Another early start again today to ensure we avoided the worst of the traffic 'en route' for the Great Wall, which stretches for 6000 kilometres and dates back to the Ming period. We were glad that it was a warm, sunny day (around 22 degrees) as it had been raining the day before we arrived - not good climbing conditions. Sally, our guide, informed us that tourists were allowed to climb the Wall at different points but that we were going to the most difficult and demanding of them all - at Juyuonguan Pass! Here the Wall rises very steeply to 880 metres with stone steps (of varying depth & height - from about 10-45cms) stretching upward through various stages to the fifth one at the top. Because of the steeply curving angle of the Wall we couldn't actually see our destination until we reached the 4th stage - the photo on the right shows the Wall up to the 2nd stage (you can just see the 4th stage in the distance) .... 
We were given 2 hours to get to the top and back down again and Carol was very proud to be one of the five of our group who made it all the way (even though she was 15 minutes late back to the coach). The views at the top were amazing although it was still rather hazy - as you can see from the photos! Thanks to Brian who waited to walk back down with her - John had got side-tracked with an Australian woman - typical(!) who pointed out that, the apparent Chinese fascination with his feet was nothing to do with their size but because they were covered in freckles! Anyway, Carol was delighted to have made it and had a small brass plaque engraved with her name and the date as a keepsake. This was definitely one of the highlights of the trip for her even though her knees ached for days afterwards. 
After our exhausting but exhilarating morning we stopped off at a Cloisonne factory where we were shown how they make this enamelware - first introduced into China during the Yuan dynasty. First, a base is made of bronze or copper (usually a vase) and then thin copper wires are glued over the surface to produce a network of tiny cells. Into each of these cells mineral paints of different hues are introduced by means of a dropper. Once dry, the article is fired, the process is repeated then burnished. Carol quite liked some of the final products but John shared the view of many that this technique produces somewhat tacky, gaudy results.....
We had a very nice lunch at the factory, however, before heading for the famous Summer Palace and the longest corridor in the world (see below). By now it was raining again so, what should have been a rather pleasant stroll through this beautiful park of lakeside pagodas became a bit of a washout. We decided to take one of the dragon boats back across the lake to the bridge of seventeen arches but got very wet waiting to board.
We were glad to make our way back to the coach and on to our hotel passing by the new Bird's Nest Stadium and the rest of the Olympic 2008 village still under construction.
Tonight we were treated to a traditional Peking Duck Dinner at a local restaurant - a fitting end to another exciting day!
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