Adventures on a super-cheap bus tour

My wife and I signed up for a discount tour to the Great Wall - all fees and lunch included for the low price of 180 yuan ($28). This was in the innocent days before the news reports about predatory practices by some tour operators - and even violence.

We arose at 5 am on the designated day, located our bus and were soon on our way. The advertisement had promised not only the Great Wall but stops at a museum and some ancient tombs.

So I didn't mind when they wanted an additional 40 yuan for our female tour guide. If I'd been less groggy that early morning, I might have picked up a clue to what lay ahead.