Great wall of China

“The cable car ride up was beautiful, green mountains everywhere, and I'm sitting there alone just taking it all in. Arrived at Tower 4 and started walking toward Tower 20. Some parts are legitimately steep and I'm not gonna lie, being alone made me push myself harder than I probably would have with company. Like I wanted to prove to myself I could do it. Tower 20 was a bit crowded but nothing crazy. The views up there though... standing on the Wall, looking out at that landscape, knowing where you are and that you got yourself there alone... I got emotional. It's one of those moments where all the anxiety and overthinking and fear just melts away and you're like oh, this is why people do this.”

“Then it started absolutely pouring. I waited inside the towers with a bunch of other people during the worst of it, and honestly the shared experience of hiding from rain with random strangers felt weirdly bonding even without speaking the same language. When it cleared up most people had left so the walk back felt almost private. Just me and this ancient structure in the mist.”