Now that we have spent time in Beijing in Shanghai, we have formed some thoughts on both cities. Except for the historical sites in Beijing, we did not enjoy the city itself very much. Shanghai on the other hand does not have as many historical sites to visit but is a much more modern and cosmopolitan city. We have really enjoyed exploring the city and eating good food. The city has gone through rapid development in the past twenty years and has an interesting mix of old and new and east and west. One of the most striking things about Shanghai are the buildings and skyscrapers.
Great Wall
Badaling is an hour bus ride from Beijing and is the most visited section of the Great Wall. After going through the admission gate, we took a right and headed north along the Great Wall. We soon encountered gridlock as there were many people on the northern route. Yen turned around and noticed that there were not as many people going the other direction and made the command decision to head south. We soon discovered why there were fewer people on the southern path as it became extremely steep. We were well conditioned from walking around everywhere the past few weeks though and hiked up to the highest point enjoying the scenery and fresh air along the way.
P.S. We took the bullet train and arrived in Shanghai last night. We will be here for one week exploring the city before heading to Japan.
