Day 2

The second day of the retreat we had until 2:30 before getting back on the bus to Beijing. I was excited to make the most of my day. The free yoga class was at 7 am, which sincerely helped me get up and out before noon.

Kelly and I had personal yoga instructors, which in this case was kind of like having your own yoga screen, considering we couldn’t communicate again. It was a gorgeous sight, though, with the Great Wall in front of us in the morning light. It was refreshing to know what would happen next, and when I was 20 minutes from the end instead of finished.

We had our complimentary breakfast of a wild Chicken egg, yogurt with granola, bread and fresh fruit. We were also given western utensils, and I’ll admit that it didn’t feel right to eat the egg with a fork and knife, so I used chopsticks.

When we were leaving I decided, on a whim, to ask about the horseback riding. I thought I heard someone talk about it yesterday, and wondered how much it was. Luckily, like the yoga and the at-your-own-risk-Great-Wall-climb, it was free of charge. I said I was interested and was told to wait 10 minutes for the horse.

While I waited, with no expectations, I couldn’t help think about my trip to Inner Mongolia in October, where I had no idea what was happening until I was on a horse for a two hour ride through the grasslands. I am starting to relish the unexpected. I didn’t know if I’d be given a horse, to do with as I may, or, as Kelly suggested, be trotted around in a circle in the parking lot.

The answer, as it turned out, was somewhat in the middle. I wasn’t led in a circle of nothing, but I wasn’t left to my own freedom either. One of the boys who worked there led me, well, the horse and me, through the retreat and out past a gate. We went through streams and towards what looked like a small town. I saw a small waterfall and even more of the mountains past those lined with the Wall. I wanted to explore on my own, but it was clear that wasn’t an option.

When we got back I had intended to keep writing, but felt an incredible amount of energy. I was bouncing around and felt like I would never be able to sit on a bus. So instead I climbed.

I went back to the Wall’s path, and discovered a new way to get to the top. I still had to climb fist over foot, but it was the whole stretch of a mountainside, instead of a very narrow path. I came upon some wild goats, eating the hay, apparently because I’ve slipped into the past over here in China, and my life involves mountain climbing and natural goat-spotting. Regardless, that baby goat was cuuuuute.

I stumbled into a few Chinese families, all who tried incessantly to talk to me in Chinese even after I did my best, head shake, “No Chinese” statement. Even as I felt somewhat annoyed, however, it was nice to be around other people who could potentially get help or provide assistance if I were to slip off the side of a mountain.