Travel Guide East Asia China

The Chinese saying is 一汾钱一汾货, “yi fen qian, yi fen huo” (pronounced ee fen chee-ahn, ee fen hoo-oh). This translates literally to one cent gives you one cent’s worth of merchandise. Makes sense, right?
There’s a whole industry of fake goods in China that lots of visitors to China go wild for when they arrive [...]

Getting to Know the People’s Money or Renminbi
Currency
Mainland China uses Renminbi, which translates to “the People’s Money”. Other, common, terms for the Renminbi, RMB in shortened form, are yuan, pronounced “you-on”, or kuai, pronounced “kwhy”. It is common to see the Chinese currency noted as “CNY” in foreign exchange bureaus and banks. The abbreviation stands [...]

The Population Growth of the World’s Largest Country

With just over 1.3 billion people (1,330,044,605 as of mid-2008), China is the world’s largest and most populous country.
As the world’s population is approximately 6.7 billion, China represents a full 20% of the world’s population so one in every five people on the planet is a resident of [...]

Train travel is generally a great way to get around China. It is cheap (much less expensive than air travel) and generally very comfortable. Gone are the days of wooden seats at ninety-degree angles with loud speakers blaring propaganda. Trains nowadays have four classes, refreshment carts and decent (if not fabulous) bathrooms.
Obstacles to Buying [...]

Step 1: Buy a Ticket
Congratulations! You’ve decided to avoid traffic, go green and take the subway. You might be a little daunted but don’t be, take your time and follow these easy directions and hopefully you’ll get wherever you need to go with ease and aplomb.
Now that you’ve found the station, the first thing [...]

Question: Can I Get a Chinese Visa in Hong Kong?
Answer: While the official recommendation is to obtain a Chinese visa in the country where you reside before you leave for your trip, you can get a Chinese visa in Hong Kong.
Hong Kong does not require visas for entry for residents of most countries. For [...]

Question: How Do I Get an Invitation Letter for China if I am an Independent Tourist?
Answer: If you are traveling independently (without an official tour group), you need to get an invitation letter. It’s a little bit trickier than when traveling with a group or for business. Tour agencies supply the letters for their travelers [...]

Question: What is a re-entry visa for China and why would I need it?
Answer: Re-entry visas are required for China if you are planning to leave the country and then re-enter during your stay. For most people traveling to China on a tour or holiday, it wouldn’t be required. However, if you are planning to [...]

China is, for the most part, a pretty safe place in which to travel – you don’t have to worry about accidentally venturing into the wrong part of town. That said, you need to have your wits about you and ensure that you travel safely and prudently. There are a few customs that foreign guests [...]

The Moon festival (also called the Mooncake or Mid-Autumn festival) falls on October 3rd in the year 2009. What is the Moon festival? Every year on the fifteenth day of the eighth month of the lunar calendar, when the moon is at its maximum brightness for the entire year, the Chinese celebrate “zhong qiu jie.” [...]