Travel Blog

1.Taxi:
Taking a taxi is not a small problem in Beijing. There are some illegal taxi in Beijing! You can use the following methods to choose the real taxi:
1) The taxi plaque number starts with the number B
2) The taxi should be equippped with the light on the top and meter measuring.
3) Please take a taxi on the road instead of a taxi waiting somewhere.The empty taxi must show a red light in the front window.My experience tells me that here are two areas where you will encounter the illegal ( black ) taxi:
A.The taxi waiting at the North Gate of Forbidden City.Actually the legal cabs are not permitted to wait in fornt of the gate.if you want to take a taxi when you finish your visit to Forbidden City, we suggest you walk about 200 meters and find a taxi going on the road
B.Please take a serious look at the taxi waiting at the Summer Palace. We still suggest you use a moving taxi.Don’t use a the taxi which has no B or with funny colour ( normal colour: yellow and Red ).

2.Fake art students:
In some areas, you may meet some so-called art students who are approaching to you and talking with you mainly at the aim of practicing English with you. In fact, later, they want to sell some artifacts by taking you to an exhibition hall! Especially be careful of these areas:
A.Wangfujing street
B.Tiananmen square,
C.Starbuck coffee inside the Forbidden City

3.Some bad shops:
Some shops nearthe Great Wall, especially Badaling section of the Wall. Be careful of the bad shops.

4.Panjiayuan flea market
If you are inerested in visiting Panjiayuan flea market which are open only on weekends,please do bargin. You know some of the stuff are not real antique.

5. Just name some places worth to visit in Beijing:
A)Visit the Temple of Heaven in the earlier morning. You will find people, especially olders do morning exercise in the park.
B)The Summer Palace,
C.)See the panda in Beijng zoo.
D.)Visit the Drum Tower. From the tower you could have a good view of the middle axis in Beijing
E.)As for the Great Wall,we suggest Simatai or Mutianyu section, it is a bit wild section.
F.)Ming Tombs : Dingling or Chang Ling.
G.)Houhai bar area where you find lots of bars and a few restaurants near lotus market.
H.)Visit Wangfujing night food street.Just have a close look and don’t eat too much.

When you are traveling in Beijing or other parts of China and find yourself in emergency, the urgent telephone number is 110 for police, 119 for fire and 120 for ambulance. But while you are in Hong Kong or Macau, please use the number of 999 for emergency services.Foreign Tourists are every often the victims or the targets for thieves, so visitors should keep passports and money from pickpockets. It is also a good idea to keep from wearing impressive jewelry or disclose money in public.

Other Numbers:
Beijing Area Code : 010
Call for Police : 110
Phone Number Inquiries: 114
Time Inquiries: 117
Fire Dispatch: 119
Medical Emergency: 120, 999
Weather Broadcast: 121
Traffic Accident: 122
EMS (Express Mail Service): 185
Bus Inquiries: 96166
Train Inquiries: 6512-9525
Capital Airport 24-hour Hotline: 64541100 or 962580 ( pay call )

Beijing is relatively a safe city. But we cannot say there is no danger since it is a big city, the capital of China. When we talk about danger,we often mean people are getting tricked, misdirected, or ripped off in terms of money not neccessarily putting a gun or knife on your back! Chinese people hate crime either. So we suggest you have to have to take care of your belongings and use your brain.

Crossing the street:
Some Chinese people have little sense of traffic regulation. On the street, you will feel scary to find how some people in Beijing crossing the street.Some drivers fails to offer priority to the walking people or bicycle. At the same time some people ignore the trafic signal and the car too! Very often some people ignore the colour of the traffic. Please don’t follow those who neglect the traffic regulation. Keep in mind that some of the drivers on the roads are quite new! So anything will occur!
pickpockets:
You can find pickpockets have happy time in Beijing.Most of the predictable areas: scenic spots,shopping areas,, on the buses and subway.Beside the areas, you have to be on the alert whenerver and whenever you are, specially when you are in a supermarket a restaurant.

Be aware of these guys

Once you are in Beijing,sometimes you will be annoyed by kid beggars,so called art-students and nice girls for message.All of them either cheat your for money by using your tender heart.
When you are walking on the street, sometimes you will be followed by 2-6 begging kids with their mothers far behind. If you are kind to them and give the some money, you may be targeted again by more and more beggers from everywhere.They often work together and will anny western tourists known. Take care of your personal belongings.
Sometimes you will be approached by with some “beautiful girls” who will ask you whether you need massage.Just Forget them. You will be ripped off without touching the hands of these girls! No kidding!
In some scenic spots, you may meet so called art-students. They will lead you to a art shops and get you ripped off in the name of practising English!

The Chinese currency is called renminbi (people’s currency) and is often abbreviated to RMB. The basic unit is Yuan. Ten Jiao make one Yuan; ten Fen make one Jiao. Thus 100 Fen make one Yuan. Hongkong’s currency is the Hongkong dollar and Macau’s is the Pataca. Both currencies are worth 7% more than Renminbi. 
   A money belt or pocket sewn inside your clothes is the safest way to carry money. Velcro tabs sewn to seal your pockets shut will also help thwart roving hands. Keeping all your eggs in one basket is not advised - guard against possible loss by leaving a small stash of money (say US$100) in your hotel room or buried in your backpack, with record of the travellers cheque serial numbers and your passport numbers. 
   Stock up some ?ꦣurren;10 bills in case of the vendors and taxi drivers cannot make change for big note. Counterfeit bills are a problem in China. Very few Chinese will accept a ?ꦣurren;50 or ?ꦣurren;100 bill without first checking to see whether or not it is a fake. Notes that are old and tattered are also sometimes hard to spend. If you are having problems with a note, exchange it for a new one or small change at the Bank of China -counterfeits, however, will be confiscated.
   Besides the advantage of safety, travellers cheques are useful to carry in China because the exchange rate is actually more favourable than what you get for cash. Cheques from most of the world’s leading banks and issuing agencies are now acceptable in China - stick to the major companies such as Thomas Cook, American Express and Citibank and you’ll be OK. However it is only acceptable in the bank instead of shopping centers.

Money Exchange in Beijing

How and where to exchange your money when you travel to Beijing China ?

Usually you may do money exchange at the banks or ATM machine at the Beijing Capital Airport when you arrive. They make the same deal either you do it at the airport banks or at ATM machine. When you do the money exchange, don’t forget to take your passport. Please keep your receipt.It is vaild for three months! you can use the receipt to exchange your RMB ( Chinese money ) back to your currency when you leave China.

When you run out of money, you can also exchange your money at the counter of your hotel in Beijing. Each hotel has the capacity to do the money exchange for you since Bank of China or other banks in China will have their counters at the foreign-related hotels.

For large sum of money exchange, we suggest you to the banks to do it. Usually people go to Bank of China, or China Construction Bank ,or Industrial and Commercial bank of China, or China Agricutural Bank, the 4 of the largest banks in China.
Beijing China Currency & Banks

The currency of China is the renmenbi ( RMB ) or yuan. Now roughly 1 US$ equals to RMB 8. Foreign currencies are not in circulation in China though you may find some Hong Kong dollars appearing around southern China. ATMs are easy to be found in hotels and tourist destination and credit cards are popularly accepted in big cities like Beijing, Shanghai, Hong Kong ect.

You can easily use ATMs generally very convenient in China, you can still keep some traveller’s checks for a good choice for abtaining local cash in China. Foreign currency checks can be cashed at any airports, some banks, many large department stores, and most of the hotels. Exchange rates are regulated, so rates are generally about the same anywhere. Of course, in China you cannot use use traveller’s checks directly for shopping.

When you are going to exchange money,please keep exchange receipts. You can use the receipts to convert Renminbi back into foreign currency when exiting from China. Credit cards are usually accepted in major tourist hotels, shops and restaurants. Cash is welcome in China, so it’better to have some cash on hand when traveling in China.

There are plenty of shopping opportunities in this busy city of Beijing. Most of them are quite different from each other,but each has its own feature.

The modern shopping malls are big and not exciting. We are not surpised at the architecture, but they are really spacious and bright. The stores are quite characterless, something of a big shopping mall. While in the Wangfujing Street, you can find the small shops and kiosks which are cozy and often full of with quality clothes at the prices with barginning space. In the Wangfujing street,you can find small brand outlets - “chain shops”, speciality shops (one onely selling tea), jewellers, and so on.The prices are fairly good in those areas.

The Donghuamen Night Market linked to the Wangfujing Street was originally set up in 1984, with snack stores selling huge number of foods based on speciality Beijing snacks and from all over China. Now there are over 100 stalls in the market.All the chefs wear clean white overalls, hats and red aprons. You can buy all kinds of food there.

Wangfujin is a famous shopping street. It’s now a walking street with malls and sshops f all sizes all along it. Many people would not do much shopping there.They maybe find it an enjoyable place to just walk around and look at things. You can find some fashion stores. Some part of the area is like a shopping area for the rich. This area people find more English signs than at other shopping sites elsewhere, more brand names and store names that are international. There are also cheap stores around, including side streets where vendors sell cheap food and souvenirs in stalls.

Last time we went there and found some cool shops in Wangfujin Street that had “10 yuan” stuff, where everything is 10 yuan. You can have some real bargains. These are nice places to purchase such Chinese souvenirs like enamelware, jewellery, other things from tiny replicas of swords to gold ink paintings. Of course, not all of it are real, but some of it look to be. Some things I wanted to buy were enamelware - you can get it cheap, it looks cool and it’s very Chinese. I also like these small translucent bottles you can purchase that feature paintings. They paint these bottles from the inside by using special brushes.And it’s quite fantastic and very cool. They are also a souvenir that it would be hard to fake. If you’re going to Wangfujin,I’d recommend not eating beforehand because there are lots of nice, cheap food stalls available.

The Bird and Flower Market is quite interesting, especially Guanyuan Bird and Fish Market. It’s located Fuchengmen Subway Stop. (exit B). You walk along the east side of the 2nd ring road (Xicheng). It is Open from 8:30AM to 6:30 PM. Of course, you can find many other animals on sale here and some of the animal you never find in Beijing zoo! In the cricket area, you will see lots of bamboo cages and crickets shouting loud enough to trouble you! You find the such special animals as green snakes,squirrels,hamsters, frogs,strange crabs,piglet,big Iguanas and so on.

Established in 1984, Donghuamen Night Local Flavor Market basically covers from the whole Donganmen Street which is also near to the Wangfujing Business Street. With more than 50 specialty snack hawker stalls, the market sells some edible and exotic snack foods coming within whole China. For beiginners, the food that you find in the market seems rather scary, gross and smelly for those who are not used to the sights and smell of some of these snack foods. You know,some of consist of skewed scorpions, sea horses, baby quails, little sparrows, grasshoppers, and little squids. One has to have a strong stomach to take these foods and You have to take some risk, plenty of guts or be adventurous when trying out these foods! Of course, there are also edible ones: grilled lamb kebabs, jelly drinks, fried noodles and so. These snack are quite cheap too. All less than US5 dollars!

The Panjiayuan Market is a super shopping market for all Chinese arts and crafts. It is made up of over three thousand individual stalls covering 48,500 square metres. There really is something for everyone here. Even Hilary Clinton has shopped at Panjiayuan. There is a little overlap between stalls so you can compare and bargain but the range of goods is excellent. Stall owners come from twenty-four provinces around China to sell their wares.

Panjiayuan Market is at its best on weekends. The Antique Zone is open every day and the Arts and Crafts Warehouse Zone is open on Saturday and Sunday only.

The endless sprawl of stalls and shops at Beijing’s Panjiayuan Market

Stone cups and bowls with silver laid around them are beautiful. Nor are they as expensive as they look so bargain hard!

 Shopping for jade. Sales people are friendly and easy to engage. Some may speak English. It helps if you can learn Chinese numbers
- or use a pen and paper to write them down and show as you bargain.

Stone cups and bowls with silver laid around them are beautiful. Nor are they as expensive as they look so bargain hard!

Its name - Hongqiao Pearl Market is a little misleading. Actually it sells more than just fresh water pearls. This big market offers everything, from bags, shoes,pocket knifes, copy watches, sports wear to actual jewelry, and even sea food!. So it looks somewhat chaotic! But it looks just as every free market in China. On first floor you will find some copy watches ,electronics, basic photo equipment,and other small things. On second floor it offers have women’’s and men’’s clothes, shoes, bags and some sporting goods. Please keep “bargaining “in mind! At the top of the store they have pearls, other jewelry and souvenirs. Also on the underground, you can find lot of sea food!

People can make the best deal purchasing pearls and copy watches here, better prices than other places. Don”t forget BARGAIN! Please find below my expereince in buying the stuff:
shoes: 50/60 RMB; Bags - 50 RMB ; men’s T shirts - 40 RMB ;women’’s shirts - 30 RMB; pearls - 10 RMB for the small necklace;copy watches (CK, DKNY, Gucci) 50 RMB. Remember, they will start with the skyhigh prices - don”t get discouraged - BARGAIN! Ha ! It’’s very interesting! Bargaining makes you a feeling of seccess!

Also called Hongqiao Pearl Market which is a little bit misleading. This big market provides actually everything, ranging from pocket knifes, copy watches,silk,shirts, sports wear, bags, shoes to pear & ewelry. It is somehow crowded. On first floor, you can find some electronics, basic photo equipment, copy watches and other small stuff. On second floor they have shoes, women’s and men’s clothes, bags and some sporting goods.Please remember when bargaining. At the top of the market, they keep pearls, other jewelry and souvenirs.

You can make the best deal buying pearls and copy watches For other stuff you can make a better deal on other more local markets.

Please to learn bargain and dare to bargain. As low as I could get: better good shoes - 56/70 RMB bags - 50 RMB men’s T shirts - 40 RMB women’s shirts - 10/30 RMB pearls - 6 RMB for the small necklace, 30 RMB for a string of pearls copy watches - 120 RMB copy watches. 40/600 RMB Remember, they will start with the skyhigh prices - don’t get disppointed - Asking for lower pries!

Xiushui Street is one of the famous clothing markets in Beijing. It attracts domestic and foreign tourists with varied styles, colors and materials as well as a cheap price. You can find a number of duplicates of clothing in traditional Chienese style such as clothes,caps,gloves. Enjoy bargains with sellers and pleasant surprise of finding a real treasure if you are lucky enough. Now, Xiushui Street is in reconstruction.
When you wander along Beijing’s Xiushui Street, you will see that most of the stores promote their goods in various languages. They offer a wide variety, including curtains, tablecloths, bedding, earrings, and watches as well as clother, inexpensive caps, and shoes of excellent workmanship. If you want to buy something, you should check with more than one store and haggle over the price.It is several hundred meters long and is also known as the Leading Foreign Trade Market. The street lies at the southeastern corner of the diplomatic quarter in Beijing’s Chaoyang Dsitrict and has many hotels and offices of foreign-funded enterprises.

Xiushui Street used to be a wholesale market where businessmen from Eastern European countries purchased clothes, and all business was conducted in English and Russian. Today, the street is a tourist spot where people speaking many languages go shopping, both wholesale and retail.