Jiayuguan City

The Great Wall of China. Today was solely about that. This city is home to the western part of the wall. First up, we visited the first beacon tower of the great wall in Jiayuguan. It is also called the Tao Lai tower as it is located next to the Tao Lai river. This beacon tower had an important role by acting as a vanguard in warning by beacon. Unfortunately its rubble now.

Next, we visited the Overhanging Great Wall. It is also called Badaling of the West. It was built on the eastern slope of the Black Mountain and it overlooks the Gobi Desert. This was constructed in order to protect not only the country but the traders along the Silk Road. It was quite a workout climbing up here but totally worth the struggle. On the way down, people have put padlocks on the railing and it represents their wishes/prayers. I suppose they believe it will come true if they do this.

There is a place called the Jiayuguan Pass. This is a complex city connected to the Overhanging Great Wall. To say it simply, it appears to be a military base with an inner and outer city with multiple buildings and towers of different functions to organize and strategize the ancient military force. Not forgetting its surrounding moat. So if enemies do get through that 4.2 metre wall, they are going to have a tough time penetrating this city of multiple walls and doors.

To get to Jiayuguan Pass, you can either walk from the main entrance or rent a bicycle for ¥10 (which was what we did). We did a loop around the lake and took some pretty good pictures of the scenery. I hadn't rode a bike for sometime so this was refreshing.

There is a lot of history here. Even the little bit that I gathered today was too much to write. It made me realize that I need to hit the history books.Read more