01x02 - The Great Wall

[bunniefuu]

ABC MouseHey, everybody! Let's G-O, go!

Woman[singing] With ABC, --, and Do-Re-Mi

There's endless people and places to see

From the classroom they can search and explore

With every adventure you learn more

They visit countries near and far

They love to learn wherever they are

They see the world in a brand-new way

They make great new friends every day

ABC, --, and Do-Re-Mi

Come along and you will see

The more they travel, the more you know

Get ready, let's G-O, go

-- MouseHey, ABC.

The teacher just said that tomorrow

we’re going to learn about an ancient protector of China

that some people still call the Great Dragon!

ABC Mouse: I hope it's a fire-breathing dragon!

And yes, --, I know that fire-breathing dragons only exist in stories...

but you know how I love stories.

-- Mouse[chuckling] I certainly do.

And guess what else she said?

It's more than , miles long!

ABC MouseWhoa!

I gotta know more!

I can’t wait until tomorrow! That's...

-- Mouse hours.

Or , minutes.

ABC MouseOh, I can't wait that long.

Let's find out right now.

BothLet's search it!

Let's see... dragon...

China...

-- Mouse, miles long...

ABC MouseAncient protector...

wait, look at the end of that wall!

Does that look like a dragon putting its head into the water?

Do-Re-Mi MouseHey, look.

That wall looks like a dragon putting its head into the water.

-- MouseWell, Do-Re-Mi answered that question.

ABC MouseWhoa! It's called Old Dragon's Head,

and it's part of the Great Wall of China!

-- MouseA wall that is more than , miles long,

and it was built over many hundreds of years

to protect the Chinese people from their enemies.

[gasps] I think the Great Wall is the Great Dragon!

ABC MouseLet's G-O, go!

[bright music]

ABC MouseOkay.

We know Old Dragon's Head goes into the Bohai Sea

in northeastern China, which is...

-- MouseRight there. Look!

[phone ringing]

JingjingABC, Do-Re-Mi, and --!

I can't believe it's you!

My name is Jingjing.

Ni Hao. Hello!

[together] Ni Hao. Hello!

JingjingWelcome to the Wànli Chángchéng.

-- MouseWànli Chángchéng. The Great Wall!

JingjingI'm here doing a report.

Do-Re-Mi Mouse: Maybe we can share what we learn.

JingjingGreat idea, Do-Re-Mi.

I learned that some parts of the wall were built more than , years ago.

[together] Whoa!

JingjingOh, before I forget,

can I get a picture?

ABC MouseWhoa!

Someone's flying a dragon kite!

-- MouseIt's coming right at us!

Duck!

ABC MouseWhoo-hooooo!

-- Mouse[sighs] He never ducks.

ABC MouseWhoa!

JingjingOh, no! How will he get down?

Do-Re-MiOh, he'll figure out a way.

He always does.

ABC MouseWhoa!

Wow!

This is incredible!

Whoa! The Great Wall really does look like a dragon.

-- Mouse: Come back, ABC!

ABC MouseComing!

[laughs] Whoo!

Now that was F-U-N, fun!

JingjingAnd amazing!

ABC MouseNot as amazing as the Great Wall.

It goes on forever.

-- MouseOh, I read they used a special mix of ingredients

that worked so well that some of the oldest sections are still standing.

Want to guess what those ingredients were?

Do-Re-Mi MouseOoh, was it bubblegum?

-- Mouse: No, Do-Re-Mi, it wasn't bubblegum.

ABC MouseWas it cement?

-- MouseCement wasn’t invented yet

The answer is...

rice soup!

BothRice soup?

-- MouseThe workers discovered that if they mixed rice soup

in with sand and dirt and other ingredients,


they could use it to hold the bricks and stones together.

ABC Mouse: Yup! Not moving at all.

Do-Re-Mi MouseThis wall is incredible.

I wish that the people that worked on it had signed it

like an artist signs a painting.

JingjingActually, in some parts of the wall,

like at Simatai, they did.

Do-Re-Mi MouseOh, we should go there.

ABC MouseAbsolutely!

[together] Bye!

JingjingOh, too bad.

I forgot to get that picture.

[bright music]

ABC MouseThere's Simatai.

Professor ChenWell, who could that be?

[phone ringing]

Whoa. ABC, --, and Do-Re-Mi. What a surprise!

My name's Professor Chen.

[together] Hi, Professor Chen.

Ni Hao!

Professor ChenI'm on an official expedition to see how the wall is doing.

-- MouseAnd?

Professor ChenWell, for a wall with parts that are more than , years old,"],…}

it's incredible!

Do-Re-Mi MouseIt's the rice soup!

[laughter]

ABC MouseWe're looking for bricks here that are signed

by the people that built this part of the wall.

Professor Chen: I just saw one! It's right over here.

Hang on.

[together] Whoo!

Whoa!

Professor ChenIt says, "In the fifth year of the Wanli period,

built in Shitang Road."

That means it was placed here almost years ago.

Do-Re-Mi Mouse: Every brick is a part of history!

-- MouseWhoa!

I’m not sure this part of the wall will do a very good job

of keeping China’s enemies away.

Professor Chen[laughs] Fortunately, the Great Wall isn't needed

to protect the people of China from enemies anymore.

-- MouseGood thing,

because this part is, well, falling apart.

Professor ChenSome sections of the wall, like right here,

haven't been fixed in hundreds of years, while other parts…

[grunts] ...have been carefully rebuilt

so that you can see how it would have looked when it was first made.

ABC Mouse: They’re rebuilding the wall?

Professor ChenYes, and sometimes the workers make wonderful discoveries

when they’re doing it.

ABC MouseLike what?

Professor ChenLike the time a worker discovered the oldest piece of paper

with writing on it.

He found the paper tucked between some bricks.

It was discovered near a watchtower just like that one.

ABC MouseWhy do they call it a watchtower?

Professor ChenCome on, I'll show you.

ABC MouseWow!

This is like the view I had from the kite!

Professor ChenFrom up here, the soldiers could see their enemies coming

from miles away.

ABC MouseSo what would they do if they saw an army coming?

Professor ChenI met a tour guide at the Great Wall Museum in Badaling

who is just the person to tell you.

-- MouseThere it is. Badaling, China!

ABC Mouse: Three tickets for the Tower Tour, please

Tour GuideFor you three, the tickets are always free.

It's just through these doors.

And here we are.

Now, I have to warn you,

there are a lot of valuable things in the museum.

Please watch your step.

ABC MouseWhew!

Tour GuideWhat you're looking at

is a very small model of the wall.

The watchtowers were actually built from one to three miles apart.

If the soldiers saw an army coming,

they'd light the wood that was always kept ready on top of their tower.

The soldiers in the nearby towers would see those fires and then light their own,"],…}

quickly spreading the news that an att*ck was coming.

ABC MouseWow.

The Great Dragon did breathe fire!

Do-Re-Mi MouseOh, but what if the enemy came during the day?

When the sun was out, would flames be seen from far away?

Tour GuideNo. That’s why in daylight,

the soldiers in the watchtowers did something different.

They b*rned things along with the wood that made lots of smoke.

And that’s how people many miles apart

would quickly spread the news about an army invasion.

-- MouseWait.

This says the Great Wall is not one long wall.

It's really made up of a lot of different parts.

Tour GuideAnd together, all of the parts add up

to the largest thing anyone has ever built.

ABC MouseWow!

Do-Re-Mi MouseWe have so much to tell Jingjing!

Thank you, Mr. Tour Guide.

Bye! Zaijian!

[together] Goodbye!

Do-Re-Mi Mouse...Yes, and it's the biggest thing people ever built.


JingjingI'm going to add that to my report, too.

Oh, before you go...

[together] Smile!

[camera shutter clicks]

Do-Re-Mi MouseReady?

BothReady!

Wow!

ABC MouseIt's so beautiful!

-- MouseWe met some really nice people on this trip.

ABC MouseWe sure did!

Everyone was G-R-E-A-T, great!

Just like the Great Wall of China!

Whoa!

Do-Re-Mi MouseCareful, ABC.

-- Mouse: Those blocks might fall over.

ABC MouseNo, I used a special rice soup paste to hold them together.

They're not going anywhere.

[grunts]

Uh-oh! I might've got a little paste on my feet.

-- Mouse: Don't worry; we can help.

ABC Mouse[giggling] This is fun.