Nanjing Ming City Wall

The wall the first Ming emperor built round his capital in the 14th century, following the hills and lakes rather than a square — so it wanders from Xuanwu Lake to the Qinhuai River and round the foot of Purple Mountain. The city tourism bureau says about 22 km of it is open to visitors, from 25 stairways: 15 charge and 10 are free. It is not one attraction but several separate walks, each with its own ticket: the Taicheng stretch by Xuanwu Lake, the Zhonghua Gate barbican in the south, the Zhongshan Gate stretch in the east.