First of all, let's visit the Greatest Wall. We went there and the place was packed with so many people both tourists and local Chinese. I thought: Oh, man how can people build such a kind of structure without the help of modern methods these days? I would not be impressed if today we can build this kind of structure. We have invented so many machines and tools which help facilitate building and construction.
However, years ago, they all did it by hand. I was surprised when I heard the number of people who died because of this. But now I do understand why they had so many working for this project. My second thought is that people can think of invading this country when they see this wall. I am one who is from modern society but I think even nowadays it is still very difficult to do such. However, in the past, they had no planes, why did they dare to do such with this country? The Chinese army would just push them off or even soldiers of the invading countries would walk back because they would be scared when they see this wall.
My second stop in China was the national aquatics stadium. The reason why I chose to visit this is because I did the translation for the movie which presented the whole process of making this building, so I am interested in seeing what it's like, and if it is like what I heard and saw through the movies. I was amazed. I could not believe why the architects can think of such a sustainable design for the building 'Water cube.'
As I remember from my translation, it is made of bubble and ETFE paper. ETFE is the magic material that blocks ultraviolet but at the same time enables sunlight to go inside the structure. All of the things just blew my mind. One of my friends who went with me said, 'She has never seen anything like this in her life.' I thought she meant it and it is true. The Water cube presents China's hope and dreams and one of the main things China can be very proud when they tell expats about the Water Cube is that this building was built by them and for them. The transparent walls are also the magic of this building. If it is made of glass, it is common to be able to see the inside of the structure, but it is actually made of plastic. Isn't it amazing?
My last stop was some of the orchid gardens near Beijing. I feel like I was in the movies or things like that. All kinds of fruit are around me like apple, apricot and Asian pears abounded. They are so close to me that when I sit down, I even can get an apple without so far reaching out of my hands. I took many pictures so that when I get home, I can show my friends. I am sure they would be very jealous.
My only regret is that I could not speak Chinese, so we had someone who translated for us for the whole journey. However, I thought it would be nicer if we could speak some Chinese. I am sure we would talk more with the locals, and they would be for sure very proud to tell us about their culture and recent achievements.
James Brown writes about http://www.traveldealsdiscounts.com
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