Archive-name: travel/china-guide/part1
Posting-Frequency: monthly

                                  CHINA

                         The Internet Travel Guide

                              Peter M. Geiser


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Contents
 
 Introduction
 Copyright (c) 1995, 1996

 1. General Overview
 1.1 Geographical Information
 1.2 Climate
 1.3 People
 1.4 History
 1.5 Visa
 1.6 Embassies
 1.7 Border Crossing
 1.8 Money
 1.9 Mail
 1.10 Telephone
 1.11 Accommodation
 1.12 Food
 1.13 Health
 1.14 Student Card

 2. Transportation
 2.1 Flying
 2.2 Train
 2.3 Boat
 2.4 Bus
 2.5 Bicycle

 3. Places
     Beijing
     Chang Cheng (Great Wall)
     Chang Jiang (Yangtse)
     Chengdu
     Chongqing
     Dali
     Emei Shan
     Guangzhou (Canton)
     Guilin
     Hangzhou
     Hekou
     Jiuzhaigou
     Kashgar
     Khotan
     Kunming
     Lijiang
     Luoyang
     Nanjing
     Shanghai
     Shaolin Monastery
     Shenzhen
     Suzhou
     Urumqi
     Wuhan
     Xian
     Yangshuo

 4. Literature
 4.1 Guidebooks
 4.2 Travellers Tales
 4.3 Language
 4.4 Historical/Political
 4.5 (Auto) Biography
 4.6 Chinese Classics
 4.7 Novels
 4.8 Movies
 4.9 Internet

 A. Contributors

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The Internet Travel Guide
http://www-students.unisg.ch/~pgeiser/itg.htm
Copyright (c) 1995, 1996 Peter M. Geiser
Peter.Geiser@student.unisg.ch

Last change 2. October 1996.
Updates: FAQ: monthly, HTML: more often

Currently available in the series of the Internet Travel Guides:
Cambodia
China
Laos
Myanmar (Burma)
Sumatra
Switzerland
Tibet
Vietnam

**************************************************************************

INTRODUCTION

The main objective of this FAQ is to provide the reader with the newest
travel information available, like what is the current situation on visa,
where to stay and what prices are reasonable, etc. It is not a guide to
the Chinese culture or history (although I started to include some
information about those subjects as well), for these non-changing facts
are much more pleasantly presented in many good books (see the list in
section 4 in this FAQ). It is also not intended to be a political pamphlet
since politics is often a very opinionated subject. However, I started to
include some political facts where I felt it was appropriate.

Remember: Things change very fast, so by the time you get to China the
information in this FAQ may be outdated. If you encounter this, please
bear with me. Instead of being upset, rather share your experiences with
other people on the net. The next tourist will thank you if he or she can
rely on your new information. Also, if you find time during your travels
to write a postcard or a letter to me, I would greatly appreciate it.

Some paragraphs are led by the name of the author in brackets. This
doesn't mean that these are their only contributions, but rather that in
that case I chose to leave the words as the author wrote them, adding a
more personal note to the FAQ.


Answering questions

There are many people who send mail to ask me some questions. As much as
I like to answer as many questions as possible, my time is limited. I do
this work in my spare time, so I frequently answer the questions only
after a couple of days (or even weeks if I'm away for a while.) It also
happens that I cannot return an e-mail due to an invalid e-mail address.
Please be careful to include a valid e-mail address, or then ask me to
post the answer in rec.travel.asia.

This guide lives by being up-to-date. Since I cannot travel all the time,
I am glad to receive suggestions, contributions and comments. Any addition
is useful, regardless of the size.

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COPYRIGHT NOTICE

In accordance with the Bern convention, this document is copyrighted
worldwide. The information provided within this document is the property
of the original authors. The author especially reserves the right to the
exclusive use of the term "The Internet Travel Guide".

This document or parts thereof may NOT be sold for profit or included in
any commercial documents (e. g. books, esp. guide books, magazines,
CD-ROMs, WWW-pages, the Microsoft Network or any other form) without the
prior written permission of the copyright holder. This permission is valid
exactly for the agreed version (or if no version was stated at the
published version on the date of the agreement) at the time the permission
was granted; it does not cover future or any other versions. However,
following the common practice of the Internet, this document may be freely
redistributed without any modification whatsoever, including this
copyright notice.

If you as the reader has paid to get this document, please let me know. As
much as I would like I cannot give you back your money, but I can try to
put an end to the illegal stealing of other people's work.

**************************************************************************

The Internet Travel Guide
Copyright (c) 1995, 1996
http://www-students.unisg.ch/~pgeiser/itg.htm

Peter M. Geiser
Seeblickstr. 10
9010 St.Gallen
Switzerland

Peter.Geiser@student.unisg.ch

**************************************************************************

1. GENERAL OVERVIEW

1.1 GEOGRAPHICAL INFORMATION

Area          9'596'960 km2
Capital       Beijing
Borders       Afghanistan (76 km), Bhutan (470 km), Hong Kong (30 km),
              India (3380 km), Kazakhstan (1533 km), North Korea
              (1416 km), Kyrgyzstan (858 km), Laos (423 km), Macao
              (0.34 km), Mongolia (4673 km), Myanmar (2185 km), Nepal
              (1236 km), Pakistan (523 km), Russia (northeast)
              (3605 km), Russia (northwest) (40 km), Tadshikistan
              (414 km), Vietnam (1281 km)
              coastline 14500 km
Islands       over 5000, the largest Hainan in the south.
Highest point Zhumulamafeng (Mt. Everest), 8848 m
Rivers        over 1500, Changjiang 6300 km, Huanghe 5464 km

Time          GMT plus eight hours

Measures      Metric
Electricity   220 V, 50 Hz

In the Web-version of the Internet Travel Guide at
http://www-students.unisg.ch/~pgeiser there would be a map right here.

--------------------------------------------------------------------------
1.2 CLIMATE

China is a huge country with a big variety of local climates. There is not
really a 'best' time to visit.

The north is rather dry, and quite cold in the winter.

In the south, the summers are hot and humid. The rainy season is between
July and September. There are even occasionally typhoons.

For average temperatures and rainfall, see in the section for the
appropriate destinations.

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1.3 PEOPLE

Population      1210 mio (est. end 1995) (annual growth rate 1.08%)
                92% Han Chinese, many minorities including Zhuang, Uygur,
                Hui, Yi, Tibetan, Miao, Manchu, Mongol, Buyi, Korean
Life expectancy 68 years
Language        The official language within China is the Putonghua
                (Mandarin, based on the Beijing dialect.) Yue
                (Cantonese), Wu (Shanghainese), Minbei (Fuzhou), Minnan
                (Hokkien-Taiwanese), Xiang, Gan, Hakka dialects, minority
                languages
Religion        Officially, China is atheistic, but religions are (again)
                tolerated. Mostly Daoism and Buddhism, often a blend
                between the two. 2% - 3% Muslim, 1% Christian

--------------------------------------------------------------------------
1.4 HISTORY

(Thanks to Wuchun for this section)

                A brief Chinese chronology

Xia                          about 2100 b.c. -- 1600 b.c.
        *Hua Xia is used today by Chinese referring to China

Shang                        about 1600 b.c. -- 1100 b.c.
        *There is a very famous ancient book (written in Ming)
         about the end of Shang _Feng1 Shen2 Yan3 Yi4_
         (Yan Yi == historical novel)

Zhou
        Western Zhou          about 1100 b.c. -- 771 b.c.
        Eastern Zhou                 770 b.c. -- 226 b.c.
            Spring/Autumn            770 b.c. -- 476 b.c.
            Warring States           475 b.c. -- 221 b.c.
        *Western and eastern Zhou are the same dynasty, ruled by the
         same family.  The difference was eastern Zhou moved the capital
         to an eastern city.
        *Spring/Autumn time was one of the most important time in Chinese
         history.  Most Chinese philosophies developed at this time. Among
         them are: Confucianism and Taoism.
        *_Art of War_ was written at this time by Sun Zi
        *Eastern Zhou was very weak, and was divided into lots of smaller
         states (and bigger states, such as Jin, was later divided into
         several states) fighting with each other.
        *The account of this period of history was later written by
         Sima Qian of Han dynasty.  Shi3 Ji4 is one of the best Chinese
         history and literature book.  Lots of its section were in the
         literature text book.  Every Chinese is supposed to read it :)
        *Another book, "Dong Zhou Li Guo Zi" (How Eastern Zhou States
         Created), is supposed to be the text book for politicians.

Qin                            221 b.c. -- 207 b.c.
        *Perhaps the darkest time in Chinese history.  Qin was one of the
         warring state, but managed to united China again.  The worst
         thing they did was all the books were ordered to be burned.
        *Qin started building the Great Wall, although the one we see now
         was rebuilt much later in Ming.

Han
        Western Han            206 b.c. -- 24
        Eastern Han             25 -- 220
        *Again, the two are considered to be the same dynasty.  Eastern
         Han had its capital in todays Luo-yang (Luo is a river. Yang
         refers to the shadow of river bank here, which means north of
         river Luo) which is EAST of the old capital, todays Xian.
        *The so called Han Chinese used when trying to distinguish other
         minorities inside China came from here.
        *China became strong at this time, especially after Wu Di.
        *Dong Zhongsu advised Wu Di to use Confucianism as the ONLY
         philosophy.  Other novel ideas developed at eastern Zhou
         was only discouraged, but outlawed.  I list Dong most worst
         only next to Qin Shi Hunag.
        *China had many wars with Hun on north.  Wu Di started a new way
         of solving the problem: sending his daughter as wife of Hun Khan.
         [According to Jin, Wu Di stopped the custom of sending his
         daughter to the huns. He defeated them after 40 years of battle.]

Three Kingdoms
        Wei                     220 -- 265
        Shu Han                 221 -- 263
        Wu                      222 -- 280
        *Once again, the last emperor could and control the kingdom again.
         China was divided into three parts fighting to be the Son of
         Heaven.
        *Three Kingdoms is a very famous historical novel about this period.

Jin                             265 -- 420
        *The winner of the fighting was the powerful general of Wei whose
         son started Jin dynasty.

Northern/Southern Dynasties
        *Jin did not have a good contral of China either.  China was
         divided in all kind of combinations.
   Southern Dynasties:
        Song                     420 -- 479
        Qi                       479 -- 502
        Liang                    502 -- 557
        Chen                     557 -- 589
   Northern Dynasties:
        Northern Wei             386 -- 534
        Eastern Wei              534 -- 550
        Northern Qi              550 -- 577
        Western Wei              535 -- 556
        Northern Zhou            557 -- 581

        *Some kings in northern dynasties were not Han.

Sui                              581 -- 618
        *Like Qin, this is a very short dynasty ruled by very cruel
         emperors.
        *But bad reader seems like to make big things. The longest channel
         was built at this time just like Great Wall was built in Qin.

Tang                             618 -- 907
        *This is perhaps the best time in Chinese time.  The oversea
         Chinese in early days like to use Tang Shan referring to their
         homeland.
        *Many good poems were written in this time.  I believe no one 
         so far has been able to top the great poets at that time.
        *Tnag was a very liberal (perhaps most liberal) period in Chinese
         history.

Five Dynasties
        Later Liang              907 -- 923
        Later Tang               923 -- 936
        Later Jin                936 -- 946
        Later Han                947 -- 950
        Later Zhou               951 -- 960
        *Can you believe the speed of dynasty change here?

Song
        Northern Song            960 -- 1127
        Southern Song           1127 -- 1279
        *Song is the turning point of Chinese history (More actually,
         after Song Shen Zong). The society became conservative from then.
         Lots of bad Chinese traditions started from here.
        *Zu Xi carried Confucianism forward.
        *Ci2, poetry written to certain tunes with strict tonal pattern
         and rhyme schemes in fixed number of lines and words, was
         fully developed now.
        *Song was not a strong dynasty in history. It was consistently
         invaded by others from north.  Song was in war with Liao and was
         later defeated by Jin at north.  Song retreated to south of
         Yangtze. This was why northern and southern Song was named.
        *During southern Song period, north part of China was ruled
         by Jin (1115 -- 1234)

Yuan                            1271 -- 1368
        *Jin had not had the trance to win Song.  Mongolian was the 
         winner after all.
        *Chinese culture was preserved under Mongolian ruling.  It was
         Mongolian who were affected by Chinese culture.  
        *It was the time Chinese opera developed.
        *Beijing was the capital for the first time.

Ming                            1368 -- 1644
        *The Great Wall was rebuilt.  It was what we see today.
        *In literature, the novel was fully developed at this time.
         Some of the novels, such as Three Kingdoms, were the best ever.
        *In late Ming, the so called capitalism buds started in some
         developed areas such as lower Yangtze Delta.  Some quite big
         silk-making shops with one hundred some employee were recorded.

Qing                            1644 -- 1911
        *China was ruled by non-Han once again.
        *Although China started becoming conservative after Song, Qing
         made the development stopped.

--------------------------------------------------------------------------
1.5 VISA

There are visa of various length. I have seen visa for 30, 90 and even 120
days. You normally get a visa from the embassy.

Visa extensions are available in China from any police station, it costs
CNY 110.

In Hong Kong, go to CITS (China International Travel Service), located in
Peking Street in Tshim Sa Tsui or even better to the consulate on the
island. It takes up to three days (the shorter the more expensive) to get
a 90 days visa and costs about HKD 380.

It seems to be a big hassle to get a Chinese visa in the USA. If you have
enough time in an Asian city (i.e. about 2-3 days), you better get the
visa there. The visa costs USD 30, handling fee is USD 5, and then you'll
have to add for postage.

In Toronto, Canada, you can go to the Chinese consulate. There you'll have
to fill out a 1 page form, give your passport, 2 photographs and CAD 50.
One week later you can pick up your passport with a 60 day tourist visa.

--------------------------------------------------------------------------
1.6 EMBASSIES

CHINESE EMBASSIES ABROAD

Australia
15 Coronation Drive, Yarralumla, Canberra, 2600 act

Laos
Wat Nak St., Vientiane, Tel 315100, 315101, 315103

Switzerland
Embassy:   Kalcheggweg 10, 3006 Bern, Tel (031) 3527334
Consulate: Bellariastr. 20, 8038 Zurich, Tel (01) 2011005, 2011073

USA
Embassy:   2300 Connecticut Av. NW, Washington DC 20008, Tel (202) 3282500
Consulate: 520 - 12th Avenue, New York 10036, Tel (212) 2794275
Consulate: 104 So. Michigan Av., Suite 900, Chicago 60603,
           Tel (312) 3802507
Consulate: 3417 Montrose Blvd., Houston, Tel (713) 5244311
Consulate: 1450 Laguna St., San Francisco 94115, Tel (415) 5634885
Consulate: 502 Shto Place, Suite 300, Los Angeles 90020, Tel (213) 3802507

Vietnam
Embassy:   46 Hoang Dieu St., Tel 253736, 253737

FOREIGN EMBASSIES IN CHINA

Indonesia
Sanlitun Diplomatic Office Building B, Beijing, 100600, Tel 5325484,
Fax 5325366

Laos
N23 Halgeng Rd., Room 501, Kunming, Tel 4141678 Ext 501-503, Fax 414396
11 Sanlitun Dongsijie, Beijing, Tel 5321224

Myanmar
Embassy:   No. 6, Dongzhi Men Wa Street, Chaoyang District, Beijing,
           Tel 5321584, 53521425
Consulate: 3rd Floor, Building No. 3, Camellia Hotel, No. 154
           East Dong Feng Road, Kunming 650041, Yunnan, Tel 3176609,
           3176309

Switzerland
Sanlitun Dongwujie 3, Beijing, Tel (10) 5322736/8, Fax (10) 5324353

Thailand
40 Guang Hua Lu, Beijing, (085) 5321903

USA
Diplomatic representation: Xiu Shui Bei Jie 3, Beijing, Tel (1) 5323831,
Fax (1) 5323178

Vietnam
32 Guangua Lu, Jianguomenwai Dajie, Beijing, Tel 5321125

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1.7 BORDER CROSSING

You will have to fill out a form declaring all your valuables. You will
be required to keep one copy in order to exit the country.


Hong Kong

An easy way to cross into China is coming from Hong Kong. There are
several possibilities: by plane, by train, by bus of by boat. There are
four planes daily that take 35 minutes and cost HKD 500. The trains take
some 2.5 hours, while the bus need 4.5 hours. Two boats are available, a
jetfoil (3 hours), and an overnight ferry (about HKD 200.) Between
Shenzhen and the border is the KCRC, a kind of subway.

There is a boat between Shanghai and Hong Kong. It takes three days and
provides relaxation between two bustling cities.


Korea

There is a ferry between Inchon and Tianjin. It runs on the 2, 7, 12, 17,
22, 27 th every month from Inchon and 5, 10, 15, 20, 25, 30 th from
Tianjin. It costs one way about USD 115-220 for second class and USD 250
for first.

Between Inchon and Weihai the ferry takes 17 hours. It departs every
Wednesday and Saturday on 16:00 from Inchon and on 17:00 every Monday and
Thursday. Prices are USD 90 economy, USD 110 for second class, and USD 130
for first.

Japan

There is a ferry service between Nagasaki and Shanghai. The ferry doesn't
run every day.
Leave Nagasaki      10:00
Arrive Shanghai     16:00 Next Day
Leave Shanghai      11:00
Arrive Nagasaki      9:00 Two Days Later

The fares for one way and one person are per berth:

Special A class   JPY 41000
Special B class   JPY 37000
1A class          JPY 30600
1B class          JPY 25200
2B class          JPY 20700

Another ferry service runs from Kobe to Tianjin. It leaves every noon and
arrives at 2 pm two days later. The cheapest berths cost USD 200.

There is also a ferry between Kobe and Osaka and Shanghai.


Vietnam

It is possible to cross from Vietnam at Ping Xiang. The railway doesn't
run through, however, so you have to walk or take a ride on a motorcycle.

From Kunming there is a train to Hekou where you can cross the bridge (by
foot) to Lao Cai.


Myanmar (Burma)

The border from/to Myanmar is open for travellers, but you'll probably
still have to convince the officials to let you through.

Presumably it should be possible to enter Myanmar without having your
passport stamped by both the Chinese and the Burmese. Of course, this
means that you'll have to return to China again (and only need one visa.)
Of course, this is completely illegal, and I'm not sure how the officials
might react.


Kasachstan

The border from /to Kasachstan is open for travellers.


Kirgistan

The border from /to Kirgistan is open for travellers.

Pakistan

It is possible to enter China by way of the Khunjerab Pass. Take a local
bus and be at the border before 6 pm.

--------------------------------------------------------------------------
1.8 MONEY

The currency is the Chinese Yuan (ISO code CNY). divided into 10 Jiao or
100 Fen. However, money within China is called RMB (Ren Min Bi, people's
money), and people normally refer to Yuan as Kuai (piece, the counting
word for money, as in yi kuai qian = one piece of money), Jiao as Mao and
Fen as Sen.

Notes are available in denominations of 100, 50, 10, 5, 2 and 1 yuan,
5, 2 and 1 jiao, and 5, 2, and 1 fen. Coins are 1 yuan, 5 and 1 jiao,
and 5, 2 and 1 fen.

The exchange rate is about USD 1 = 8.3 CNY (Sep 1995)
(Historical development: 8.7 in Jan 1994, 5.762 in 1993, 5.5146 in 1992,
5.3234 in 1991, 4.7832 in 1990, 3.7651 in 1989)
Travellers cheques bring a better exchange rate.

The FEC (Foreign Exchange Certificate) was finally abolished in January
1994.

The disappearance of the FEC also caused the black market to virtually
disappear. If you really want to change money on the black market, make
sure you know the exchange rates, the bank notes, and count carefully the
money you get before handing over your own money. Changing money on the
black market is illegal, there are sometimes secret police changing, the
exchange rate may be worse than in banks and shortchangings are frequent,
so it is not really advisable anymore to change money on the black market
unless you know the game quite well.

Travellers cheques denominated in most major currencies are accepted by
the Bank of China. You normally get a better exchange rate than for cash.
There is a 0.75% commission.

Most larger hotels, restaurants and department stores accept credit cards.
Of course you can be sure that when you can pay with credit card you pay
some two to three (or even more) times more than when you go shopping at a
place where credit cards are not accepted (e.g. markets.)

There is an American Express business travel center in the Swissotel
Beijing Hong Kong - Macao Center in Beijing. It is a cooperative effort
between American Express and China International Travel Service (CITS).
American Express has four other travel service offices in Beijing,
Shanghai, Xiamen and Guangzhou and 23 representative offices throughout
China.
American Express has also cash machines where you can get cash (Chinese
Yuan), provided you have a pin. There is one in the Beijing World Trade
Center Shopping Arcade.

Remember to always bargain. Chinese people are very good business people
that can smell money when it's lying around. They consider Westerners to
be living and walking money bags. Even if it is sometimes a nuisance, they
reason that even if you pay several times the price that a local pays, you
still can afford it. Always ask for the price first, especially in
restaurants. Otherwise you could end up having ordered this 'really
special soup' that costs you USD 100 (one hundred, no typing mistake, it
happened to a friend of mine!)

--------------------------------------------------------------------------
1.9 MAIL

Post offices are efficiently run and very reliable. During the three
months I was in China I mailed 11 parcels and all of them arrived,
their contents complete. One or two things were broken, but from what
I packed I expected much more damage.

First class mail overseas costs CNY 3.60. For a letter within a city you
have to pay 1 jiao, for a letter within China 2 jiao.

Air mail to Switzerland takes about one week, surface mail three to four
weeks.

Air mail to Canada takes about 10 days.

--------------------------------------------------------------------------
1.10 TELEPHONE

The international direct dial code for China is 86.

The prefix for international phone calls is 00 (e.g. Switzerland is 0041.)

Some area codes (to dial you need the prefix 0):

Beijing                     10
Chongqing                  811
Dalian                     411
Guangzhou                   20
Guilin                     773
Haikou                     898
Harbin                     451
Kunming                    871
Lanzhou                    931
Nanjing                     25
Shanghai                    21
Shenzhen                   755
Tianjin                     22
Weifang                    536
Wuxi                       510
Wuhan                       27
Xiamen                     592
Xian                        29
Xikou                      574
Zhuhai                     756


Some useful numbers:

Police                     110
Fire                       119
Ambulance                  120
General inquiries          114
International inquiries    116
Weather forecast           121

In China, telephoning is relatively easy if you adhere to certain
procedures. The best way to place a phone call is to go to the local post
office. At most places it is possible to dial directly, in other places
you have to ask the operator. In many cities there are now public phone
booths where you can make calls with a phonecard. Another good place is
the local police station.

In most hotels it is possible to phone directly either from the reception
desk or from your room. The 'better' hotels with international standards
usually add a hefty surcharge of up to 50%! Inquire before placing a call.

Rates from China to the overseas (e.g. USA) is CNY 26 per minute. There is
another service apart from the PTT one which lets you phone for USD 1.40
per minute, with 6 seconds billing.

--------------------------------------------------------------------------
1.11 ACCOMMODATION

In China dormitories are widely known and by far the cheapest place. They
are generally ok. It is possible to get reasonable priced single or double
rooms.

There are now quite a number of very fine luxury hotels, with both, the
service and facilities as well as the prices being the same as in Western
countries.

Be careful with middle-class hotels. They usually are not exactly cheap
(Westerners pay quite a lot more), and may be more expensive than the
cheaper Western chains. On the other hand, they are often quite dirty and
there is nearly no service. Even disregarding the price, budget hotels
frequented by backpackers are usually much better.

--------------------------------------------------------------------------
1.12 FOOD

China has a variety of different local cuisines. It can be categorized
into the following main areas: Beijing, Shanghai, Sichuan and Cantonese.
Shanghaiese and Cantonese are dominated by sea food, whereas the northern
Beijing style is leaning more towards noodles. Sichuan is very spicy.

Huo Guo
The Mongolian Firepot is available in Sichuan and in the north. It is
really hot (spicy), and certainly worth the experience.

Yoghurt
China has some of the best yoghurt I ever had. They are sold on the
street in glasses and you drink (!) them with a straw. Make sure to
return the glass.

Don't drink tap water. Even in the smallest guest houses in the remotest
villages there are thermos bottles with boiled water. It is used to drink
tea. Beer is also available everywhere, as well as many soft drinks. Apart
from the well known American products like Coca Cola, Pepsi Cola, etc.
there are many local versions of sweet lemonade. They are much cheaper
and cause no health problems.

Beer
There are numerous local brands available, the most famous being Tsingdao.
They are not only cheaper than the foreign ones, but most of the time
even better. Some brands I liked most: Yanqing, Nanqing, Emei. Avoid
'Pacific Ocean'; I would prefer the real thing (i.e. the Pacific Ocean
water).

--------------------------------------------------------------------------
1.13 HEALTH

Chinese people are very aware of health problems. The Chinese medicine is
world famous and obtainable even in the smallest villages. However,
Western medicine is not very widely available.

Don't drink tap water. Even in the smallest guest houses in the remotest
villages there are thermos bottles with boiled water. It is used to drink
tea. See also section about drinking.

Malaria
Malaria (from French 'mal air', bad air) is an infection of the blood
caused by the bite of mosquitoes (Anopheles). The decay of the red blood
cells causes fever and eventually a lack of oxygen which can, in case of a
malaria cerebral, cause brain damage. Depending on the type of malaria
these fever shocks appear every three (malaria tertiana) or four (malaria
quartana) days. Death rate of malaria is less than 1%.
There have been many discussions on how to best deal with it and even
the doctors have not yet agreed on a single opinion.
There are two possibilities for prohylaxis. For a short stay (less than
one month) in a malaria endangered region, prophylaxis with Lariam, as
described by doctors, is recommended. This gives nearly 100% protection.
For longer trips, Lariam should not be used, since there are too many side
effects (such as liver problems). If you want to use a prophylactic at
all, use one on Chloroquin (several different brands) basis. Although
protection is only about 50 - 70%, it still reduces the effects of an
actual infection. 
The most important thing about malaria is to recognize it as such. Every
little health center with a microscope can make a reliable diagnose. If
you feel sick, have a check done. In case of a negative result, and you
keep feeling sick, then have the check re-done every three days. Use your
own, clean blood-sampling needles.
A special danger causes a malaria that develops at the same time as a flue
or a pneumonia, since it is often recognized too late.
Carry a treatment package with you (e.g. Lariam or Halfon) and use it
according to the instructions on the package slip once malaria has been
diagnosed. Do visit a doctor! Local treatments (mainly Cloroquine) are
made for the local population which is semi-immunized. These treatments
are often too weak for Western people. Somebody taking Lariam treatment
should always be watched by another person, because of the side-effects
(especially mental problems, depressions, nightmares, and higher
photo-sensitivity of the skin. There is even a small danger of suicide!) 
However, the most effective way to prevent malaria are mosquito repellent
(possibly with at least 20% DEET, or citronella.) Since mosquitoes are
only active after sundown and before sunset, make sure you wear clothes
that cover the skin and use a good mosquito net.
Malaria can break out up to three month after leaving the endangered
region. Take this into account if you become sick within this time and
have a malaria test made.

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1.14 STUDENT CARD

If you have a Chinese student card, you will be able to get Chinese prices
on public transport, etc. But since not many officials are sure how these
cards look like exactly, you can try to show an international student ID.
Once you get Chinese price tickets, keep them. Show them as a reference
that you are indeed 'entitled' to Chinese prices.

The Chinese nowadays offer fake Chinese student cards. Of course, this is
illegal. I don't know of the consequences. Chinese officials are not very
happy to find you with a fake document. You might well face a high
penalty. Especially the Beijing station checks foreigner IDs regularly and
fine appropriately.

Another trick to try is to use a Taiwan issued student or teacher's card.
Since many Chinese regard Taiwan as belonging to China, a Taiwanese card
is thus also a Chinese card.

In Beijing, try the second-hand bookstore near the Pink Cafe. Also, on the
third floor of the Qiao Yuan Hotel you'll be able to get them. Another
place is the Jing-Tai Hotel.

In Xian, Mr. Fix-It will approach you at the upstairs ticket window in the
railway station. A fake teacher's card costs CNY 50.

In Chengdu you'll get the best cards from Mr. Xiah's near the Traffic
Hotel. They cost CNY 35 and take one day to make. Another place is
Mr. Lee's travel agency in the Renmin Hotel.

In Dali are also many restaurants to get these cards.

In Guangzhou, near the Youth Hostel you will be approached by a short fat
man asking whether you would like to buy a student card. He asks CNY 60.

Yangshou is an excellent place to get these cards, e.g. Suzana's is asking
CNY 30.

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2. TRANSPORTATION

Generally, there is no need for travel permits. It may still be a problem
to get into Tibet, though (but for details on that, see the Internet
Travel Guide to Tibet.) And if you stray from the main paths, make sure
you don't go to one of the few 'forbidden' areas.

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2.1 FLYING

The safety of flying within China has greatly improved over the last
couple of years. Most airlines have modern Boeing and Airbus planes (China
is the second largest market for Airbus, after France.)

There are now several Chinese airlines that operate within China. They
have split from the former CAAC. One is Shanghai Airlines, another is
China Southern.

Planes not always on time, sometimes delaying departure for hours.

There are different prices for foreigners and local people.

Some plane prices:

Guangzhou      Guilin          CNY  600
Shanghai       Hong Kong       CNY 1450
Shanghai       Shenzen         CNY 1100

Yunnan Airlines has a flight from Kunming to Lijiang is CNY 330, plus
airport tax of CNY 50.

The flight from Dali to Kunming is CNY 300, and the airport tax CNY 50.

Silkair has two flights weekly between Kunming and Singapore. The
international departure tax is CNY 90.

There are several flights a day between Hong Kong and Guangzhou. The
flight takes about 40 minutes.

There are four flights daily from Hong Kong to Guilin (HKD 500.)

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2.2 TRAIN

With over 52800 km of tracks, the train is one of China's main means of
transportation. However, most of these tracks operate with diesel or coal,
only 5700 km are electrified.

There are four classes available: Soft sleeper, hard sleeper, soft seater,
and hard seater. Soft sleepers are four bed compartments with nice sheets
and generally good comfort. Hard sleepers are open six bed niches with no
door towards the corridor. Only a sheet is provided, but generally people
are much nicer (not being high communist cadres or successful business
people). Soft seaters are very comfortable. Hard seaters are the lowest
class of them all, but also the cheapest. In contrast to the other
classes, there is no limit on how many people will travel. Even though
there are reservations one is supposed to move together, so that as many
people as possible are able to sit.

A good way to spend time on the train is to go to the dining car. Meals
are cheap and usually ok. Especially when you're travelling hard seat,
you'll be happy to have more space.

Trains are usually very punctual and safe.

There seems to be a change in the prices, they have gone up quite a lot
recently (double for hard sleeper, and triple for soft sleeper). These
prices are now valid for both, Chinese and foreigners, so there is now no
difference anymore.

At some place there is a black market for Chinese price tickets. The worst
that can happen to you is that the train personnel doesn't believe you're

Tickets are sometimes quite limited, so the best thing is to book your
next ticket at the same day you arrive at some place. If you stay at one
place for a couple of days don't forget to book at least two to three days
before your planned departure.

Many stations, especially the big cities, have special booths for
foreigners. There you don't have to wait as long as at the regular booths,
but prices are more expensive, and they may only have the more expensive
tickets.

(Edmund) When you go to the booth in the train station to buy the ticket,
write down on a piece of paper the train number, time and date of
departure, destination, and number of tickets you want to buy. Show this
paper to the clerk at the booth in order to avoid a misunderstanding (a
common occurence in China).

(Edmund) A special note about the main train station in Beijing. I
wouldn't try to get a train ticket at the regular line up there! The
lineup is very long and moves very slowly. A friend explained to me why
this is so: it seems that many poor peasants come to Beijing to make
money. One way to do this is to line up for tickets at the station (even
though you are not planning to go anywhere). Once they get near the front
of the line, they can offer to buy tickets for other people who want to
buy a ticket but can't afford the time to wait. This 'service' cost about
10 CNY for a short trip, or about 200 CNY for a long trip (in addition to
the price of the ticket itself). You understand that this can only happen
in a place where there is large gap in income, such as China is today.
Anyway, if you are a foreigner, go inside the train station (you will have
to show your passport to a guard at the gate to do this), go to the
Foreign guests booking office ('Wai Bing Shou Piao Chu'), and buy your
ticket there. It is best to go 3-4 days in advance of your trip to book
the ticket.

A good idea is to buy a railroad guide at one of the stations.

TIMETABLES

Note: Some fares are only an estimate, and all prices are changing from
time to time, so check once you're there. I try to keep the prices as
accurate as possible, but things do change and I'm not from the Chinese
railway company...

From Beijing to Xian
 Train #   Depart      Arrive         Hard sleep fare    Soft sleep fare
     75      9:22    3:04 (2nd day)       162.00             480.00
     41     13:30    6:17 (2nd day)       162.00             480.00
    163     17:04   12:44 (2nd day)       148.00             459.00
     35     19:04   14:42 (2nd day)       160.00             468.00
     69     21:24   14:10 (2nd day)       162.00             480.00
      7     23:15   15:31 (2nd day)       162.00             480.00

From Xian to Suzhou
 192/189     9:05    9:19 (2nd day)       166.00             519.00
 108/105     9:40   11:01 (2nd day)       166.00             519.00
 178/175    13:25   13:41 (2nd day)       166.00             519.00
 140/137    20:30   20:22 (2nd day)       166.00             519.00
  54/51     23:18   21:23 (2nd day)       182.00             543.00

From Hangzhou to Guilin
     79     21:55    0:57 (3rd day)       182.00             543.00
    179     22:49    6:56 (3rd day)       166.00             519.00

From Suzhou to Hangzhou
                                      Hard seat fare     Soft seat fare
 155/158     2:06    6:26                  13.00              21.00
   87/90     4:54    9:48                  15.00              23.00
 105/108    11:01   16:37                  13.00              21.00
      31    14:44   19:16                  15.00              23.00
 Tour  5     8:22   12:45                  32.00              49.00
 Tour 11    15:25   19:56                  32.00              49.00

The train from Guangzhou to Guilin takes 17 hours.

The train from Wuxi to Beijing takes 22 to 24 hours. Hard sleeper is CNY
173, and soft sleeper CNY 446.

From Wuxi to Zhangzhou takes only 40 minutes and costs CNY 3.

The train from Hekou to Kunming takes about 16 hours through magnificent
scenery. There are several trains daily; a direct one leaves at 13:20.
Hard sleeper is CNY 80.

In Shanghai it is possible to book tickets up to 30 days in advance.

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2.3 BOAT

Boat trips are probably the nicest way of travelling through China.

The most important route is on the Chang Jiang (Yangtse) between Shanghai
and Chung Qing.

For travellers coming from Hong Kong and travelling through Guangzhou
(Canton) to Guilin, there is a combined ticket of boat and bus, costing
CNY 77 (buy the ticket directly at the ticket booth where the boat
leaves.) The boat goes to Wuzhou, where you have to change into a bus.

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2.4 BUS

There are two main type of busses: city busses and overland busses. Both
run frequently and are very cheap, but uncomfortable.

For a city bus you have to pay only some Jiao (less than CNY 1). Since
these busses are extremely crowded, you have to be very careful of
pickpockets. Take your bags in front of you, so that nobody can cut it
open.

The bus net is very extensive and the fares are quite low. There are no
differences between local and foreigner prices.

When going overland, try not to sit in the front of the bus. Within the
cities, I always thought that the horn was very loud, until I travelled
overland. There the honking was almost continual and deafening.

There is a bus from Golmud to Lhasa which takes about 40 hours on a bumpy
road.

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2.5 BICYCLE

One of the best ways to see a place is by bicycle. Chinese cities seem to
be made for cycling. You can rent a bicycle at your hotel or at one of the
many shops. It is only a couple of yuans per day.

If you want to go beyond the city borders beware of the big roads. The
traffic on major roads between cities is just murderous. Pollution is
extreme and you are bound to become deaf from all that honking by bus and
truck drivers. Road conditions are very bad, and 'stronger' vehicles don't
take care of 'weaker' ones (e.g. you as a bicycle rider have to move out
of the way, if a truck decides that he wants to drive on his left (your)
side!), so accidents are quite usual.

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The homepage of the Internet Travel Guides is at
http://www-students.unisg.ch/~pgeiser/itg.htm

Please send your comments, suggestions and contributions to the address
below. For questions, please see my note in the introduction.

e-mail:peter.geiser@student.unisg.ch

Peter M. Geiser
Seeblickstr. 10
9010 St. Gallen
Switzerland

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