Day 20 - 21: Beidaihe's Beaches and further West towards Luanzhou

Route: 134 km Travel time: 07:47

Day 20: In the morning, we take another round through the beautiful old town of Shanhaiguan and the Great Wall National Culture Park. After that, we cycle to the heavily touristic Beidaihe, 40 km away.

At the entrance of the town, we must pass a police checkpoint, behind which a long line of cars has formed. We also need to have our faces scanned before being allowed through. During our continued journey and later at the destination, we see noticeably many policemen. At the Beach Front, a few soldiers stand rigidly under small canopies. The traffic and pedestrian streams are precisely regulated by police in white gloves, and where normally everyone runs through the red light, everyone stands neatly still. Zhaoyang suggests that maybe a political meeting is taking place and that’s why everything is so greatly guarded.

On the way to the hotel, we pass wide sandy beaches that are lively visited. Once, we have to let an almost endless stream of pedestrians in swim gear cross the road. Even in the evening, the streets and beaches remain filled. We join the crowd, let ourselves drift through the city, and enjoy the holiday atmosphere.

The next day, it rains heavily. Since no breakfast is offered at the hotel, we wade through ankle-deep water to a small restaurant nearby. The police are still present and keep mostly dry under small canopies. Since the rain does not let up, we book another night at the hotel, barricade ourselves in the room, and watch the Olympics...

Day 21: The sun is shining, and the rain has cleared. Only thick puddles testify to yesterday’s floods. We orient ourselves westward towards Beijing and leave the sea, beaches, and holiday resort behind.

It noticeably gets warmer, and we are getting closer to the mountains along which part of the Great Wall runs. Finally, we reach our destination: A hotel in the heart of the old town of Luanzhou. Here too, everything is provided for tourists: Speakers blare recorded advertisements, music sounds from various directions, food and restaurants lure customers to the tables, small shops and fast food stalls everywhere…