China

Arrival

We spent exactly 17 hours in the most populous country on the planet due to a long layover on the way to Seoul. When I bought the ticket I didn't believe what we would encounter during this time....

How did I find such a rich program? I just typed "Layover in Beijing" into the search engine and immediately links popped up offering trips of different lengths (5h, 10h, 15, one day, two days, etc.). Everything was perfectly planned. We had a private car with a personal guide in English, the price included entrances to the Wall and the Forbidden City, travel to and from the airport. All in all it came out to $115 + individual food and souvenirs.

To start, it's worth remembering that a few years ago you weren't allowed to leave the airport and had to wait in the terminal for a connecting flight. Now the policy has changed (mainly due to tourism) and it is possible to get a so-called 72-hour transit visa where you are allowed to see downtown Beijing. However, a few conditions must be met: 1) Valid passport + possibly a visa to a third country 2) A purchased ticket to a third country (for less than 72 hours). However, after my experience with the Chinese immigration process, I will consider this option next time. Multiple checkpoints, hundreds of people at the counters, screaming and crying, stress along with fatigue and uncompromising officers will really make you consider transferring in another country. All it takes is for them to not like you, to misunderstand your ticket or visa, or just when they are in a bad mood, and you may not be allowed to continue or at best go through another (unpleasant) security check. In our case everything went fine, thankfully. But I remember we were sick to our stomachs, stressed and praying to be let in. It helped a lot that we met quite a few Czechs traveling to Bangkok, Australia, and we shared travel experiences and future plans together, which helped to dissipate the stress.

The Great Wall of China

After all the necessary checks and making sure our luggage had been checked all the way to Seoul and wasn't circling the baggage claim, we were finally in the arrivals hall looking for an Asian-looking person holding a sign with my name on it. And indeed! The lady was waiting impatiently for us and the sign and immediately took over, greeted us pleasantly and led us to the car. After getting out, we found ourselves (finally) on Chinese soil for the first time. Smog everywhere, thousands of people, chaos. I dare say that without a guide we would have gotten lost very easily.

On the way to our first stop - the Great Wall of China - we listened to a lecture about the history of Chinese dynasties, bloodshed, etc. We didn't really pay much attention due to both fatigue and being glued to the glass, our eyes devouring our surroundings. The Great Wall of China is located a few dozen kilometers outside of Beijing. The surroundings look terrible - half demolished buildings, dogs running around, mess, no rules. In retrospect, though, I take it very positively, as I was glad to experience rural life as well, and not just megalomaniacal Beijing.

After a lot of traveling, we could already see signs of walls stretching hundreds of kilometers across the hills (mountains like a cow). There is a large parking lot for tourists, educational signs, toilets, small restaurants, and stalls.