In the late morning you will arrive at a secluded valley, ringed by mountains and abundant with farms and fruit orchards. This once-remote location is the final resting place for China's Ming Dynasty Emperors, and takes its name, Shisan Ling (thirteen tombs) from their treasure-laden burial mounds. During the communist era, one of these tombs was officially excavated to reveal to the population the staggering wealth, including fabulous golden crowns, accumulated by the sons of heaven. Only a few of the tombs are open to the public, and most remain undisturbed. Each tomb is similarly laid out, with sacred gateways leading up to an artificial hill. Imagine what wonders may lie beneath (think of the terracotta armies discovered in Xian).

Drop by a village market and sample luscious local fruit. For lunch, try typical peasant fare, like crispy pancakes and stir-fried vegetables, in a local home or cafe.

After lunch, take a scenic drive to catch your first astonishing glimpse of the Great Wall, snaking across saw-toothed mountain peaks like a slithering dragon. Comprised of a series of fortifications, the wall runs from Gobi Desert to the east coast of China, an unparalleled enterprise in human endeavor that still echoes the might of forgotten generals and mandarins. This is the Wild Wall, well-preserved, much of it in an original state and gloriously free of cable-cars, flag-waving tour leaders, and hawkers of kitschy "I Climbed the Great Wall" t-shirts. Here you may fully experience the melancholy landscape, divided in two by a failed effort to keep China's enemies at bay, with the haunting voice of the wind to narrate the triumph and tragedy of the wall's construction -- the great lord responsible for this magnificent section was beheaded for the meticulous quality of work he demanded from his stonemasons (only one inch of wall was produced here each day).