That's kind of the mantra of expats living in this country. When something seems ridiculous or doesn't go as you expect it, the only reason that ever crosses anyone's mind is "This is China." Friends have actually shortened it to T.I.C. because of the frequency with which it's used.
So that's the reason I'm going north for the holiday. Not south, not to the coast, not to anywhere remotely far from Beijing. Because this is China, there are no train tickets. Because this is a holiday, 1/5 of the world will be migrating around this weekend. Because we are not in the know, we will be going slightly north to a city called Chengde -- not to be confused with Chengdu.
It's famous too, but not for spicy food and pandas. It's famous for culture, for being a summer resort of the Qing emperors, and for it's very large statue of a Buddhist god. It should be swell.
I'm leaving from the Beijing Huo Che Zhan (train station; I felt like proving I know a little Chinese; I even know the characters: 北京火车站; so there!). At 6:30 am on Friday. We'll arrive around 11 am.
Until then, I'm attempting to clean my apartment, grade papers (not really, but I should be), and finish up the weeks classes in an orderly fashion. This week positively flew by. Seriously. Five minutes ago it was Sunday night. Now it's Wednesday. Now it's APRIL. Now I only have a few more months to see everything in China.
Too fast...
