Shanli Lohas is another ancient village in China. It is about 120 kilometers from Beijing, however, it takes approximately 2-3 hours to drive their depending on traffic. The last 15 minutes is up a very narrow and winding road. The current owner built the road when he purchased the city. Take your time driving. Watch the mirrors provided for your to see around the corners. And, above all, observe Chinese tradition by honking your horn as much as humanly possible.
It was originally occupied by soldiers building the Great Wall of China. In 1933 the city was a non armed area. This meant the Japanese would not allow the Chinese army to go there. This plunged the people of the village into deep poverty and despair. The Chinese army finally liberated the city In 1938.
In 1942 it was a center of the anti-Japanese leadership by the communist party. Consequently the city erected a health center. There are stories of villagers sharing their houses with the soldiers. They would help the red army by using the doors to their homes when there was not enough stretchers. Or tearing out their cabinets to make coffins for the fallen.
The amenities include a Chinese restaurant and a Western restaurant. The Chinese restaurant is buffet style while the western restaurant is à la cart. At the top of Shanli Lohas lies and infinity pool. It has amazing views of the mountains and the valley you drove up. If you look hard enough you can even see some of the towers of the great wall of china. It also has its own brewery as well as a playground and petting zoo.
About 4 kilometers up the road the new owner built, you will find the Great Wall of China. The Great Wall spanned an impressive 21,196 km (13,171 mi). All of the Great Wall is not a tourist destination. And unlike the Great Wall we see in pictures, and are familiar with; the majority has not been restored.
Here you can find one of the untouched sections of the wall that offer some of the greatest views in the world. As a note: I’m originally from Colorado, so making a statement like this guarantees you one of the best views you will ever see.
Experience the Great Wall as you have never dreamed of experiencing it. Walk either direction for as long as you can. Without all the tourists fighting to get to the top and invading your personal space. Take a selfie 
with the Great Wall with no one else around. This is a great opportunity to experience and see how the great wall was originally built.
There is also a tent area that will consist of over 100 tents’ when completed. This offers a way to experience what it must have been like to live in the ancient city hundreds or even thousands of years ago.
There are many ancient cities in China. The most famous of these cities is the forbidden city and is located in Beijing. This city kept the Emperor shielded and secluded from the main city and served as city within the city. It’s a giant palace that’s like an outdoor outlet mall in America. Although the forbidden city is one large complex, it features many individual stores or palaces.
It had housing for the emperor’s family as well as for the hundreds of concubines they were well-known for. There are meeting halls and palaces as well as elegant court yards. The city served as a ceremonial and political center for the Chinese government for almost 500 years. The Ming Dynasty gets the credit of building this architectural wonder during the 1400’s. It is an amazing accomplishment that took almost 14 years and millions of laborers to build.
It featured amazing rock carvings that seem to be carved from only one large stone as well as cisterns that tourists touch to bring them good luck.
In China, there is no personal space as we have in America. Americans have a three-foot diameter space surrounding them that they don’t want people in. With China having 1.4 billion people living in densely populated cities, there is no personal space. Walking with their chest in your back or rubbing shoulder with you during an hours sight seeing excursion doesn’t mean anything to the Chinese. It does to Americans so I have always tried to see these sites during the off time. There are still a lot of tourists, but as the Chinese say, it is not a mountain of people, sea of people.
So after a five month hiatus in America my wife and I have decided to travel back to China. A large company offered me a good position, so it seems the right time to go back.
One of the first things you’ll notice as you go through the gate is the lady holding the sign that says please don’t run. This is something of the norm in China. I have seen signs similar to this when visiting the terra-cotta warriors and the Great Wall of china.
All of your favorites are here. Including Dumbo, the Snow White and the seven dwarfs roller coaster, Peter Pan, the carousel just to name a few. There are also many new characters, most Notably the cast of Frozen. This is in the form of a live stage show where all of your favorite songs are acted out and sung…in Chinese.
If you are in other cities in China, plan on finding only squat toilets in the same malls. Restaurants and bars mainly have squat toilets and some restaurants will have no bathroom at all. Major bars and clubs that cater to foreigners should have sit down toilets. If you go through the airports and into the other cities malls, the sit down toilets have signs on them that say they are for the week or handicapped.
Of course as with any place you go it is always a good idea to carry tissue or toilet paper with you. Sometimes you can buy toilet paper for 1 RMB. Sometimes they don’t have a vending machine on the wall that sells tissue. And sometimes it’s sold out. Besides, if you don’t read Chinese you might not be able to know what it says.
