The Farmhouse
In September 2014 I left Vietnam and headed up to Beijing, China. As always I don’t research my travels much or plan far ahead, it allows me to go wherever the road and journey takes me! This method hasn’t proved me wrong yet and China was no exception! I met Joe, the man that owns the hostel where I stayed. He also owns other properties in China and is a traveler and adventurer like myself (and an incredible photographer)! He mentioned that I should go camp on the Great Wall and hike, this to me couldn’t have been a better idea and I left the next day.
As I hiked I came to a tower that had been barb-wired off and had no access around it or through it and was forced to turn around and go back. I had missed the sign that was broken and fallen into the brush that pointed the way off the wall and into the surrounding hills. About an hour following this path I came across this abandoned farmhouse sitting in very tall grass and brush and had to go inside and check it out. I was a bit nervous, as I didn’t know what to expect, maybe a homeless person was living there? All was fine and it looked as if the house was built in the 70’s, there was newsprint used as insulation on the walls and although I couldn’t read the date the cars in the paper appeared to all be from that era.
I set up my tripod and camera and shot this quiet and lonely place for over an hour, at first I was upset that I had to come off the wall and didn’t plan time for this extra mileage…but didn’t it prove magical and a great memory for me!