Not exactly cancun.

While most of the US is getting ready for summer, my spring break begins Monday. The CCP gives the entire country the week off for Labor Day(s), and in return we're all happy workers the rest of the year. Because noone has to work, they all go on vacation. At the same time. If I had the power to decide when billions of people would take their vacay, I'd divy it up a little bit. Anyway, all of China is kind of a madhouse next week, and it's recommended that if one wants to travel, they should get the hell out of China.
I toyed around with the idea of going to Mongolia. Before I arrived in China, I basically just knew where Mongolia was (I know some of you don't, so here's today's lesson: stuck in the middle of the Sino-Russian border). As I read more about it, it sounds like a really cool place. Unfortunately, it seems to soon be facing proverbial extinction thanks to global warming climate change and a quickly shrinking nomad population. These factors also hold true for parts of China, but I'd like to see it in action in Mongolia. Although I'm still planning on visiting, this month's holiday totally snuck up on me and I didn't have time to really plan, and I would have had to go by myself, so eh. Anyway, didn't happen, I'm thinking July 2008. Travel buddies inquire within. Then I was thinking about going to Beijing, but when I asked someone if they could help me get tickets, the response was something like, "crowded difficult busy full no tickets holiday," which I think means all the trains were booked. Just as well, since the city would be kind of a headache this week.
This travel talk lately has gotten me thinking about all the places I want to go and things I want to see in the next couple years. That basically includes every inch of Asia, and it turns out Asia's pretty big, so now I'm totally overwhelmed. Fortunately, I should have some time to travel. My breaks at the school are summer, Jan-Feb, a week in May, and a week in October, but I don't get paid vacation from my American university, so I might have to stay here and work during some of the school breaks... that, or I could just keep in touch with my boss via email like I do now while galloping all over the continent (har har, just kidding). Regardless [sidebar: how much do I haaaate "irregardless," like it's a legit word? This is what people must have felt like years ago when someone started using the words flammable and inflammable interchangeably], next week I'll be stuck in Jinan while the rest of the country par-tays. I hope to put the week to good use and see some sites in the city as well as maybe venture out of town a bit and catch up on some serious Chinese studying. I'm way behind. Why can't they just speak English like normal people?