Hong Kong edition

Post trip plans, past experiences, advice, questions, etc. in this thread.

Do you have to go to the consulate to get a visa as an American?

>>2762081
You may find this site helpful
https://www.visaforchina.cn/

What are some good places for China newfags to try that aren't Gz/HK/Shanghai/Beijing?

>>2762080 (OP)
>2025
>going to china and getting your organs harvested
yikes

>>2762085
new tier 1 cities 新一线
these aren't as easy for foreigners as proper tier 1 (BJ, SH, GZ, Shenzhen), there will be a lot less English, but they are equally developed and you have all the mod cons of the cities above

i.e. Xi'an, Chongqing, Nanjing, Hangzhou, Dalian (I specifically reccommend Xi'an)

one cool thing that Chinese maps (高德地图) does is track exactly where you've been in every city down to the district level
i.e. from this I can see I've been almost everywhere in Beijing within ring road 4 apart from the southeast

naturally it does this for the whole country as well, on trains it marks you as having visited every city you pass through tho

>>2762085
If you're a china newfag then those really are the best places to try though

Xiamen is pretty nice, not a huge amount to do but it's pleasant.

Could try Yunnan or somewhere.

Macau is something a little different but I wouldn't go out of my way for it unless you're already in HK or SZ

t. expat in HK

>>2762650
It's cool to have a Chinese app tracking your movements? You know that google maps can do the same thing but I have that shit turned off and put my phone in airplane mode when I don't use it because I'm not a cuck.

>>2762679
I think to come to China you kinda have to be ok with Chinese apps having your information otherwise there is absolutely zero way to do anything here lol

Learning Chinese or Japanese which language is faster? i plan to visit both countries

>>2762740
imo chinese has a higher entry barrier but japanese is harder to master (grammar, polite forms, etc). japanese is easier to start imo because the sounds aren't difficult to pronounce for an english speaker, it has two basic alphabets you can use to start with instead of kanji, it has a bunch of english loan words. chinese you'll probably get btfo by the hanzi and tones to start with, but grammar is way easier imo

>>2762740
Japanese is much easier because it isn't tonal and you can learn the most important phrases by rote.

Chinese job market for foreign educators has been kind of shit this year. Been trying to break in from abroad and haven't landed on a full offer. Interviewing with a company on tuesday opening up a new school in Shenzhen that won't open until this summer.

>>2762777
it's probably going to stay like it is now, the government wants to reduce school spending and one of the best ways to do that is to replace your expensive foreigner English teachers with locals
there is also the 双减 policy which aims to reduce private tutoring and out of school education i.e. training centres
Chinese tutors haven't been affected as much by this because the most they'll get punished with is a fine or a ban from teaching (which they will ignore), whereas foreigners will get deported and a 5 year entry ban.

>>2762740
Japanese will be faster to start off with but Chinese will be much more useful. In Japan English signs and speakers are quite common but in China outside of Beijing/Shanghai you'll be quite hard pressed to find English speakers etc. And if you just stay in the bubble catering to non-Chinese speaking tourists and foreigners you'll barely experience a quarter of what China has to offer

>>2762080 (OP)
where to fuck in hong kong?

>>2762080 (OP)
How are the Chinese towards foreigners generally? Have any expat/frequent traveller anons experienced hostility while they were there?

>>2763059
(I'm a white guy from the UK, your mileage may vary if Asian or black)
welcoming, curious, and generally friendly. I speak Chinese so my experience is likely to be somewhat different but I've never had anyone apart from obvious scammers be hostile towards me. I know a lot of other foreigners here and they get people asking for photos but I've only had that happen once in 6 months, I think because I have a resting bitch face. There is also a lot of staring outside of Beijing/Shanghai but you get used to it quickly.

I've also seen tour groups being stupid in temples and stuff (Italians in Xi'an stepping on the raised threshholds, taking photos and selfies with the buddhas, people being all sorts of annoying on the great wall, etc) and they never got people shouting at them or anything. Chinese ppl don't really do public confrontations as it's considered losing face. They will be racist af on the internet but do nothing when they actually see an American/Japanese/Korean

I would advise not bringing up Chinese politics (Tibet Taiwan Tiananmen + Xinjiang are the main touchy areas) but they will quiz you endlessly on your country. I had a taxi driver in Harbin who really wanted to know petrol prices in different countries in europe, lol. History can also be sensitive, at the old summer palace in Beijing which the British and French destroyed and looted I wasn't about to go around waving a union jack.

>>2762969
It definitely makes sense why the government is doing it. There are a lot of dodgy schools that just hire white faces and students don't get a quality education. I landed an offer but now just getting the anxiety of leaving what little I have in the USA.

>>2763059
The way you are received depends on 1/your skin colour. 2/ if you speak english 3/ if you're rich

I'm mixed race and tried the European approach and asian apparoach. So I basically A/B tested the place

1/ in HKers here is how races are ranked : White Lords > HKers > White skinned asians > Chinese > Brown Slaves

2/ I didn't even tried to speak cantonese, I just shouted orders in english and the inferiority complex kicked in, I was welcomed with better conditions than as a polite asian

3/ if you come from a perceived rich country (UK lmao) or clearly display sign of riches, it invalidates the rest as soon as you presented yourself.

Overall the place is dynamic, it's a world city but people are rude. I'd say that to a white person that looks like for some carrier improvement, the expat community is great. However visiting per se is dogshit, you don't have the old niceties you can see on pictures. I assume a retro afternoon with HK movies and some documentary would work give you a better experience.

Oh, and by the way. British HK dogs > Indian dogs

Got my offer for 39k/month rmb (all benefits) pre-taxed to work in Shenzhen to work as a teacher!

>>2763212
>>2763333
I'm (also) a white Brit, glad to hear they're generally accepting and you won't get randomly blindsided about politics. That seems to happen occasionally to Americans in Europe.

>>2763333
the one thing i remember the most is how much lack of situational awareness the people have. feel like someone who walking into me every 10sec. not rude, just completely un fucking aware of anything around them

Moving to China to work. Any tips from people who actually lived there?

>>2764349
I haven't been to china but I can let you feel the tip of my penis if you insist

>>2762080 (OP)
Have a love/hate relationship with Hong Kong
If I am to ever return, I definatly want to do more exploring on Lantau Island.
Also perhaps the southern end of Hong Kong island, brick hill, Ocean Park, Cyberport etc.

Maybe also visit Sam's Tailor and The Spaghetti House one time

>>2764352
sorry, I only get pegged by femboys anon and you're in the sumo wrestler weight class

>>2763669
oh yes this is very very common, my number 1 hatred is people not realising that there are people behind them or who might need to get past them.

i.e, they get off an escalator and just stand there processing for like 30 seconds instead of moving off to the side. I need to get off it too!
go into a lift and they just stand in the doorway. I usually just have to push past because they have headphones in. Same thing happens on the subway.

I think this is infectious because my white friends have started doing the same thing. They stand in doorways and chat, please move I need to get past.

>>2764349
English teacher or real job
do you speak Chinese y/n

>>2764774
Real job -- All-inclusive package (housing allotment etc) is 39k rmb before taxes. I just learned what document "apostillation" means

>>2764918
39k per month is pretty nice, well done anon
I assume you're going to Shanghai or some other tier 1 city?

my number 1 tip is to enjoy good weather while it lasts because this country very rarely has truly comfortable weather. Summer is sweltering and winter is cold and polluted
my number 2 tip is to pay attention to your health because the food, pollution, and lack of exercise and walking aren't great for that

>>2765348
are there any places in the cold parts of china that are actually nice to live?

>>2764993
I will be in Shenzhen in a new school being built,not exactly sure what to expect at the moment. I'm not a big fan of overly tropical jungle heat but I already put up with that in the USA anyways. The health has me concerned because my heart health supposedly is immaculate on my most recent blood work.

Is there a legitimate draw to visiting Shenzhen? My only impression is that people go there for cheap electronics and for when they get bored of Hong Kong. And I guess because it's a way to visit China-proper without the complicated visa. Other than that, does Shenzhen bring anything to the table, culturally speaking?

>>2765397
Shenzhen is better for pollution but worse for weather
I would advise you to explore the city and your local area, get an idea of what there is to do within a 5 minute walk of where you live, otherwise you will be bored out of your mind

>>2765533
it's got no unique culture as before 1980 it did not exist. There's no Shenzhen accent or Shenzhen speciality food, no Shenzhen ancient city or old temple. It's like a mixture of all Guangdong and Fujian culture because that's where most of the migrants are from
for tourists imo it's just a stop between Guangzhou and HK

where do i go if i just want to play vidyagames all day and dont really care about tourist shit?

>>2765579
Im really worried about apartment shopping since not used to their app ecosystem or finding accomodations. I really like to cook at home (granted I should try eating out more often in China since it's more affordable and different). Big thing I will be looking for is bars and coffee shops.

>>2765609
Dude you're going to Asia, video arcades are still alive over there.

Best way to make friends with chinks and meet the triads?

>>2765609
go to a mall, they have TVs with consoles you can use to play games, I always see kids and takeout drivers playing them
they also have actual arcades in the malls, not as many as Japan but they aren't uncommon

>>2765620
>cooking at home
good idea for western food because it sucks here
eating out - you may think this entails going to a restaurant, sitting down, and ordering from a waiter. In China that's like 5% of "eating out" experiences, it's usually a lot more casual or you just get something small from a stall on the side of the road and eat it at home.
>bars
Chinese people don't really do bars, they drink in restaurants with food
bars cater to students, rich assholes, and foreigners
>coffee
more common than bars but usually overpriced and cater to tourists who want pretty photos for their 朋友圈

>>2765370
Maybe Harbin
They have an ice sculpture festival which is pretty cool

How difficult is dating in China if you live in a big city? I always hear about scams ran.

>>2766347
if you speak Chinese and have some confidence it's more simple than breathing
otherwise it'll be harder and you'll have to deal with the laowai hunters

however most of the people interested in you will most likely just be chasing novelty and have few long term plans, especially most extended families would strongly oppose the relationship (excepting Shanghai). In the south women will exert as much control as possible over their partner with 冷暴力 (emotional violence such as ignoring, deliberate avoidance, requiring the person to cut off friends) and 撒娇 (acting annoying and impossible to please) whereas northern women are more direct and relaxed.

the only person I know who got into a fairly stable relationship here was with another expat

Is there enough to do in HK to last two weeks, or is it worth crossing the border to see Gz or something?

>>2767011
Most people tap out at 1-2 weeks, so the short answer is yes, there's enough. If you're a weirdo like me, 3+ weeks would be ideal, but most people are fine with 2.

Going to China in August, what are the must-see sights in Beijing, Shenzhen, HK and Macau?

>>2766347
it isn't difficult at all. culture depends on what big city, what area you live in and what your job is, i.e. where you are spending your time.
you will get laid easily if you go to expat bars. you will find women easily on apps. some might want casual, some will want a relationship. it depends on you, your job/income, your looks and personality how beautiful the woman is.
idk what the other anon is on with his extended family opposing the relationship, i know dozens of guys who married into chinese families, some connected like you wouldn't believe and there was never an issue with the guy because the woman had selected well. this north/south shit is a meme, don't take it seriously. chinese women are chinese women. their upbringing is more relevant than their location. if you are meeting middle class urban women or women who moved to a big city and are middle-class/professional then you don't have that old generation country shit to deal with.

>>2767011
no, 2 weeks is far too long in hong kong as a tourist trying to fill their days. arrange the mainland visa, if you need one, before you go. going to HK and not visiting Macau, shenzhen, guangzhou is a waste.

Fuck those cat torturing shits. Never visiting china

Hey, I visited China last year (Chengdu - Leshan - Emeishan - Kunming - Dali - Lijiang - Shangrila - Deqin - Yading NP - Litang - Urumchi - Turpan - Kashgar) and had an absolute blast.

Is there any region of China you would recommend further? I like hiking, smaller places, diverse ethnicities.

Wondering if Sichuan / Yunan / Xinjiang is where this is, and other provinces are more Han centric and as such a bit boring.

>>2762985
I'll tell you but it's been 20 days since your posts so maybe you tell me. You tell Master what you have learned and Master will bestow celestial wisdom onto you in return.

>>2768604
Bump

>>2768631
>>2766541
Thanks anon, I'm a little nervous because my mandarin is non-existent other than a little bit of familiarity with toneation and how important it is. The app ecosystem is somewhat annoying, I was having trouble trying to find my workplace on amap because the address is all fucked up. I thought I was gonna be out in BFE shenzhen with no nearby metro but when I searched up the business name and cross referenced it to the photos provided to me of it I finally found it.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2_qIVM3cJtA
Damn these Chinapeeps are always so friendly. I mean he was wearing CCP clothes though. China seems really boring to me I dunno its just so huge and useless, the people are all bland and lifeless and the language is so insists upon itself, there is no subtly to it its always ching ching chong wang.

Sorry had a rant but I mean I could definitely see going there and the fact that you can leave a bag unattended for 4 hours is very impressive. China would be a good place for people who need the safest possible travel destination.

>>2769459
China is really boring, but it is the safest place in the world imo. Also it's not a popular tourist destination, so most places you go, everyone is (or looks) Chinese. That in itself makes for a relaxing getaway.

I'm going to backpack from Greece to Central Asia for a couple months and I want to go to China. Is it possible to get a tourist visa outside my own country? I'm from the UK

I've tried researching this and I've found very conflicting reports. Just wondering if anyone has any experience with this. Apparently it's possible in the netherlands but not Germany... idk it seems really confusing.

>>2769459
Man I was just about to post about this. Why is Bald now a CCP shill? He even learned to speak Chinese.

>>2769512
>he learned to speak chinese
lol
lmao even
Also he's getting paid to shill, he's not doing it for free

>>2769459
Near the beginning when he's asking the old people where to eat they literally call him a retard.

>>2769459
You gotta be fucking kidding me. China has North Korean tours where you can stare at the slave camps with guards commanding people around? kek

>>2765668
Unfortunately, they're not really a thing anymore in China. All of the 'arcades' I've seen there are nothing but rows of those mechanical claw things.

>>2769512
Because travel youtubers are trying to penetrate china for content. Granted most of them basically did the same trip and releasing everything at different times. Sabbatical and Small brained traveled a lot together etc. But their videos of the north korean border city were months apart when released.

Why does the embassy advise not getting a visa before 3 months? Surely you can get visa that is 6 months or longer right?

>>2769552
why is there so little good content on china, it seems thats its either ccp or cia shills or ai slop, its either the worst country in the world or the best one
the only such polarizing place in the media is dubai

>>2769717
because its not appealing to foreigners

>>2769717
And if you find a vlogger who has visited both China and Taiwan while acknowledging them as separate countries, they always turn out to be a Falun Gong shill.

>>2769884
I've been to both. Taiwan is an independent nation. Cope
>t. Not a falun gong shill

>>2769717
Search in whatever language you speak that isn't English, you'll find what you want. The propaganda war took over everything related to China otherwise.

>>2769510
You may need valid permanent residence in the country of application.
Double check the fine print. The consulate/embassy websites list out everything you'll need to consider.
t. burger who got a tourist visa in the Netherlands.

I'm planning a trip through China, with my final stops currently being Yangshuo and then Shanghai. The train ride between these two cities takes about 9 hours, so I'm looking for a worthwhile place to stay for a few days around the halfway point before continuing to Shanghai. ChatGPT suggested Jingdezhen, but I'm wondering if there are better options. I also considered Wuyuan, but since it doesn't have a direct train station, the extra travel time makes it not worthwhile.
Any suggestions?

>>2769459
>huge and useless
lmao it's true, I remember going across Hebei and you see all these random tower blocks in the middle of fields. Towns of tens of thousands hundreds of thousands of people which no foreigner (or, let's be honest, nobody not from some decrepit Nongville) will ever visit unless they know somebody there.
the nature is the best part of China but it sucks sometimes like when I climbed a mountain in southern Hebei and could see 14 coal power plants from the top.

>>2769717
people making stuff about China or who are in China and willing to do media stuff are inevitably roped into one side or the other
if you come study here then the university's international student (propaganda) department will definitely try to get your pasty white ass face in some tv program
fuck they even had a seminar here on how to go viral on Chinese social media as a foreigner influencer (ick)

>>2769957
I'm not familiar with the south, but Changsha seems like the obvious choice here

>>2769964
Changsha seems like a good option (also in terms of accessibility by train), thanks

>>2769914
There's nothing to cope. Taiwan is its own country. I'm not a vlogger, and I assume you aren't either, so we have nothing to do with Falun Gong.

I've become obsessed with Hong Kong. I look around it on google maps like every day now. I don't need job advice, I could probably figure that out, but what is life like there? Are you pretty much doomed to a very tiny apartment with a disgusting moldy shower and no windows if you aren't rich, or is the average apartment alright? Could someone in a STEM career probably get an alright apartment? When I google stuff in english I think I'm just getting marked up gaijin prices so I can't really vet what the market's like.

What is the culture like? More or less autistic than Japan? More or less clique-y and assholish than the USA? Is there an equivalent of getting wasted and singing karaoke all night in the city if you miss your train like in Japan? Are people alcoholics like in Korea?

I have a strong desire to be around fellow alcoholic nerds and I love big buildings, hot weather, and restaurants that are open until 4am. What's the verdict? Should this be my next travel destination or am I really just a weeb in the end? Is cantonese harder than mandarin? Do any of you live in HK?

>>2769938
>finding china content in croatian
yeah its over

>>2769717
America has dedicated a pretty heft sum of money along with global media to wage an image war against China.

>>2769938
Propaganda is in French and German outlets too. Dunno for other yuros. Must be influenced by the government position.
There is a good channel by some russian guy in Singapore. Mainly business related. Cool guests

>>2770063
Spent a few days there on a visa run in 2015. It is by far the most expensive place I've ever visited, beer on tap was going for ~$40 USD per glass. In the daytime the streets are full of groups of businessmen in suits, at night it's drunk brits and flip hookers as far as the eye can see, which isn't far because it's the most claustrophobic city I've ever been to. Everything is tiny. It's also extremely busy. One restaurant I went to the hostess rushed me to a table with a bunch of strangers as soon as I stepped through the threshold, and as soon as I finished my meal she told me in so many words to get out. It's nothing like Japan or even mainland China, especially not the north. There are high end apothecaries selling strange TCM paraphernalia everywhere, little idols in the walls of buildings, and other relics of Chinese superstition that I never saw on the mainland. It's an interesting place to visit but I wouldn't want to live there and my brief stay left me flat broke.

>>2770322
This was so far from my experience that I can only assume you've never been and have made the whole thing up. Which I understand, because I do the same thing too from time to time. I'll post long anecdotes about trips I've never been on about places I've never been, based on what I imagine the place to be like, and what kind of narrative I'm trying to push. Maybe I'm jealous and want to discourage people from going, sometimes, but I'm guessing that's what you are too. (btw I've never been to Hong Kong, see how I did it again?)

>>2770323
Well you guessed wrong, I couldn't care less whether people go there or not.

>>2770322
>beer on tap was going for ~$40 USD per glass
Seems rather steep, even if it's a high-end place. I don't think beer normally costs that much even in megacities like Singapore and Dubai. Even if it's a premium small-batch craft microbrew sold at an exclusive bar, $40 USD seems unrealistic.

I spent two weeks in Hong Kong in 2016, and I was a hell of a lot poorer back then, but I had no difficulty affording food & drink. Accommodations were more of a struggle for sure, but I could afford beer & liquor. I don't necessarily doubt you, I'm just trying to figure out how this is possible.

>>2770334
It was Asahi at a bar in Wan Chai.

>>2770322
>drunk brits and flip hookers as far as the eye can see
Can anyone confirm this? Asking for a friend

>>2770336
That's even weirder. There's no reason for Asahi to cost that much. I'm gonna have to chalk it up to the bar being unscrupulous.

Im worried about trying to learn mandarin

>>2770598
Don't learn it.

>>2770103
so did ccp to make china look good, but that was my point is so hard to find good content about china guess i have to visit myslef

>non-Chinese has bad experience in China
>"western propaganda"

>non-Chinese has good experience in China
>"paid CCP shill"

There's really no winning this one. I think the only thing you can do is go over there and see for yourself, without listening to any outside opinions.

Trying to test out app ecosystem is annoying. I can't get wechat to automatically translate to English

Favorite food you had in China?

>>2762740
Chinese if you go down the Mandarin Blueprint path. Don't listen to people who say the language is too hard or takes years to learn.

>>2762740
If you decide to learn Chinese you should think about HSK-4 as the baseline fluency level.

https://t.me/+9JUSwjm42OUwOGVh
Coom if you dare.

Hello guys,
Im interested in China, I lived in Japan and learned conversational Japanese but lately Im losing interest in Japan.
China seems like gaining a lot of momentum and now Im curious about working there.
Esepcially since it seems China is easier to live in vibe wise, the vibe in Japan was like "lemon sour smile + gtfo of here please man"
I love Japan a lot but its good to have open mind and consider options.

Can you tell me good cities and ideally if you work there how is life like?
I like biking so that would be important.

Also if you been there for more than a month Im curious about your thoughts and impressions.

>>2772025
Lived and worked in China for 6 years teaching art at a high school, it was miserable. Long working hours, get paid in two weeks what I can make in half an hour in the UK, women are friendly, men are cold and jealous and always seek to undermine you because they don't want you there. Just my experience tho.

>>2772047
thanks for sharing

>>2772047
Sounds like you had shitty qualifications if thats all you could make. I'm looking at 39krmb/m which puts me about 10% higher than the US wages for a teacher and on top of that cost of living is half.
>>2771343
>>2771340
Learning the language is going to be really annoying I feel like for me because I already struggle with things like Spanish the difference in sounds.
>>2772025
China is the wild fucking west of developed Asia. There is a ton that westerners don't see behind the great firewall and the CCP monitoring communication.

>>2772057
Friend lived in few cities and enjoyed it.
Cheap food, cool women. Fun place he said.

I think Asia is last bastion of human virtue, not perfect but not the clusterfuck of West.
I love learning so even getting Mandarin at decent level might be an option.

China is not what west portrays it to be.
Maybe its not heaven, but its far from what west claims.

It came to a level where when I hear news I assume opposite is true. And Im often right.

>>2772061
For all the bullshit people post about China, their population is also 5x the USA so you run into a scaling problem and because of the restrictive firewall and the media bias people don't see the awesome things China is doing.

>>2772057
>I'm looking at 39krmb/m
What you're "looking at" and what you'll actually get paid are two completely different things anon. I know for a fact you'll never get paid that much as a foreign teacher, no matter what you teach or where you work.

>>2772064
USA was once a cool country, in the 90s.
Maybe early 00s too

But then they got crazy.

Im happy to see new shift of trends and whats cool towards Asia, especially because usa is bankrupt morally and value wise, even if we put aside recent tech drama between usa and China.

I mean, usa has always been egoic country which cant do no wrong etc.

For the things america did in ww2 and how many wars it started, it seems funny to me western media manage to portray Russia and China as evil, when they while not perfect (no country is morally perfect) didnt use atomic weapons on people, and didnt start wars with entire countries so freely.

usa had long awaited karma to catch up on it and we can see it happening, its dying from inside tho.

I think Trump is a cool guy but I dont know how much even he can save it anymore.

They phrase China's rising like its the END of the world, while its end only of one thing - a sick supremacy of egotistical child that america alwayswas.
At one point that child could at least makeyou laugh or push some good action movies.

Now its become a sad place that thinks its still in the 90s coolness wise but it sold its soul long time ago for what is basically nothing. Total loss of values.

Not in any measure is a good place nor the population educated or striving towards something good.
Still got the ego, but the accomplishments are gone and falling down.

Time for new places to thrive.

>>2772076
Thats cool anon
>>2772086
Lets not talk too much about moral platitudes, China is just straight up cool. Look at Chongqing. Straight up cyberpunk mountain city.

>>2762080 (OP)

Anyone have experience just flying into Hong Kong on an tourist visa and trying to land work as an English teacher?

>>2772109
yeah
I spent some time in Japan and it blew my mind what society can be when people are just normal. I was always normal human being and didnt find sensible the BS I witnessed in my country, but it made me feel like I was weird for being polite and curteous.
In a proper country you are actually valued for manners and culture, you arent seen as weak and stupid for being smart and cultured, like it is in west. Girls actually love when you are a gentlemen and ironically their image of west is gentlemen lol tho they still raised up on 1950 idea of west. They dont know how far it fell.

West allowed stupidity to have an encampent in its society and then it spread over and now stupidity rules in west. You cant say the truth anymore in west.

And they paint China as wrong? Even if China was dictatorship, I only care about results. End results is people live longer, have better health, diet etc.

Which is why the western idiots hate Asia and want to shame it any way possible, because they hate the GOOD the PROPER the NATURAL.

In Asia go around the China, Japan, Korea, Beauty is still valued, people dont act like they are insane, and western idiots despise it because deep down they know they are insane as fuck.
Cant find a girl with no tattoos, who doesnt smoke and is totally ignorant in every way shape and form except to virtue signal latest trends she chamelons online.

Few years ago I was talking with Uni "friends" and told them my type is "fit, doesnt smoke, no tattoos"and the cunts got so irked started shaming me and mocking me like I had "impossible standards" "who do I think I am". All the while I am fit, educated, never smoke, rarely drink. Etc.
Well I found my asian princess and Im happy.

>>2772111
cont

People gotta give up on west sooner better. Id sooner go to War for Japan, China than for my own country, because I feel very betrayed by it, since birth basically. I gave nothing but best into everything I did but the value complex is totally retarded in a way that prevents smart people from participating in society (because its sick).

Top Asian countries dont fuck around and I love em for it. Even tho Im a stranger and outsider in them by race, they represent values I believe in. Logic, common sense, virtue, politeness, and keep to your business.

And everyone gets to share a society experience where I can have nice bike and not worry about it being stolen, where my kids can not get obese by obscene amounts of sugar being pumped into anything, and if I have daughters they can walk the streets safely.

Before idiots question status of women in Asia, ask where a woman can live longest and safest.
TWO BASIC quality of life parameters are those simple ones and they are severely lacking in West.

For all "freedom yolo" idiocy in west, the women are first ruined by mental virus shared in their unis, then they are poisoned with obsese inducing foods, made to parade same few tattoos like clones and look like cattle.

And they are free?
Fuck em all.

West is a mockery not only of society but of humanity.

The sooner it all burns to the ground the better. Smart people are evacuating as we speak and I hope to be on a plane soon myself.
Fuck voting man. Time for voting was before I was born.
The shitsoup has been brewing long time, and its time to vote with action.

Even if your status is lower in Asia, but you feelin what I said, pack up and leave.
Live a calm life, DO EXTRA WELL, if you invest for 5 years heavy work, you can learn the lingo and go from there.

At least in 10 years you could have a Life in Asia.

West? What? Take your kids into indoctrination camps to be fed some bs how they can be a dog if they really believe?

>>2772112
I realized it a bit before Covid, and nothing really recovered after it in society so its even worse than my projections...

I realized no matter how rich I am in country where I was born, Id still share streets with idiots, dirty smog, no culture, people in service industry treating you like you came to kill their family, prices being pumped insanely year by year.

For what am I then efforting ? to share same streets full of trash and mean mugging low IQ idiots?
No thanks.

Thats when I started to plan my freedom.

Its not about politicians. Its about the entire society. People are uncapable in forming an actually society that is safe and pleasant. Its full of smokers and lowlives.

Fuck it all man.

Im out. Cant be saved, wont be saved. But I can save myself. And thats all I care about. I tried to help all my life to so many people.
Like Churchill or some dude said, you wrestle with a pig and realize pig likes it.
Thats life of smart man in idiotic society.

Just raise up, dust yourself off, forgive yourself for hoping, and leave.

Life in Asia is inspiring. You actually wanna go out. You look forward to a new day. You want to meet and great new people. You wanna participate.

In west, I just go out and return home depressed.
No lie.

Not a single day in Japan I was depressed. Even tho it wasnt all honey and dew.
But at lowest points I would walk the streets, stop in a shrine, see the skinny fit people around and felt - fuck it we are in this bitch. We live, we do our best it has a purpose.

In west you go out see the monsters, I wouldnt even call them people. Overweight insane people with insane looks in their eyes. YOu cant smile because then its weird to smile. Everyone frowning everyone mad. Dominating other lest they be dominated themselves. Women and men. Its like HELL., Im sure its a type of hell.

>>2772103
Sounds expensive and Hong Kong is economically getting squeezed.
>>2772116
>>2772112
>>2772111
>>2772109
fuck off schizos

>>2772116
I agree with everything you said.
Personally I chose South Korea and its been hard but rewarding.
Yeah the culture is a bit fake in some ways but at least women are nice and its much safer. After some time you get used to it.
Back in England I its only getting worse.

>>2772127
He is using schizoformatting but is he wrong?

>>2772287

Yes he is wrong. The West is indeed on the decline but to claim that it is morally bankrupt in comparison to places like fucking China is just too much.

>>2772289
I dunno anon. I've still never been to China but I work with a lot of chinks and they just generally seem happier than white people. They talk to each other, smile, say hello, and just generally have a better sense of community. Whites don't say hi, avoid eye contact, can't go 10 seconds without mentioning "old white men" or socialism or something, and are honestly kind of insufferable. I am a white man if that wasn't clear. I'm probably biased since I work with a slightly more privileged class of people (not elite but mostly upper middle class types). It really does get get exhausting and demoralizing.

Holy shit stop posting

>>2771306
freshly handmade dongbei suancai (pickled cabbage) dumplings in Harbin

>>2772103
HK has much higher standards than the mainland and less need for English teachers

spring is my favourite season here but why does it have to fluctuate between 25 and 5 degrees

>>2772293
>whites dont say hi
because western countries arent homogenous anymore, everyone fucking hates each other because of it
and the country is so politically divided, you dont know if the next white man has complete opposite beliefs to you

china doesnt have this problem

so this is what the thread comes down to... chuds who have never been to China arguing about western politics with redditspacing
picrel: snow last weekend in Beijing

>>2772412

Excellent point. I don't like it when people compare the mass migration problem in the West with places that are ethnically homogeneous like China or Japan. Its like, everyone wants to live in White countries, we all hate each other here. California is a perfect example of this. 90% White to 30% White in a few decades...There is no community here.

>>2772417
>redditspacing
I'm not gonna read giant clumps of text. Anyone who wants me to read anything needs to make it actually readable.

>>2772417
I think its one retard. Don't call them chuds, it encourages their antisocial terminally online behaviour.

>>2772420
the worst thing is, it IS possible to live in harmony. the only reason we cant is because the democrats and all the jew NGOs have spent the past two decades brainwashing everyone to be woke and fat and ugly and protecting criminals and doing everything they can to make people addicted to drugs. its fucked

>>2772427
there is a lot of jews in asia too. Dunno how that works. Seen a business video by Chinese guy and he claimed he was jewish (he criticized a jewish dude so I guess he had to cover his ass).

Im also jewish. Im tired of being white. Im jewish from now on. I do have jewish heritage.
Why not start this trend? Just everyone start saying you are jewish.

If you cant name them claim them.

Im fully jewish and accept my divine heritage of millions of dollars and every "small startup" turning into billions level industry.

>>2772420
>>2772412
>>2772289
white overweight tatooed Cali girl of dubious morals with very low intellect ability.
or someone with a brain of one, which is maybe even worse.

>>2772427
fat and ugly is a sin and should be punishable by law
tattoos also

Never met a woman who was tattoed heavily and fat, that had a normal healthy father figure.
Even if they have good relations with their father, he is a wimp and not invested in them.
Most such are cloned nosering/fat/tattoo "army of the jews" simpletons that think they rebel by mutilating their body??
Where is sense in that? You rebel how? By being ugly?

In Asia people are slim, women dress well, behave well, they arent all angels of course, but at least you arent traumatized by takign a walk thru the city. By all the goblins and company.

I think the jew aim was to make white race uglier than them (famously ugly) and they basically suceeded in that.

Anyhow, to keep it China related, Chinese women are cool as fuck. Down to earth, approachable. Very based. Love em.

>>2772289
my genious lady.
riddle me this:

How can west be in decline and NOT morally bankrupt in comparison to a place with less crime, less drugs, healthier people, better academia, etc (China)?

How can you be so stupid? Explain to me step by step, your idiocy. Please. I kindly ask you to explain how you achieve level of stupidity? Is it effortless or do you try to be stupid?

Lets skip all the meme lingo. Childishness of these sites.
Call the dog a dog.
You are just plain stupid. Im telling you this if nobody told you, because stupidity is least called in the wild especially in women, for obvious reasons (majority is stupid and you dont wanna draw attention if you are smart (cue Jewish).

I hope before your wounded ego defaults to more ad hominems, you have a glimpse of your idiotic being, and maybe it leads to something useful, like a diet or smth.

>>2772417
every time I've shared my China travel photos here, I am ignored. These Chuds just want to argue over what the media told them. Sad.

With the new transit visa rules, as an American, could I fly from Toronto to Guangzhou, stay at a hostel for 4 days, fly out to Chengdu for 2 days, take a train to Chongqing for 3 days, and then fly to Bangkok? For example, this could all be done without preparing any visa paperwork beforehand? I'm fluent in intermediate Chinese and I used the transit visa before in Shanghai and Beijing when the gave you 72 hours

>>2772417
>everythings grey
this is why nobody cares about china travel photos, its not a nice looking place

>>2772649
yes, all you need is a ticket proving onward travel and a valid passport
however you should be mindful of the 240 hour time limit since your itinerary seems to be just on the edge of that

>>2772659
Beijing in winter is always grey, here's a nicer picture (Xi'an)

>>2772683

nice pic anon, but still too grey imo. nothing against china, im actually going to visit a friend there mid-year, but it aint got shit on japan as far as aesthetics.

>>2772616
Its just one autist who is replying to himself trying to astroturf a campaign against China. Look at the sentence structure, any English native speaker should recognize that its the same poster. Specifically some nigger on an airforce base.

>>2772659
>this is why nobody cares about china travel photos
Really? When people travel to China, is it mostly for the port cities like Shanghai? I've been watching the YouTube channel 'Little Chinese Everywhere' and a lot of the videos are focused on more rural or green areas. When I visit China I'm heading to those places first, they seem quite interesting.

Why can no China discussion happen without someone inevitably bringing up "the west"? It's never this bad when talking about asian countries like, say, Japan.
It makes discussion feel so stilted and astroturfed.

>>2772816
Most westerner travel YouTubers don't want to dedicate a ton of time learning the Chinese system. Like I bet small/bald wouldn't be traveling China if Sabbatical (who lived in China) wasn't assisting.

>>2772816
everyone i know whos been to china has only been to:
beijing, shanghai, great wall
thats it

>>2772948
I'm really looking forward to visiting Chongching for that cyberpunk city feel

>>2772823
The real question is
>Why is it so difficult to have a civil discussion on 4chan?
I've been told to kill myself because I didn't like the same TV shows as another person, I don't expect travel discussions to be any better.

>It's never this bad when talking about asian countries
Discussions about Korea shit the bed pretty hard, actually. Almost every Korea thread devolves into
>there's nothing to do
>just go to Japan/China instead

>>2772993
>theres nothing to do in korea
objectively true, unless youre a female, in which case its a good place to get beauty treatments + cheap skincare products.

>>2773000
uh? there is a city in China called chongching?

>>2773004
replied to the wrong post, obviously

>>2772948
good for a time-limited first trip but the cities get boring after a few week

>>2772993
Chongqing

>>2773000
yeah lmao only shopping, chasing kpop stars, and surgery

>>2772996
Every thread on here unfortunately can be waterlogged by incessant sexpatting talk that is just pathetic.

I like sex even more than the next guy, but it’s not my purpose of travel and there’s more interesting things to talk about.

>>2773019
>there’s more interesting things to talk about
nobody cares about japanese shrines lil bro, theyre boring as fuck and if youve seen them on google, its no different than seeing them irl.

>>2773019
no one here is talking about sex. The only one who came close to mentioning it is that incel skitzo with his "asian princess". America's greatest export, white dorkus LBH

>>2773028
It's going to get much worse with china's manufacturing ascendancy. That's the reason behind all the westoid glowing seething, China can and will smash their high tech industries like cars, software and electronics and they know it. That shit is the only reason the west is still afloat. Its why they are all screaming about tariffs.

>>2773004
yes, it's actually spelled Chongqing (重庆)
the name means like repeated celebration, double celebration

>>2773023
Japanese shrine girls are the reason to visit Japanese shrine. But no sex patting is fun but the issue comes when people just straight up make up stories or do some borderline erotic writen by down syndrome sufferers.

>>2773043
>japanese shrine girls
oh fucking grow up

>>2773045
It's a meme from steins:gate 0 where the American pulls a gun and holds people hostage until he's shown the shaman girls. Calm down

>>2768692
?? mr fresh is like a celebrity no?

how do i order food without looking like a fucking retard

>>2773114

You scan the QR code in wechat / alipay and use the builtin translate or just point and say zhege like a retard

Wanna lose my virginity to a virgin Chinese girl. I wonder how I can go about finding one.

>>2773114
if it's an OK restaurant they'll make you order off a QR code. Scan it with your phone and do the rest on there, you don't even need to talk to a person
if it's a cheap or family run restaurant point at the photos on the wall and say 这人 那个
if it's an upper class restaurant they should have an English menu or someone able to speak English (if they don't then it is not actually 高档)
if it's a street vendor just say 来一份 不吃辣/葱/香菜/蒜

>>2773305
you sound retarded and naive

How would I go using dating apps when I'm there? I don't speak any Chinese.

>>2762080 (OP)
Isn't /ChinG/ a better gen title btw?

>>2773322
>just say 这人 那个
kek

How the fuck do I plan at trip? How do I find good accommodations? How do I not worry about arriving on time at local train stations? How do I not worry about arriving on time at the airport for the flight back? All of this shit seems really exhausting and kinda makes me just want to join a group tour just for the convenience of not planning all of that shit.

>>2773423
I've been trying to find a wingman to go with me to China for a year here. I just went myself and it's not that hard. If you have money and time, nothing is difficult or stressful.

>>2773368
Made me giggle, here's your (You)

>>2773423
make a google doc with your itinerary
use trip.com to find hotels and hostels that take foreigners
you don't need to be that early for trains, the security checks are super fast and they only start checking tickets 15 minutes before boarding. 30 minutes before departure is usually enough time, and an hour is more than enough
just leave enough time for transport + 2 hours for the airport
if it really makes you that tired to plan stuff, and you're not at all excited about it, then maybe (solo) travelling doesn't suit you

>>2773552
To make things a bit easier, I'm thinking of just going to a place and stay there for one week, and then go home. That sounds good, right? I'm new to all this travelling stuff.

>>2765533
SZ is just a middle finger to HK after 97. Prior to that they were just a place for HKers to fuck cheap hookers and keep their mistresses.

>>2770063
Cantonese is harder than Mandarin, HKers are the rudest of all East Asians, if you think chinks and gooks are bad, they are worse. Everything there is tiny and packed and everyone is always hurrying to the next thing because it's so cramped and tiny everywhere.

Is he gonna bring more tourism to China?

>>2773828
fucking pissing me off seeing him all over twitter. cute asian girls being nice to an african. i had a trip planned to china in the middle of the year. cancelled now.

>>2773835
Bro, in asia we don't want any of your standardised racism. We have strict laws on who can stay there (nationality by blood and rich people), and free prison and boat trips out of the country for immigrants.
Colour of skin comes 3rd, whereas nationality comes 2nd and the first is M-O-N-E-Y

>>2773868
That's funny, 99.9% of Chinese men hate blacks.

>>2773870
not true

>>2773669
doesn't sound good to me anon. not enough time to settle. I would go 2-3 weeks minimum.

>>2773934
You're African + you don't know any Chinese people. Leave the board

>>2773989
I live in China moron

>>2773828
damn speed is balding hard and a manlet lmaooo

>>2773552
I will buy my train tickets online beforehand. Can I check in at the train station with only my passport, or do I also need to go by a ticket booth? I find varying information about this online

>>2762080 (OP)
What are the odds China starts denying Americans visas because of the trade war?

>>2775977
you can do it with only your passport, in fact if you buy tickets online I don't think you can even print out a paper ticket anymore.
The current system is they check your passport/ID when coming into a station and then check it again when going onto the platform. Chinese people with their ID cards can use the automated gates, as a foreigner you need to use the manned gates. A person will put your passport number into a machine, or better stations will have a scanner. You also need to do this when exiting the station, or when changing trains.
Online some people will say passports work with some automated gates, but it's very unreliable and usually doesn't for me.

tldr passport ok you don't need anything else

>>2776176
very unlikely, as it would probably result in the US denying visas to Chinese students and workers.
China would only do it as retaliation for the US denying visas for their citizens.

>>2773322
>you sound retarded and naive
even retards should have a sex life

>>2770634
This is sadly true. As an light-skin American, pretty much all of my friends (white) still think China is a shit hole evil country despite me literally explaining my experience there, which wasn't even really optimized. I'm not even a shill, but as an American, Chinese cities really make American cities look like shit holes. No homeless people insight, food is good and cheap, everyone is mostly pleasant, a lot of different clothing styles, metro is easy to use and cheap as well as the share bikes, high speed trains are convenient to travel to different cities etc. I could go on. I do speak a bit of Chinese, so it came in handy when asking for help, directions, how to do X and Y etc.

Also, Bumble is definitely the app to use there (at least for me). Tinder got me zero matches and Hinge was basically dead.

A Taiwanese girl I used to sleep with who is extremely proud to be Taiwanese keeps saying I'm "Pro China" because I posted some good things about China. I'm not even Pro America lmao. She is currently studying here in America and I asked her if she wanted to go back to Taiwan since it's so great there. She said not really. BAKA. She glorifies America as if the American government is any better than China.

I've never been to Taiwan but I am going to go out on a limb and say it will be pretty similar to China in certain ways. As an American, I don't have any strong views for either country. I do think Taiwan should be it's own country though.

>>2776342
Thanks anon

Herro preese moshi moshi...

I would like to go to Shenzhen. Has anyone been? Is it really a cyberpunk city with all robots and AI? What's the cooming situation there? Especially for a non-chinese speaking person like me? Are the girls hot? Can i fuck a robot?

Thanks in advance for your help. I plan on going there either from HK or Macau in the next few months.

>thinking about taking up china on the 10-day transit visa
>ask my friend about payment system
>"so essentially I had to get a VPN, use a dual esim to keep in touch with my bank back home, alipay almost never worked for me, make sure you've got wechat pay. . ."
>immediately lose interest, will probably fly straight to Japan instead
Sorry fags, not visiting your shithole until you operate like a normal country

I'm visiting Beijing for a week long holiday in July, but my 中文 is only a bit above HSK-1 level. How fucked am I going to be?

>>2763333
>>2763059

What are you on about? I'm a White Australian and visited HK back in January, and it didn't feel like the case at all. People were very polite, but no more so than back home. If anything most of them were completely indifferent to my existence. You probably get treated a lot better if they think you're one of the international finance types that hangs around Central and Admiralty.

>>2778476
The only thing that matters is how you dress. Wear a suit = get treated better than average. Wear casual clothes = get treated casually.

I'm going to China in August and have already booked everything. I already read that the weather will be around 30 degrees Celsius (86 F) in basically every city in China, which is hot but doable. However, when reading more about this I now read that apparently Chongqing is a 'furnace city' and that the weather can be around 36 to 40 degrees (97 to 104 F).
Is this true and am I basically fucked? Will I regret this trip? I'm also going to Beijing, Xi'an, Zhangjiajie, Changsha and Shanghai.

>>2778244
filtered

>>2778476
I know people who have lived here (in BJ) for years and speak almost zero or only very basic Chinese, you'll be fine. Just download Chinese on google translate and use the camera/screenshot function. very few people speak English but signs in tourist areas are usually bilingual.

>>2778490
Yes, Chongqing weather in summer is very hot and potentially has giant rainstorms because it's in a basin that creates a constant rainfront. By September sometimes it will still be over 40.
Zhangjiajie will probably be the most painful bc you wont have an air-conditioned room to run away to every 20 minutes.
tap water/free public use drinking water doesn't exist in China so you have to buy it from random shops and vending machines, I'd advise bringing an insulated bottle 保温杯 (or buying one there, you can find them in all supermarkets) to keep cold water cold.

>>2776400
Taiwan and the mainland haven't been under unified rule since 1895 (apart from 4 years between 1945-49 which dont count because the KMT was collapsing on the mainland) so the differences are actually quite large

>>2767011
Expat here

2 weeks is way too long here as a tourist. I'd recommend like 4-5 days max. It's a more fun city to live in than to visit imo.

Macau is a fun day trip. Wouldn't bother with SZ. You can get train tickets to GZ, Guilin etc so maybe look into that.

>>2768604
>SZ

Not much, its main appeal atm its that you get cheaper food, massages etc than HK with less rude service. As a visitor there's fuck all to do that can't be done elsewhere imo.

Macau is fun for portuguese food (e.g. get a taxi down to Fernandos restaurant) and casinos. The old Macau area with St. Pauls is nice but insanely packed with tourists. Would recommend 1-2 days max.

Beijing there's a lot to see but you need to book at lot of the sights in advance. Go to the great wall, summer palace, temple of heaven etc, get some peking duck and uighur food, do all that

HK isn't great for sights but there's a lot of random shit to do. Like get the star ferry across the harbor then go up the escalator at night, go for dim sum, do some hiking, maybe go out to an island to a seafood restaurant, that kind of stuff. If you know people here then a junk boat party is a fun summer activity but it's the kind of thing you need to be invited to usually.

If I were you, I'd do
>HK for ~4 days
>Macau for 1 day (overnight, stay in casino or something)
>Skip SZ and do Shanghai or Suzhou or something
>Beijing

>>2772103
A lot of people did this pre-covid but I think it's been tightened up a lot, I wouldn't bet on it now.

What you could do is come here with a couple of grand under your belt and look for work. That's completely doable (technically not allowed under the visitor visa but its tolerated afaik) but you have to find a company willing to sponsor a visa. So you need to network like a motherfucker as soon as you land. If you play a sport like rugby you'll do fine, join a team and network through that

But if at all possible, get a job before arriving, the first visa is the hardest to get

>>2778110
It's fine, not much to do there. If you have never been to Asia you might find it impressive. Lots of electric cars so it's surprisingly quiet.

It's mainly good if you life in HK already and you want cheaper peking duck or a massage or something. For a tourist its meh

China's tier-1 cities are all le ebin future but if you want cyberpunk style then just stay in HK in TST or something, that's closer to what you're imagining in terms of gritty /cyb/ shit

>>2763333
>1/ in HKers here is how races are ranked : White Lords > HKers > White skinned asians > Chinese > Brown Slaves

To be clear, #1 White Lord ranking means in a restaurant the staff won't directly tell you to go fuck yourself but will still tell you to get out as soon as you finish your meal

>>2778476
>People were very polite, but no more so than back home. If anything most of them were completely indifferent to my existence

People being average polite to you in HK is a very privileged position anon

The default is NYC-tier rudeness, or so I'm told by canto speakers

>>2770063
>Are you pretty much doomed to a very tiny apartment with a disgusting moldy shower and no windows if you aren't rich, or is the average apartment alright?

Depends where you live, m8

Expats mostly live within the boundaries of the old Victoria city, meaning the north shore of HK island between Kennedy Town and Victoria Park. If you live in like Sheung Wan, Mid-Levels, Wan Chai etc, your apartment will be small unless you're paying big bucks, but will be insanely convenient for work/nightlife/food/transport etc

If you want a more weeb experience you could live further out. You'd get a big place in the old industrial areas of Kowloon, in the New Territories or on the island, but you're trading space for convenience. E.g. you could get a huge place living out in Lantau island in a village like Pui O or something, but getting to work etc would be a big pain in the ass. If you're young and single you're also far from the real 'life' here if you live way out.

>Could someone in a STEM career probably get an alright apartment?

Depends on your job and where you want to live. E.g. a ~300sq ft studio in the middle of Soho (i.e. central between hollywood road and caine road) is totally doable for like HKD$15k a month. I once had a 2-bed in Sheung Wan (not walk up) for like HKD$14k but that was during covid.

If you have a job earning let say between HKD$40k-$60k, that's more than enough for your own place in Central/Sheung Wan/Sai Ying Pun, won't be big but it'll be more than adequate.

>culture

Expat and local culture are quite different things. Expat culture is more chaotic and fun than Singapore, very drinking/brunch/sports-focused. It's social and fun, it will bring you out of your shell if you're introverted.

idk what to say, HK is fun

(ctd)

>>2770063
ctd from
>>2779069

>>is there an equivalent of getting wasted and singing karaoke all night in the city if you miss your train like in Japan?

I mean you can just get an uber or taxi for cheap here so that doesn't really happen unless you live on an island (e.g. the ferry to Lamma ends at like 11 or something)

But HK has a very very strong drinking/party culture so if you want to stay up all night and do karaoke then yeah, knock yourself out.

>I have a strong desire to be around fellow alcoholic nerds and I love big buildings, hot weather, and restaurants that are open until 4am. What's the verdict?

Yeah that pretty much fits the bill. Actually not as many late-night restaurants as Japan but you'll find something

>Should this be my next travel destination or am I really just a weeb in the end?

You are a weeb but you should still come to HK for a visit. There's a lot less weebery among HK expats, they tend to be pretty well-adjusted (as you kind of have to earn your place here or fuck off, you can't really subsist on part-time english teaching or something, though you can actually make $$$ doing the NET scheme fyi) but if your requirement is 'alcoholic nerds' then you're in the right place

>Is cantonese harder than mandarin?

Yes. Also big difference here is that while in the Mainland everyone has to learn mandarin to survive (or that was the case 10 years ago at least), in HK no one learns canto. Use mandarin as a lingua franca if needs be and that will be fine, but you can get by fine with english

>>2779069
>or on *an* island

i.e. you can get a cheap place living on Lantau/Lamma/Cheung Chau or whatever

not *the* island, which here means HK Island (though I guess if you lived at the east end of the island line it does get cheaper)

>>2779081
Actually the opposite

https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/society/article/3305633/hong-kongs-leader-promises-any-possible-help-influencers-after-ishowspeed-visit

Bear in mind this is the HK government, not the mainland government. They're desperate for any famous people to come to HK instead of Singapore after Taylor Swift etc chose to perform in SG

I want to go to Xinjiang this year, seems like I can get a flight into Urumqi

Has anyone been?

I'm mainly interested in eating a lot of lamb but interested to see what else there is to do there

I've been to Mongolia previously so I've done a lot of the pic related kind of stuff but interested to see if there's more like desert activities to do

>>2776400
>'m not even a shill, but as an American, Chinese cities really make American cities look like shit holes. No homeless people insight, food is good and cheap, everyone is mostly pleasant, a lot of different clothing styles, metro is easy to use and cheap as well as the share bikes, high speed trains are convenient to travel to different cities etc

It's worth pointing out that this is a pretty recent development. Like in the early '10s there was none of this, even Shanghai had scammers and beggars fucking everywhere, a lot of the cities were meh, not very impressive. The share bikes only came in in like 2015 or so I believe, I don't remember them around 2010.

To the CCP's credit, they developed the fuck out of the big cities in the space of like 10 years. I think that's the big difference between China and Europe/Ameriblob, when the government wants to do something it just gets done, and fast.

>>2762080 (OP)
someone know the state of the chengdu jiuzhaigou bullet train?

i currently plan a trip for 2026 and I really want to go to jiuzhaigou, but it seems kinda difficult to get there
can't drive myself (as china doesn't accept international drivers license), tours are expensive / shitty and flight are typically out of budget

Have any Filipinos recently traveled to China? I went back in 2008 for the Beijing Olympics and would love to visit again since I've only been to guangzhou and beijing. But I’ve heard reports that some Filipino tourists have been detained after being accused of spying. Is there any truth to this?

>>2779918
Are you flip? Have you been on the flip thread here on trv? Do you read the shit they post? How does that stuff make you feel? Are you going to do anything about it?

>>2779929
80% of post there are just from larpers, If it was that bad You'd already see white children in the slums everywhere.

>>2762080 (OP)
First time traveller to China here. I have like 2 months before going, so at the start of july! (20 yr old kid btw) sorry if it's a huge fuckin chunk of text I just wanna know a few things...

I'm gonna be going with my family since my dad is going on business for one or two days. I think we're going to be in Shanghai mostly, and visiting Beijing for a day or two. I'm excited! :3

I've seen stuff about Alipay and wechat, do I need one or the other or both? Will I be able to pay if I link my "home" card? Should I bother with carrying a bit of cash?

What apps do I actually need? I've heard Google maps doesn't work and is very outdated... °^° super annoying. And it's what I rely on a lot (as I'm sure is the case with many others).

When it comes to internet access, my current phone doesnt support esim, so what should i do? And what can I do to bypass the great firewall? I need to talk to my discord friends qwq

If you don't want to answer all that then what do you reccomend we do activity-wise? My parents saw this cool boat thing in Shanghai that has nice views of the city, and plan to go in the evening so we can see all the city lights turn on.

>>2779886
Executing a few public officials for corruption and squandering state resources did wonders in getting the rest to fall in line!

Westerners still refuse to admit that it is China's overbearing authoritarianism which is its greatest strength.

>>2779057
Yeah right...youre not really selling it. Maybe i can visit for 2 - 3 days, coom, and go back to HK. HK is actually a lot of fun. I once went to a strip club in Wan Chai, got a private dance from a light-skinned skinny flip bitch while the mamasan was sitting right next to me. Ended up taking her back to my hotel because she had some coke. Good times!!

I think I might visit Xi'an sometime next year since it's close by, I'm really interested in the history, and a friend of mine is from there.
The only direct flight from where I live, Kyoto (KIX), is Spring Airlines. I hear very interesting things about this company. Have any of you flown with them, and how did it go?

>>2779936
>I've seen stuff about Alipay and wechat, do I need one or the other or both?
Alipay if you want to pay for things
Weixin if you will enter places that need ticket reservation (eg. a fuckload of museums, shit around Tiananmen)
>Will I be able to pay if I link my "home" card?
With Alipay, yes, assuming Visa/Mastercard at least. It's gonna take a while to get verified though.
>Should I bother with carrying a bit of cash?
Absolutely. Chinese vendors have fuck all change but they will take your cash and you will eventually run into some guy who's forgot to flip the "accept foreign devil money" switch and your Alipay suddenly won't work, leaving you with a bill you can't pay.
>apps
Weixin has nearly everything. 12306 for booking trains directly with the railways with zero extra fees if you don't want WeChat. Google maps is worthless, nothing is marked there. Enjoy Baidu maps, which have a UI so cancerous not even speaking Chinese will help you.
>firewall
VPN. What works changes from time to time. When I've been there in December even free Proton worked fine even though it supposedly shouldn't.
>what to do
Research this shit on your own, who knows what you even like. And stop typing like teh penguin of d00m :3 >:-/ 0w0

>>2779069
>>2779072
This is exactly what I'd hoped I'd hear, thanks anon, very informative. I just looked up the base salary for the job I'm interested in and it's 80k HKD a month, although it's quite competitive. If I can manage to get an offer then it sounds like a great option. I really just want to fuck off to a big city in asia and also maintain my career. Mainland China would probably be the easiest option as there are the most jobs there,
>if your requirement is 'alcoholic nerds' then you're in the right place
My favorite kind of people, very nice.
ctually not as many late-night restaurants as Japan but you'll find something
Weird, I would have expected HK to be even more insomniac than Japan
>in HK no one learns canto
Really? Isn't it everyone's native language? I get that they speak english alright but isn't it a little isolating when locals break out into Cantonese every 5 minutes?

Sounds like a cool city though, I need to visit soon. I could probably more easily get a job in Mainland China but I don't really want to go there, and not necessarily because of the CCP or anything like that (as if HK would be better at this point anyway), but mostly because I really want to live in a "real" city that isn't some fake looking recently planned slopscape where each building is a mile apart like Dubai or most American cities. And looking around China, I was honestly very surprised by how much it reminded my of the USA in terms of urban layout. Shenzen just looks like any major western American city (minus the crackheads and filth of course) to me. I'd really like to live in a real city like NYC, but without the drawbacks of the end-stage societal degradation that the US is going through. It's part of why I fell in love with Japan so hard in the first place (and anime ofc). Mainland china just looks really sterile and sort of soul crushing to me.

I am going to Hong Kong in a week and I plan on buying some plastic model tools and some other shit. How much of a hassle is it to go back to the US with this shit?

>>2779936
>I've seen stuff about Alipay and wechat, do I need one or the other or both? Will I be able to pay if I link my "home" card? Should I bother with carrying a bit of cash?

So my usual setup going to China is
>Chinese simcard for wifi (sometimes can get them at the border, but much easier to get in HK if you're in town as you can actually get them on our Deliveroo equivalent)
>Alipay, topped up with money at 7/11
>Cash (as a backup)
>VPN (mullvad works pretty well there. Have like Tor Browser on your phone as a backup if needed but its not as helpful)
>Didi (their Uber equivalent, this takes all the pain out of travelling around cities)
>Business card of hotel (usually has the address on it - in case your phone runs out of battery and you need to get home)

For Alipay it is possible to link cards and shit I think but desu I usually just top up in 7/11 with cash, it's much easier. Linking cards tends to be hit-or-miss in my experience

Yes carry cash, just in case. A lot of places do take it despite what people think

Google maps kind of sucks there (e.g. for looking up restaurants), could use Baidu Maps or something

>esim

Get a physical sim

>Activities

I mean do all the tourist shit in Shanghai and Beijing, you'll have fun. Often you need to book the sights in Beijing in advance though just FYI.

My advice is to get as much good food as possible, so spend some time researching restaurants.

Beijing has northern food. Peking duck is delicious if you get it in a nice place, but make sure you get some uighur food there too (muslim food from Xinjiang), the lamb is amazing

Shanghainese food is something you don't come across much in the west, it has a sweet/oily taste (compared to, say, sichuanese which is spicy). Worth doing for a nice meal, get some xiaolongbao/hongshaorou/ beggars chicken etc.

China is a lot easier to navigate than it used to be so you'll have a blast

>>2780323
>80k HKD a month

You're sitting pretty then, that will get you basically whatever you want in Central/Soho/Sheung Wan etc. What do you do for work?

>Weird, I would have expected HK to be even more insomniac than Japan

It does have a late night culture but less of a late night food culture. Though some places do stay open late

>Really? Isn't it everyone's native language? I get that they speak english alright but isn't it a little isolating when locals break out into Cantonese every 5 minutes?

In practice, English is the business language so it's less essential. But by all means learn it, it's just that most people don't both. Expat and local cultures tend to be distinct things with some overlap so it's less of an issue than it sounds

>China

If 'real city' is what you're after then Shanghai is another option. The core of the city was mostly built during the period when Art Deco was booming, so it's incredible for that style of architecture (sadly less so every year as more gets demolished). The bongs built in one style in their area, the French in a totally different style in their area, so it's actually quite aesthetic.

It'll make you a bit sad though as so much of it has been demolished, but in places it's a beautiful city.

Tbh HK is just as bad - look up how Central looked up to the 70s, they bulldozed pretty much everything to build taller buildings, very little of the old stuff survived

>>2780215
I think I did Spring before and it was fine, just a standard budget airline

looking to come into china from kazakhstan land border (Almaty to Urumqi) - I'm australian so i get the 30 day visa free entry, has anyone had experience with crossing into the country if you don't have a way out of the country booked? Looking to take the train all the way to shanghai and eventually take a flight out of there, just dont have anything planned yet.

>>2780782
>if you don't have a way out of the country booked
They won't let you in.

>>2762080 (OP)
I'm a brown Brit how will I get treated in China?

What was china, Korea like in the early 2000s? Really wish that I could've visited China during that time when they were still building a tonne of stuff and foreigners were a rarity there seems like a very interesting time to be there

>>2781149
why does this question pop up so often

I lived in Beijing in the mid 2000s for 4y (diplomat child)
if you want to experience the vibe of back then go to any new T1 city and look for less developed parts in the inner city
construction largely floored in the last years though, so you won't have that

>foreigners were a rarity
they are very much still a rarity, just skip the popular cities and AAAAA attraction
you'll be the only foreigner
domestic tourism just got a lot more if that's what you mean

>Korea in 2000s
looked largely like most other less developed Asian cities today
but with better infrastructure

>>2780769
Well, I looked up "assistant professor hong kong" and that's the salary that came up, but I converted that back to USD and 100k USD/yr sounds kind of like bullshit as assistant professors don't often make that much even here. I'm not a professor though, I'm still in grad school and so getting a job like that is still 5-10 years down the line, that is, if I can even land one in HK. I see a lot of postings right now but I wonder if the hiring spree will last until it's time for me to start looking for positions. I'm mentally making a list of locations I'll apply for positions for in.
>Expat and local cultures tend to be distinct things with some overlap so it's less of an issue than it sounds
Interesting. Are locals generally pretty insular? Seems like an interesting culture to get to know.
>Shanghai
Noted. Sucks how hard it is to take google maps vacations in china.

>>2781340
>Baidu maps
Fuck this is great thank you, didn't even know about it. Indeed this is slow as fuck but it's better than nothing, thanks for giving me something to do.

>>2781325
Also bear in mind the $80K comes with a fraction of the tax (although if you are a US citizen you need to keep paypigging for the US govt, you pay both HK and US tax)

I mean just apply for it and see what happens

>local pretty insular

Not exactly, it's more like HK has long had local/western/indian cultures that exist semi-separately but intermingle quite a bit

>>2780271
>>Will I be able to pay if I link my "home" card?
>With Alipay, yes, assuming Visa/Mastercard at least
WeChat also does foreign cards now and is way more convenient than Alipay in general. Alipay is still better for public transportation though.

Thinking of planning a trip in June / July but worried it’s either too hot or raining. Aiming for Chengdu and wider Sichuan + Yunnan. Any experiences of going around that time there?

Also what’s the best way to find reviews for restaurants etc. Normally I browse an area on google maps but obviously that isn’t a great source. I see people recommend Baidu maps as above and also Dianping but I cant get them on the App Store in the UK? Do I need to make a new account or something?

I'm going to Shanghai next week for 3 days. What are some things I should do there?

>>2781143
>brown brit
You will never be British

>>2781143
>I'm brown, how will I get treated in China?
Badly. People will fuck with your food everywhere you go.

Going to China then Japan next month. There are plenty of videos and posts about how not to not accidentally be horribly rude in Japan, but is there anything I should keep in mind for China?

>>2781570
Also can you still get betel nut in Beijing? I really want to try but not sure where I have to go to buy it.

>>2781570
try and get onto the train and get a seat as quick as you can, its rude not to.

>>2781570
Nah, the modern chink is not a creature of overly ritualized day to day formalities. If anything, it's more likely you who'll find them rude and sometimes overly direct. It's nowhere close to Japanese autism if we're just talking basic stuff like getting dinner and doing shopping.

>>2781570
Not really

Japan you'll get yelled at if you're being very loud on the train or something but China doesn't really have an equivalent

Blowing your nose and putting the tissue back in your pocket is considered a kind of disgusting by Chinese afaik but I've never seen them do anything about it really

>>2779878
theres desert stuff in the south Hotan/Kashgar but desu southern Xinjiang is not very well developed for tourism
the main tourist areas are in Ili and Altai which are grasslands
if you want to see a desert in China I recommend Alxa league in Inner Mongolia (Alxa festival is cool)

>>2779914
u can take a C class commuter train from Chengdu to ChenglongJiuzhai station in under 2 hours but you'll have to drive or take a bus from there to the actual area

>>2781570
dont talk about politics
dont piss in the street
everywhere there are signs telling people to be 文明 but they ignore them and so should you. Cities like Beijing are not clean because people don't toss their rubbish on the ground, but instead because there is an army of cleaners who go around picking it all up. In smaller cities without cleaners this rubbish (exacerbated by all the single use wrappers and plastic) piles up everywhere and is scavenged by poor old people at night to sell.
Today I was in a taxi and I ate a small 枣糕 which is like a muffin. The driver saw me putting the wrapper into my back pocket to throw away later, laughed, and told me to throw it outside the window.

just got back from my 五一 (labour day holiday) travels in Yantai and Qingdao
Yantai is small and the weather was a bit too cold to swim but it would probably be good in summer. Nice walks by the sea, hills and mountains to climb, colonial architecture. Pleasant city.
Qingdao is a bit sterile and might be boring to tourists but is the perfect getaway from the chaos and grey dullness of usual Chinese life for expats. The beer is really great, matches up to anything you'd get on tap in Europe or the UK, and you can order it for takeout. When I went the weather was a bit shit but when there's good weather it would be absolutely great.

>>2762985
Wan Chai

Is there an easy way to get from Shanghai Pudong to Shanghai Hongqiao?

>>2773864
Sybau nigga talking shit about speed he's better than u & ur a broke boy.

SPEED GANG 4L

I will go to Hunchun this August. It will be my first travel abroad.

>>2783055
There is a direct train link takes ~40minutes

>>2783330
1st travel abroad and you go to Hunchun? Are you from Valdivostok?

>>2783368
>and you go to Hunchun
I was planning a way bigger trip (I was asking about the best route both on /trv/ and on /int/), but my teeth suddenly went nuts so I'll have to visit a stomatology instead (China offers very low prices with fine quality).
>from Valdivostok
From Kamchatka.

>>2783501
>From Kamchatka
Oh cool, although even still, why Hunchun? Is it somehow easier than going to a major NE city like Harbin?

Whaere would you go for a first travel in china ? Like 10 days

>>2781570

Don't call women 小姐. Their surname + 小姐 means Miss X, but for some reason just using 小姐 alone implies that they're a prostitute and you'd like to solicit them. Yet calling women 美女 or men 帅哥 is perfectly fine and has zero sexual connotations. I'm not going to pretend to understand why.

i want to spend a few years working in east asia... i'm trying to understand why i might consider china over japan, sk, or taiwan. other than it being slightly more exotic.

Rate my itenary lads - coming by bus from Almaty, Kazakhstan in one week

Yining/Ili
Urumqi
Zhangye
Xi'an
Chengdu
Chongqing
Zhangjiajie
Shanghai

(is there anything between Zhangjiajie and Shanghai worth visiting?)

>>2783649
More laid back/casual culture and cheaper than Japan and SK, more things to do and better food than SK and Taiwan.

>>2783655
Chengdu and Chongqing are very similar ngl, if you really want to see pandas skip Chongqing, otherwise skip Chengdu (unless you really like Sichuan idk)
Zhangjiajie is very touristy and commercialised, tldr chiggas dont like actual hiking and would prefer to take buses between concrete platforms to take pictures for an hour at each one

>stuff between zjj and sh
Changsha, Wuhan, Lushan and Jingdezhen in Jiangxi

>>2783591
culture: beijing and xi'an
big futuristic city: shanghai or chongqing (dont go to guangzhou or sh*nzhen they are soulless capitalist hives of guangdong monkey worker drones)
nature: chengdu and surroundings (jiuzhaigou, emei mountain, leshan, general western sichuan)
REAL China where you'll be the only foreigner for miles: Zhengzhou

>>2783669
are there any places that are good for actual hiking/nature exploration? I don't want to just be bussed around to photo spots

>>2783522
>why Hunchun
My mom had already gotten treatment in a clinic there and generally tours to borderline towns like Hunchun and Heihe are better organized from here. Also Heihe looks even more bland and a Manchu girl I talked to recommended Hunchun over it, partly because of the cuisine (Korean BBQ).
>going to a major NE city like Harbin
What for though? I imagine such middle-tier cities are quite bland, no? Originally, I planned to see some historical sights in cities like Kaifeng or Luoyang.

How's weather in Zhejiang and Jiangsu in late September-early October? I'm likely going to Korea in September, and am thinking about adding a week in China to it. I've already been to Hangzhou for work last year, but only for a couple of days, and didn't get to visit anywhere except for the lake, so I kind of want to explore the city a bit more, and visit Nanjing and Suzhou as well.

>>2783682
That is usually the best weather of the year (sunny, pleasantly warm not hot) but beware traveling during Chinese national day (Oct 1-5)

>>2783675
Hard to be more bland than somewhere as small and remote as Hunchun, unless you are especially excited by the CN/RU/NK 3 way border. I thought Harbin/Changchun/Dalian were all very nice and interesting with plenty to see giving each about 3 days

>>2783671
NE China, Xinjiang

Why do chiggas love taking photos so much? Especially the aunties.

Hello anons, I'm looking for advice. I'm an American teacher looking to move to Asia for a few years. I have a teaching position offered to me at an international school in the north paying about 33k RMB monthly. Originally, I was planning on moving to Taiwan, which I also have a job offer for, but this mainland school pays nearly double. I rarely spend money but I do plan on going back to university when I am older so it's a consideration. I'm wondering if anyone who has visited/lived in both China and Taiwan could attest to which would be better for someone to live in who has never been to Asia before. While it might seem like a small detail I'm a big animal lover and would love to adopt dogs when I move abroad, and I've heard that can be an issue in China. Any pointers would be appreciated.

>>2783671
Taihang mountains in Shanxi
Qinling mountains in Shaanxi
Western/Southern Sichuan, Yunnan (although Dali and Lijiang are becoming rapidly touristified)

>>2783803
one explanation I have heard: most people in China older than 25 didn't have cameras or anything growing up since it was very expensive. You would have to loan them from your work/school and only for a limited amount of time. Therefore they considered pictures really important and special, especially when all the family is there (全家福)
now that everyone has a camera in their phones they take as many pictures as possible.
A lot Chinese tourists have a "go to as many places as possible" mentality, I think because they get short holidays. To them travelling is sometimes just ticking off boxes (literally, there are these things called 盖章 where you stamp a little book proving you've been somewhere) and taking photos as a form of this (打卡)

>>2783831
what city?
an international school is much better than a training centre or some shit but your quality of life will vary greatly depending on which city you're in.
most big cities only let you keep 1 dog per household yes

Going to shanghai in december, any tips for escorts?

>>2783591
I'm going to Beijing and Shanghai for 5 days each soon as I feels like that's the easy/ pleb way for a first 240 hour transit visit trip. Probably going to plan out a day trip from Shanghai to one of the nearby canal cities (Suzhou maybe?)

>>2783936
Yeah, go to Hong Kong instead

train travel map of Xinjiang for my travels in June-July

bump

>nice well paying international school job
>it's been 15 working days since they received my documents
>Haven't heard back about my notification
>Email them and they tell me it only takes 10 days on average
Ahhhhh I need this work visa so I can leave America. I feel like I am going to be trapped here all summer

>>2783831
Hey anon, I am moving to China this summer too and will be working in Shenzhen feel free to hit me up on discord @prosperin
I'm the dude freaking out about getting his work visa processed.

>>2781389
False, you can exempt up to 110k of foreign income that is already taxed by countries with tax treaties with the USA. This, combined with standard deductions and Roth contributions can be highly lucrative.

>>2783928
>what city?
Prefer not to say.

>most big cities only let you keep 1 dog per household yes
RIP.

>>2785488
Thanks anon. I'll def add you if I decide on China but I'm leaning more toward Taiwan at the moment.

>>2763333
Autism

>>2769547
Themn you're blind. There are plenty.

>>2772047
You must have been a loser. Everyone was super friendly to me.
>t. Foreigner who speaks the language

>>2772996
> Almost every Korea thread devolves into
>there's nothing to do
>just go to Japan/China instead


And it’s true. There’s very little to do in Korea and I’m not going to put a single cent into their psycho black mirror capitalismaxxing nightmare dystopia

Been a month since my employer got all my documents and I still don't have a notification on file locally so I can apply for a work visa ahhhhh
>>2786054
Taiwan is more compact and lively I think but the pay usually for work there is much lower outside of some specific institutions

>>2786146
No you're just a terminally retarded weeb. Korea has tons of stuff that you can't find in Japan, a lot of fantastic cuisine, and it arguably has a much more fun and lively nightlife than all other countries in this part of the world. I'd probably pick Japan over Korea for long term living, but for travelling Korea is a great choice.

any advice on solo travelling and hostels in China? particularly Xinjiang

>>2786146
You need to watch YouTube slop claiming Korea is a "psycho black mirror capitalismaxxing nightmare dystopia". It's a nice place to live. I say the same to anybody who claims China is the same. Low effort youtubers post that trash for views.

>>2786377
Need to stop watching*
Fuck this keyboard.

Dudes who live in China and like the country overall, what things do you dislike about China?

What the hell is up with the pollution right now? I could handle polluted water and gutter oil food, but the air is starting to fucking suck

>>2786489
I dislike how despite living there I can't post on 4chan (I'm on vacation outside of China now), how inconvenient life is without a Chinese ID card, how many hotels reject me and how I require a VPN to visit YouTube (which can be quite slow). Overall I really like the country but these four things annoy me.

>>2786533
It depends on the city. I have no idea where you are so I can't say. Move some where with no air pollution, they exist.

>>2786533
(assuming you're in Beijing bc the pollution has been shit these few weeks) the wind is blowing it down from industrial cities in northern Hebei and Liaoning. It'll get better when the wind changes, but summer is usually like this, cloudy and hot. Chinese call it 闷

>>2786489
pollution is the number 1 thing I dislike
everyone's holidays being at the same time
most people still act like third worlders
construction work noise all the time
somewhat unhealthy food
giant sprawling cities with copy paste malls

>>2786628
>can't post on 4chan
get a residential proxy, it's what I'm using right now
>hotels reject you
you can filter for hotels that take foreigners on meituan (筛选 - 接待外宾), and trip.com will only show you hotels that take foreigners

the others I agree with

>>2786711
>you can filter for hotels that take foreigners on meituan (筛选 - 接待外宾), and trip.com will only show you hotels that take foreigners
Sometimes they just have it tagged but they do not actually take foreigners. I've learned the hard way to only ever book hotels that have at least one foreign language review.

>>2786719
I ran into this once, the employee at the desk actually set up their foreigner registration system and had to call the police to do it, it took like an hour, but I was allowed to stay there in the end. I was a little bit insistent but didn't have to do too much.

also someone pls rate my Xinjiang itinerary
Kashgar 3.5 days, stay in the city
Kucha 2 days, Kizilgaha watch tower, thousand buddha caves
Zhaosu county 3 days, Xiatagudao forest, Gedeng mountain
Ili 3 days
Turpan 3 days
Hami 2 days

>>2786711
The holiday thing pisses me off working as a teacher so I can sympathize. It leads to chronic underutilization of recreation and travel industries.

>>2787834
>>2787834
yeah, like for Chinese new year instead of everyone going on holiday at different times to reduce stress on the transit network, everyone goes on holiday on the same day and causes absolute mayhem and chaos on the trains and giant price hikes for plane tickets.
there's got to be a better system

>>2762080 (OP)
>>2771343
>>2771340
What's my best bet for efficiently learning Mandarin while still in the United States?

no other asian country is this comfy, right?
https://youtu.be/T07w9hlOpQc

>>2788070
Happens in the US too. State mandated holidays help out workers a lot to make sure they get time off with their family but it also means everyone gets the same day. More flexible vacation time during the year would be nice. Or larger blocks of vacation time so you have flexbility on what day you travel.

>>2762085
Hangzhou, Jinan,Dalian

welcome to Hangzhou
I used to study in local school

>>2780124
Absolutely. But having leadership willing to dispose of corruption rather than having a corrupted government itself allowed for these changes.

>>2763059
chinese are extremely friendly people. that's pretty much all you need to know.

How bad is HK in July?

Got a flight credit I need to use HK fits the bill and I can get a place for 3 weeks relatively cheap. I get 3 weeks is a bit long but hey rather take a bit extra time than wish I had another week.

>>2789088
It's pretty fucking sweaty m8 ngl, everyone tries to get out of here around july/august

3 weeks is also a very long time in HK imo - try to do some time in China instead. A week tops would be fine here

Gonna be going to Guangzhou for 2 weeks with my GF. Anything cool I should check out? We wanna explore alot of China. Also how is China for very tall people as I'm 6'6

>>2789369
Don't go too far into the interior, they might capture you and put you in a zoo

>>2789369
I'm 6'2 and my main problem is I hit my head going into the metro because the door is just below my height
you will probably be tall enough to know when you have to duck

you will probably have a pretty bad time if you try to use the meituan share bikes, my knees are like an inch away from hitting the handlebars on them, you will have to ride them like a circus clown with your knees stuck out to the side

you might be a bit uncomfortable on trains, I suggest getting an aisle seat or 1st class

>>2762080 (OP)
is there some general advice for china newfags?
things to know, things you wish knew ecc..

Give it to me straight. How awful is CHina in July and August? Those are the only months I can travel. I have never been to mainland China, only Taiwan and Hong Kong and I want to go. Everywhere I look it says it will be 100 degrees, 100% humidity and raining and basically I will die if I go. Is anywhere safe?
I hear about Yunnan being fine this time of year. Looks beautiful there, can anybody confirm?
Also read Tibet is fine but that's a whole other deal with the special tours and stuff.
I feel like I would want to still see like, Beijing at least instead of only going straight to a lesser known part of China. How awful is Beijing in July really? I would just want a couple days to see it and then go on my way to wherever the weather is better.

>>2790258
Beijing is tolerable, but you will be sweating everywhere
maybe consider Heilongjiang and Jilin

Was about to get my visa ready for china, everything planed. But i just found out i need someone IN china to send me an invitation only to be able to apply for a visa or a tour organizer that will do it for me.
what is this bullshit? the hurde to get to china gets more difficult and difficult.
do you know if there is a site where i can pay somone to invite me?
else i have to sattle with just japan again. and hongkong.

I am really pissed now. They literally dont want me

>>2790513
an L visa shouldn't need a letter of invitation tho?

>>2790514
yeah i thought the same hence i prepered everything from flights to travel route.
but turns out china hates my ass exceptionally.
called 2 visa offices and both told me i need it with my passport

https://t.me/+7cmRNzxfiaY4YTlh
for the bold

Is Hk the poormans china?

>>2790604
HK is the rich man's China, it's way more expensive

>going to HK for 2 weeks
>can't fucking understand the immigration thing

Sorry for asking to be spoonfed but I see conflicting things online, is there any paperwork I need to fill out before landing or any kind of e-form similar to japan/ph/etc or is it just show up show your passport and roll. I see shit online stating you just show up scan passport and roll but others saying there is a paper form still.

>March 2026
>Amex companion ticket + miles
>Booked business class bonus tickets to Shanghai with Air France

It's happening

Fucking incompetent HR. They had my documents for six weeks and hadn't even started the process to request a work visa. I know because the system automatically kicked back my passport photo which is the first thing checked each time.

>>2790258
Same as in tropical Asia. It's hot as hell when it's sunny. When it's rainy, it's extra humid but the cloud cover keeps temps cooler.

>>2790708
I will assume you're an American because you're dumb enough not to state your country when asking visa questions
In that case you just show up with your passport and roll. There was a short arrival form to fill out at the airport but I believe they recently axed that too.

>>2790708

When I went in January I just showed up. The process isn't automated but it is fast - I was through immigration control in five minutes. I didn't encounter any paperwork. It was exactly the same when I passed through the land border to Macao. I'm Australian and went there for tourism, so your mileage may vary depending on how much of a shithole your home country is and what kind of visa you're entering on.

48 days left in China
Xinjiang trip in 12 days

Prepare me lads, for staying in a few cities along one of the rail routes. Visiting in December - Christmastide season and hope to pad out my stay until after New Year's Day.
I've made a few English speaking friends/pen pals in Shanghai, Hangzhou, Nanjing, Suzhou, and Chengdu - some willing to give me accommodation for a day or 2. All happy to give me a tour of places they like to frequent. Is there anything I have to see/experience in those cities? I told them all to compile a list of places they like and want to take me to but I'm happy to suggest places to them.
What kind of overcoat/jacket is best to have during winter? I've been told by friends that it's often cold (for Asian standards I guess), damp, and rainy - a far cry from the blizzards I get to experience in Montana.
Also what does it mean to be called a "warm man" exactly? They've all said that or similar to me in conversation at one point.
Thanks anons!

>>2790513
Where are you from anon? It's possible the chinese are just fucking with your nationality for some perceived international sleight

>>2790776
They're finally moving forward, I hope to escape the US by the end of june.

> "China General"
> "Hong Kong edition"
wheeze

>>2794255
Hong Kong was fully ceded back to China in 1997, 28 years ago. There's a very good chance that you weren't born during British rule.

I would love to digital nomad in China but it seems like it would be complete ass due to the internet situation. And I'd probably get fired.

>>2794391
I know a guy that grew up in HK. Spitting image of a norf anglo bloke. He has a crazy backstory apparently.

>>2794581
it's not legal either, and they won't turn a blind eye like in Thailand or whatever SEA shithole everyone else goes to
granted, they will probably assume you're doing illegal English teaching, but if your income seems suspicious then you'll be investigated

>>2794606
It’s not illegal. There is no digital nomad visa, but it’s not a crime. They can’t see your income in the first place, it’s not in a Chinese bank account.
If you were to stay for the greater part of 6+ years you would run into issues with taxation and declaring global income, but most people are not doing that.

Regardless, China is kind of a shit choice for a lot of reasons. Taiwan is better.

>>2794606
>Making shit up like this
There's no way they give a shit unless you are working for Chinese companies on a tourist visa

Shanghai was a nice spot to visit, interested in seeing more of China. Particularly cities that are very photogenic.

>>2794932
Still is as of 2025?

My family is from Shanghai, and I've visited like 5x between 2011 and 2018, with largely happy memories each time (apart from the passing of one relative).

I haven't been since covid though, but my parents have, and all they talk about is how shit, empty, and security-guarded the whole city feels like nowadays ever since covid thanks to the government.

I'm getting tired of jerking off waiting on this work visa

Does anyone still use tantan?

Is it any good still or just full of bots and scammers?

>>2795042
It's filled with sexpats and koreaboos like you.

>>2762080 (OP)
Am I right in thinking from how it's worded that I need to have my tickets and accomodation booked before I can apply for a visa?

how do I become an expat chad in Hong Kong?

>>2795662
Probably easier than becoming an expat chad in mainland China

>>2795011
>>2795042
>>2795662
You horny yellow fever fags have existed for over 100 years.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Otto_Braun_(communist)
>In 1933, Braun married Xiao Yuehua, a Chinese communist party member. They had a son but later divorced when Otto fell in love with the more beautiful and educated Li Lilian, who Otto married in 1938. Li Lilian was a Chinese actress and also a member of the Communist Party. On 28 August 1939, Braun left for the Soviet Union and never saw Li Lilian again. Though Braun never returned to China after 1939, he continued to show interest in China's affairs for the rest of his life.

Someone make the new please

>>2795774
>step one: be jewish