China is not only an exotic and amazing country. It’s a whole new world!!!
If you are planning to go to China, you need to be ready. This trip is not like traveling to another country, where you can expect some regular things to happen. There are some peculiarities that are better if you keep in mind. Believe me! Getting ready for this trip will make you have a better experience.
I experienced one or two things that impressed me after living for three years in China. China is a country of stark contrasts, and you can encounter both sides of the coin regarding many aspects of everyday life.
During the time I was there, I lived two years in Chengdu and one year in Chongqing. I also took a road trip with my husband and a friend through Yunnan province to Shangri-la. And in 2016 I took a solo trip to Beijing for around 15 days.
My impressions will help you better understand China. Whether you are traveling for pleasure or plan to settle in China for work, the more you know, the better.
Stay tolerant and open to a new culture.
When you arrive in China, the first thing you should understand is that this is a country with its own culture, with a history marked by very profound events, a beautiful but at the same time heartbreaking and violent history.
China is a country that has undergone many transformations, and its people continue to push to take their country to another socio-economic level. They are very hard workers.
Chinese cultural models don’t match with western.
Be ready to see things that do not fit within your understanding of how the western world works. But that does not mean that they are wrong, just that they are different.
For example, things like that it is not usual among the Chinese to accept tips, but I can tell you that I did receive some very generous tips from Chinese customers.
You will see Chinese napping anywhere because they can fall asleep in any position and on any surface.
A culture of strong contrasts.
In China, you will see the most beautiful buildings with impressive architecture and also old buildings at the point of collapse. You are going to see cities growing exponentially and continuously changing.
You will find all kinds of food, delicious, colorful, and flavourful, but from a strange origin. And sometimes not with the healthiest ingredients. But anyway you don’t want to miss having a hot-pot with your friends or trying the spicy street food, noodles, dumplings, or the famous roasted duck from Beijing.
While walking around, you will see Buddhist temples, with impressive figures in gold. And you will also see some Catholic and evangelical churches.
Chinese people dancing and practicing Taichi in large parks will definitely catch your attention.
You will meet Tibetans with their dark skin, wide smile, their amulets, and their happy spirit, and you will realize that they do not feel Chinese.
Maybe you go for a massage to relax and see that it can be a painful experience. Very different from what you know. And that you can eat and watch TV while you get it.
The Chinese have their festivals, but they also celebrate western festivals. I have never seen a Halloween better recreated than the ones I experienced in China. And that appeared fantastic to me because it seems that they are always partying.
So, here I leave you with some ideas of the things that you need to keep in mind, to facilitate your trip.
1- Get your visa in advance.
Almost all countries need a visa to enter China. The exceptions are Singapore, Brunei, Japan, Bahamas, Fiji, Ecuador, Mauritius, Serbia, Tonga, Grenada, and Seychelles.
You can process your visa at CVASC or Chinese VISA Application Service Center, at an embassy, at a Chinese consulate. You can also process it online with an agency authorized by the Chinese government.
Please note that the entry requirements are not the same in places like Hong Kong or Macau. So, if you intend to go there, check to see if you are on the list of countries that need a visa or those who don’t need one.
2- China is one of the most polluted countries in the world.
Personally, this was the one fact that affected me the most.
Upon my arrival in China, I was not aware of pollution until I started to experience difficulty breathing, headaches, throat discomfort, fatigue, and depression.
In my first year, I lived in Chengdu. One of the most polluted cities in the world.
I had never seen anything like this before, so when I saw the massive cloud of smoke, I just thought Chengdu was a very humid and foggy city.
What to do about pollution?
Anyway, my most sincere advice is to use a pollution mask that protects you from PM 2.5 particles, smoke, and dust. You could find them at any pharmacy in China or corner store, but you can get it in your home country, so you will be ready upon arrival.
If you are on vacation, using the mask will help you have a better time and avoid getting sick during your stay, mostly if you plan to visit big cities. You should take extra care of yourself if you have had asthma or allergic rhinitis since environmental contamination can trigger these diseases.
Extra tips if you are going to stay in China.
If you are going to live in China, I recommend that you buy an air purifier and some indoor plants and seal your windows and doors as much as possible. In addition to supplementing with vitamin D, because you can go days without seeing sunlight due to contamination.
A good habit is to integrate many green vegetables and green juices into your diet. Chlorophyll helps detoxify and remove heavy metals from the body.
One of the habits I acquired was to check the levels of pollution daily. There were days when I wanted to go for a walk, but if the contamination levels were higher than 100, I would change my plans and stay at home doing anything else.
Don’t think that pollution is not going to affect you. Even if you are a healthy person, being exposed can dramatically impact your health and well-being.
3- The toilets in China are quite uncomfortable.
This is the bathroom of my apartment in Chongqing. A whole year of torture for my ankles and knees.
The good part is that every time that I took a shower, I was cleaning the toilet at the same time, so it always stayed neat.
Squat toilets are the most common throughout China, from bars, restaurants, and public restrooms.
The hotels, most modern shopping malls, restaurants, bars, apartments have conventional toilets.
Do not get creative in the bathroom! To use these toilets, you have to squat. Otherwise, you will get pee on your legs and shoes.
4- Carry your toilet paper, tissues, and hand sanitizer.
It is not common to find these supplies, especially in public toilets. However, in large cities, you can sometimes find them in places like malls, restaurants, discos, and bars. BUT, sometimes, you may not find any. So, you already know, it is better to have some in your bag, just in case.
5- Get a VPN before arriving.
Many of the internet sites we are used to are blacklist in China. Google, Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, Youtube, Wikipedia, some news sites, mobile apps, among others, are all censored. This process is known as “The Great Firewall.”
If you want to have access to them, you will have to download a Virtual Private Network (VPN) and install it on your devices.
I used the ExpressVPN during my three years stay.
6- Wechat is the app that you will need the most in China.
With WeChat, you can translate conversations, share your location, pay at stores, receive money, pay your bills online, buy movie tickets at a better price, order food online with delivery at home, and share photos and stories with your friends. Not surprisingly, it is so popular between Chinese and expats.
To use the WeChat Pay feature, you will need to have a bank account in China that you can get only with a working visa.
Anyway, if you are only visiting, this app can be useful to make friends among the locals and communicate with them. Remember that they do not have access to Facebook, Instagram, or Twitter. WeChat is the Chinese version of these social media.
7- Learn how to use chopsticks.
Unless you want to carry your utensils in your bag, it is better to learn how to use chopsticks, as this is what you will find in many local restaurants and street food venues.
Using chopsticks is fun. And it is an essential part of enjoying the full experience of eating traditional Chinese food.
8– China doesn’t recognize international driver’s licenses.
I don’t know if this is bad news or good news.
The downside is that driving in China can be truly chaotic.
People walk the streets, bicycles and scooters go on the sidewalks, cars turn when the red light is on, even if pedestrians are crossing the street. It’s all crazy and stressful!
Not to mention that it is difficult to find parking lots and very easy to have fines that you can not even discuss because you don’t speak mandarin, and they don’t speak English.
The transit system works from cameras that are installed everywhere on highways and roads. If you commit an infraction, they will send you a notification to your phone letting you know that you must go to the nearest office to pay your fine.
The good part is that you can go wherever you want. When we lived in Chongqing, my husband decided to get his Chinese driving license. That took him about six months. But when he finally got it, we rented a car and went on a road trip that was the most beautiful experience we had in China.
9- Watch out for your appliances.
If you plan to bring some of your home appliances, please note that in China, the standard voltage is 220V, and the frequency is 50Hz. Therefore, you may need a voltage converter and a plug adapter.
If you are going to stay long, let’s say more than a year, you can also buy your household appliances on Taobao (the Amazon in China) for a very affordable price.
10- You’ll need your passport for everything.
You will need your passport for almost everything. You will need it to book train and bus tickets, hotel rooms, enter museums and historical sites.
I recommend you to have a copy of your passport and your visa in your wallet permanently since the police may ask you about your documents, especially if you are working in China.
Some people start working without having a work visa, and the Chinese police are always aware of this type of infraction, so they can appear in some places and ask you for your documents to see if you have the proper visa and permits.
11- Use public transportation in China.
Public transportation in China is quite efficient. Although it always seemed to me that there were not enough taxis, especially on rainy days. But you can still grab the subway and buses that are another cheap and safe option.
The subway in cities like Beijing and Chengdu is fabulous. It takes you to almost all places of tourist and historical interest.
Public transportation rates are very cheap. When taking a taxi, make sure the meter is working to avoid overpaying.
China has a high-speed train network that is very efficient, traveling long distances and taking you to remote cities in a matter of hours.
12- Most Local people don’t speak English in China.
Learning English for the Chinese people is as tricky as learning Mandarin for us.
In almost all places, everything is written in Mandarin. At the supermarket, all labels are in Mandarin. Even in some establishments that work for foreigners, or international brands, they don’t speak English. Almost all the websites in English are blocked. So, It isn’t a priority for them to learn this language.
My advice is that you learn a little Mandarin, at least the basic words, or to keep your Google translation app close, which is not accurate, but it helps.
In more cosmopolitan cities like Beijing and Chengdu, I found some people who could speak English. However, in Chongqing, I found very few people who knew this language.
13- In China, white skin is a symbol of beauty.
An old Chinese proverb says: “White skin can help hide 100 other flaws in your appearance.”
In large cities, white skin is associated with a higher social status and a more luxurious standard of living, while tanned skin is associated with rural jobs and poverty.
When I made my road trip, I realized that as we traveled the most rural areas of the country, the women had more tanned skin.
In the city, you will see an umbrella festival while walking around. The Chinese will do their best to look as white as possible, and protect themselves from the sunlight.
Perhaps that is the secret why Chinese women have so few wrinkles—they age having a fresh and beautiful skin.
I remember once I returned from Cuba, quite brown, and one of my Chinese friends asked me if I was sick.
14- The unusual air sirens.
On the third Saturday in September, at 10 a.m. every year is National Defense Education Day in China. They begin the day let in sound deafening air sirens to alert all the population.
The date set is around September 18th, the day Japan invaded the northeast provinces of China in 1931.
The first time I heard this, I thought our building was on fire.
My husband and I were sleeping. Imagine the scare we got when we heard the sirens!
We got dressed as quickly as possible and descended the stairs from our fourteenth-floor apartment. We went to the nearest coffee shop, and when we asked, they explained that we had nothing to worry about, and told us the whole history behind the noisy sirens.
15- Stay informed by joining expat communities.
When you live in China, you can become alienated from the reality around you. Sometimes it is challenging to access news (because of the language barrier) and know what is happening around you.
To stay informed about new laws, cultural events, where to find the best western food restaurants, and what is going on, generally speaking, join groups of foreigners on Wechat. Through the chat, you will stay updated.
Same if you are traveling. As soon as you meet a foreigner, ask him to send you an invitation to join the ex-pat chats on WeChat. There, you can ask your questions, and without a doubt, you will always find help.
Take away
In China there is something for everyone.
It is an impressive country, with which I will always be grateful for the job opportunity it gave me for three years.
It is impressive how they have opened up not only for tourism but also with job opportunities.
I personally met people from all over the world who live and work in China and love that country.
The most beautiful thing I remember about China is friends. Those friends who brought me mooncakes and make me try the weirdest foods, or gave me Chinese medicine candies when my throat hurt or wanted to understand me using Wechat or any app that would help translate. The Chinese are very sweet and friendly, in addition to generous.
I always remember feeling open-mouthed before temples, palaces, mountains, rivers, massive shopping centers. And I know that your trip and your stay in China could be challenging, depending on how much you want to venture, but I can assure you that you will always remember it.
I think it is an experience that we all have to live. Go to this country to see with your own eyes the reality of China.
