April: China, the Great Wall west of Mutianyu

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The Great Wall of China is an ancient Chinese fortification built from the end of the 14th century until the beginning of the 17th century, during the Ming Dynasty, in order to protect China from raids by the Mongols and Turkic tribes. It was preceded by several walls built since the 3rd century BC against the raids of nomadic tribes coming from areas in modern-day Mongolia and Manchuria. The Wall stretches over a formidable 6,352 km (3,948 miles), from Shanhai Pass on the Bohai Gulf in the east, at the limit between China proper and Manchuria, to Lop Nur in the south-eastern portion of Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region.

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