Mutianyu Great Wall

After Ronald Reagan and Queen Elizabeth II, it's our turn to set foot on the Great Wall commonly called the Long Wall by Chinese people. We picked the Mutianyu section as it's supposed to be less crowded with astonishing panoramas and decent facilities including a toboggan. Yes, a massive toboggan track to take you down to the base.

The fastest and cheapest way to reach Mutianyu is the '916 Express' bus departing from the Dongzhimen Station. Our idea was to take that bus and find tourists to share a taxi for the last 18km remaining to reach the Great Wall. What happened was slightly different to what we had planned...

Three bus stops before we were supposed to exit, and as we were half sleeping in our seats, a man (that we thought to be a police officer) rush into the bus and ask us to follow him outside with another Chinese couple. Without understanding what was going on, we were outside, the bus was gone, and people were shouting in Chinese around us. Soon enough, we realised that we had been chosen by that Chinese couple to share a taxi with them. Being the only European on that bus, it was obvious we were also heading off to the Great Wall. Still, it was a very unusual and disturbing way to share a cab with someone. Lucky enough, the driver and our two new 'friends' for the ride were dropped at the entrance of one of the Wonders of the World and the adventure was about the get real.

The wall is spectacular and is a bucket list travel destination if you are in Beijing. The wall is fully restored and family friendly. The 23 watch towers are spread out every 100 meters on an ascending mountain ridge. Some of the watchtowers built on the Mutianyu section are rare in the architectural history of the Great Wall. Both sides of the wall have a crenellated parapet which is also a rare feature of the wall. The soldiers could fire arrows at the enemy from both sides.

Wearing comfortable walking shoes, we challenged ourselves to explore most the 2.5 km stretch. We started by a pleasant chairlift to the Tower 6 and then we climbed one step at a time. Some steps more difficult than others. We could have used the cable car which takes you directly to Tower 14 but the chairlift was definitively more fun.

We ascended to the top of the hill enjoying the watchtowers and the fresh air they provided. Finally, we were there, at the last Tower 23. We sweat out all the water we had brought with us but we did it! Now, we could rest, and get rewarded with the most beautiful scenery of the wall snaking its way across the mountains. After more pictures and the must-do selfies, we headed back to where we started the ascension, a few hours ago, for the final thrill - the much-anticipated toboggan ride down.

The luge speed was controlled by pushing or pulling a lever between our legs. We tried to shoot downhill as fast as we could... just to be slow down by a Chinese man crawling down the track. Was he scared of heights?

It took only about five minutes to slide all the way down but the ride offered breathtaking views along the way. Can we do it again?

Overall, the Great Wall of China did not disappoint and will remain a highlight of our Chinese trip. As we took the all day to explore the wall, and as we were stuck in horrific traffic jams on our way back to Beijing downtown, we only end up the day by a relaxing meal and a cold beer!