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Ah yes, forgot about that important info. Thanks Charlie.
-52 inches
-Italian-made Columbus Zona steel frame
It’s super light, rode it around a couple of times and it feels really smooth with the thick slick tires (and the fact that the bike is brand new). I won it in an auction, but it’s too small for me. As I mentioned, I’m willing to negotiate.
1. Yahoo or Hotmail can be accessed without a VPN.
2. When people need to go, they go wherever they please. In the city, you’ll see little children stopping in the middle of the sidewalk to relieve themselves. There are also public toilets everywhere. When you get out of the city, though, there are rest-stops on major highways or…yeah, just simply pull over.
1. Make sure you iPhone is unlocked if you want to use it with a Chinese SIM card. Also, check the phone’s bandwidth for whether you can use it with 2G, 3G or 4G data usage.
2. Wi-Fi locations are abundant. Nearly every coffee/tea shop, restaurant, hotel, and places in between have it (maybe not at your local noodle shop though). You should have no problems getting internet. However, you will not be able to access many sites from the West including Facebook, NY Times, anything Google (including Gmail), Twitter, many blog sites, etc. These restrictions are always changing, so you’ll just have to find out when you get here and either A) deal with it, or B) Get a VPN (http://startuplivingchina.com/best-vpn-for-china/ or http://www.bestvpn-china.com/blog/21374/5-best-vpns-for-china-june-2015/).
3. Advice: Golden Week is one of the worst times to travel around China. You can only buy tickets so far in advance (I think one week), so get them early. Same with booking hotels. Let’s just put it this way, it won’t be smooth traveling. Your Chengdu girlfriend can probably give you better advice on this.
4. Tough question. I think any time relatively close to the Golden Week days will offer you craziness on the roads or at train/bus stations. Don’t be surprised if you DO spend a whole day in traffic.
5. Theoretically, yes you can drive her car whenever you want. Technically, no you can’t. You need a local or an international driver’s license (and even with the international one I believe you’ll still need to take the local test – you may want to search other forum posts on this one).
6. Yes, you can use a foreign credit card in China. Make sure it is Visa or Mastercard and that you contact your bank before coming; they will put a hold on your card otherwise. Just note that China is a cash-based economy. If you’re going to malls or higher-end shops, you should have no problem using it. If you go to local restaurants or bargaining at a market, they won’t accept it. Basically, use your card to get money from an ATM (Bank of China, China Construction Bank, or ICBC will be your best bet and there’s one on nearly every street corner) and simply use cash — you won’t go wrong.
7. Best places to exchange would be at: 1) A bank in NZ before you arrive, 2) the airport upon arrival, 3) Bank of China (middle of the city branch on RenMin North Road is probably your best bet for accepting NZD). Or, you can use your card at an ATM. All of these have different rates.
8. There is no real amount I could suggest because everyone’s spending habits are different. Travel around with both big and small denominations, but you will quickly notice that everyone wants exact change or something close to it. Thievery can be a problem in China, so be careful with how much you carry around at one time. As of today, the exchange rate for 1 NZD is 4.05 CNY.
Depends on a few factors:
1) Time: early mornings before traffic even starts or late at night when traffic has died down are both good times to train outdoors;2) Location: there are running tracks all around Chengdu where you will see people running/walking/exercising during peak times (8-10 AM, 6-8 PM). There are also a huge amount of parks. I recently heard that if you go to the very last stop south on the subway #1 blue line there are nice parks that are quite far away from the city, so it is highly conducive for nice runs and/or bikes training.
3) Day of the week: some days can be polluted, during which you should not do physical activity outdoors (or if you do, buy a mask). I would recommend downloading an China Air Quality app to monitor the days. Sometimes it can be clear weather, sometimes not.
One thing I learned a few months ago is that now only selected branches of China Mobile accept passports to open an account. I was sent on a tour of 3-4 branches, and then finally found one that would do it for our visiting students — it ended up being near Sichuan Universiy Wangjiang campus “Little North Gate” near Hongwasi (红瓦寺街). Anyway, just be prepared for this, and make sure they call the branch they send you to before you go trekking to it (this happened to me where they said a certain branch accepted passports only to arrive having them tell me they don’t).
There are a bunch of places to play pick-up basketball in Chengdu, though foreigners might be limited and nearly all are outdoor:
1. Sichuan University Wangjiang Campus (east, right off of 1st Ring Road) – go to the courts in the middle of campus near the stadium, recently reconstructed, usually packed with people after 4-5 PM, open until 10 PM or so with lighting when it gets dark, free entrance
2. Decathlon (south – next to IKEA) – new courts, haven’t been yet but I hear good things, I think 5-10 RMB entrance fee
3. Sichuan Gymnasium (central) – semi-indoor courts, 10-15 RMB entrance fee, floor is slick and a little worn, they usually have leagues and camps so it can be hit or miss in terms of whether you can play
4. Shen Xian Shu (神仙树 – southwest near Tongzilin） – also have never been, but I’ve heard they’re nice courts and foreigners play there
I would suggest joining the WeChat group “外国 Basketball”. Ton of foreigners in there and they often set up pick-up games.
Wii should work if it has those connections.
And no problem. If you know anyone who is interested, let us know!
Yuk,
I know of a few places, but I am sure there are tons of other English corner type of events going on in Chengdu. Your best bet is to go any university and look for flyers.
- Sichuan University’s Wangjiang Campus: every Friday night there is a large group of college students, children, and adults (both locals and foreigners) that gathers outside the big spaceship-looking gymnasium. Typically starts at around 7 PM and lasts for several hours. Free.
- Chengdu Friends House: http://www.douban.com/event/20171006/?_r=0a6161da6ed14
- The Chengdu American Center for Study Abroad: every semester, I organize free cultural exchange activities such as American-Chinese Business Etiquette or holiday events. Usually anyone is welcome. You can follow us on WeChat under the names 成都极妙教育g-MEO and 极妙-成都美国海外留学中心。
Fun ride last Sunday, thanks to Natooke (and Ra)! From what I hear, these might happen more often in 2015, so I highly recommend joining if you get the chance.
Would be great to hear any suggestions for flight towards Istanbul – Dubai direction. I did not come up to any budget offers with my searches.. experiences will be highly appreciated
I took an Etihad flight from Chengdu to Abu Dhabi last month. Hardly any people on the plane both ways, so I was able to have an entire emergency exit row to myself, even though it usually costs extra. But even the regular seats have spacious leg room. Good in-flight entertainment, food was decent enough, and the service was excellent. I also recommend it.
