy Woy - Take if back a few notches to the free spirited organic communities of times gone by... or times moving forward. I was lucky on this day, while I was visiting Woy Woy there was a local community market with a great drumming session taking place.

There a an energy that bonces around the southern tip of the NSW Central Coast. It is so incredibly laid back and 'easy going'.

It only a 45 min drive from Northern Sydney and sits along the lovely coast line, with little surf towns spotting the shores.

Check out the Gnostic Corner, its a fantastic mix of all things 'hippy' and a haven for someone like me! Comprising of...

Gnostic Forrest - Spiritual 'New-age' shop
Gnostic Bunch - Flower shop
Gnostic Mana - Yummy Cafe
Gnostic Healing - Natural healing centre
Gnostic Organics - Organic food and products
Gnostic Hemporium - hemp, bamboo and organic cotton products

Royal National park and Harbourfront lunch Wollongong

Are you looking for something different to do on the weekend?

If you live in Sydney or are travelling around Sydney - take a weekend break and head south! Pack your trainers or hiking shows into a small rucksack with a bottle of water and some snacks, because you are about to see some of the most scenic and fun hiking trails in the Royal National Park!

The Royal National Park is a 50min drive south of Sydney. You will need to pay to get into the park (as  is with all National Parks in NSW) the daily entry fee is $11 AUD (if you intend on visiting a lot of National Parks if may be worth looking at getting an annual pass.)

We did the Werrong Beach Track - Amazing! Its only 2km but it is a hard walking track. It starts at the top of the cliff at Otford lookout. Take a camel back and snacks with you as well as your bathers - the secluded beach at the bottom is will be tempting as a rewarding dip when you get to the bottom of the track.

You will be hungry after that hike and swim - So swap your hiking boots for some comfy flats and continuing driving south to Wollongong - head to the Harbourfront. The Harbourfront has casual and fine dining options. We sat in the cafe section and indulged in courgette flowers stuffed with gooey goodness, gnocchi and a delish sticky date pud for dessert. the Cafe is Veggie friendly but not some much Vegan Friendly. it is a little pricey - but the food is amazing, and you do get what you pay for - delicious goodness!

Berrima Village

Step back in time to a town that still breathes the old way of life. Berrima, a quiet sleepy country town in NSW's Southern Highlands is just a skip hop and a smooth drive from Sydney city.

It has everything a small country town needs - just. Bring cash with you if you are arriving early in the morning and make sure your gas tank is full of petrol. There is no Petrol station and no ATM. Well, there is one ATM, in the pub... which doesn't open until 11am. Not to fear though most of the cafes and shops do take EFTPOS - but just in case - bring some cash!

The town is extremely picturesque and if you are a buddy photographer - bring your camera. there are so many angles and textures and colours to capture - you will have a ball.

Make sure you visit the Court House and old gaol. for a small country town it's quiet and impressive building with sandstone pillars framing the front, its hard to miss it.

When you get hungry head to the pub. Its good food at a reasonable price, but if you're after more variety (there are other cafes around that offer amazing food in Berrima) Bowral is only a 20min drive north.