Tips and Recommendations
Because I can’t help myself from telling everyone that I’m going away to Beijing, I’ve gotten quite a bit of advice from friends, faimly, co-workers, bosses, patients!~
- Expect squatting toilets. It’s also good to have a friend within shouting distance so that they can get you some toilet paper if you forget it!
- Avoid raw/semi raw or foreign meats & seafoods
- Watch out for organ stealers! They’ll drug you, take your organs, and get rich!!
- Expect slow service
- Beware of primitive medical practice, lack of hygiene and traditional medicines. In another words, don’t get sick or you’ll end up eating herbal concoctions made from weird animal parts
- Don’t wear white, it’s very easy to get dirty
- Beggars are actually professional beggars
- Expect expert pick-pocketers
- Always carry tissue with you.
- Don’t get a China-man boyfriend! (lol, quite a few people said this) Super duper rich flings are OK~! kekek
- Watch out for the sand storms
- Moisturise like crazy! The weather is very dry.
- Wear enclosed shoes. It’ll be winter anyway
- Don’t carry too much $$ on you
- Visit 王府井 (WangFuJing), 五道口 (WuDaoKou), 秀水街 (XiuShuiJie), 长城 (ChangCheng). As well as the typical GreatWall, XiAn, Tiananmen Square etc
- Don’t follow strange tour guides
- Don’t act like a tourist!
- Bargain! Don’t pay asking price. If in doubt, walk away
- Expect basic levels of public transport
- Expect small rooms.
- Demand for the dorms! And if they don’t give it to you, DEMAND some more!
- Bring lots of passport photos for paperwork, ID cards etc
- Try to sit the HSK
- GET A MAP!!
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Comments
Hi Chris! Nice to know you made it alive to that tiny place you call a country =Pp hAHA! jk! I think the dorms will have “normal” western toilets so hopefully it won’t be too bad! XD
Haha good to know u will be getting western toilets haha. My country opps… better not let the sultan here that :S. hehe
How have you been anyway? I dont get to use the internet much here sooo yeh…good to know u also made it to ur country safely too!
Btw good blog :p
Anyway GTG take care, bai.
haha very bored, don’t want ot go to sleep, fear of having to go to work tomorow, reading selinas travel tips, i have a few more…
24. when its freezing cold, make sure you get a photo of yourself in thongs, shorts and a t-shirt, just to prove your australian.
25.white may actaully be a good thing to wear, after a while you’ll blend in with the professional beggars, unless you’re white yourself, and then your just screwed.
26.expect people to speak english…..its the world language after all. my uncle can survive 4 years there by not speaking chinese otheres can too.
27.try to avoid public transport, but it may be good for an “experience” spitting on buses is common, don’t expect soeone to offer you a seat, no manner here.
28.if you are getting slow service, when paying the bill smile and swear in english at them, but in a polite way, it won’t make the service better, but it’ll make you feel better.
29. when bargaining, don’t 1/3 or even half the price, just laugh in their face!, then say some rediculously small amount, ie. they say 300 you say 10. with the laughing ofcourse, then you have a good starting point. plus you get a laugh! hooray
Very interesting haha. We have the squatting toilets at my country as well :p. Learn to balance haha. Have fun at China!