We went out to Luodai, a nearby town whose residents are 90% Hakka. One of the main attractions there is a replica of the Great Wall. You can see the grey camo over the red bricks, which are made locally. This wall is about eight years old but looks a lot like the original.
We tried to save money by busing it (a total of 5 kuai for the three buses we needed to take) but it took over two hours to get there and so we were climbing the wall in the hottest part of the day. There ain't much shade there and the sun was killing us - near the top I was taking twenty steps, then lying down, then taking twenty more. They did have periodic shady spots where you could buy water and incense for the temple at the top.
Gate to Jinlong Temple at the top:
The teahouse at the top was breezy and very refreshing after the climb.
Even though it was built strictly as an attraction I enjoyed this wall better than i would have liked the real one. We had close up views of rural life on either side.
We asked at the top for an alternate route and they directed us to the old way down the mountain - a trail through the forest of mostly rock stairs. (I wish we had ascended this way.) There were birds, enormous butterflies, and what sounded like cicadas chirping constantly. We passed some abandoned farm houses and a huge cistern.
Somehow, people used those steps on the side to climb down and get water.
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