Learn Chinese, Travel, Study or Work in China and Asia
ExpressVPN: Fast, easy to use, and a reliable VPN for China. The recommended and safe choice for non-tech-savvy people.
NordVPN: Reliable, complete, and easy to use. One of the most popular choices in China.
Ivacy: Good performance in China at a very low price. The recommended choice to have as a backup.
Surfshark: Cheap, very complete and it has an excellent performance in China. A good alternative to the big providers.
Important: Due to the increased restrictions on internet usage in China, you should always keep your VPN updated to make sure it works at its best.
As you probably already know, the internet doesn’t work like we would like it to in China, and a large number of websites and apps are blocked by the “Great Firewall.” Among these websites and apps that you can’t access are Facebook, WhatsApp, YouTube, Instagram, TikTok, Twitter, and all Google Services.
There are many other blocked websites, and depending on what you do, it may be virtually impossible for you to work in China without a VPN (Virtual Private Network). In addition, most of the services that aren’t blocked but are allocated outside China, are extremely slow.
To solve this problem, you can install a VPN, which masks your I.P. address so that your laptop appears to be connected from the U.S. or Japan even if you are in China [Read more…]
Vietnam is currently one of the most attractive countries in the world, with a fast-growing economy, a modern society and a dynamic culture. Only time will tell if it will follow in the steps of China, Korea, Japan and other Asian countries.
As a language with 78 million speakers, learning Vietnamese can be an investment in the future and is without a doubt an excellent way of getting a head start on a diverse and vibrant culture.
VietnamesePod101 is a part of Innovative Language Learning, one of the best platforms available for learning Asian languages. Its platform offers courses based on complete Vietnamese audio and video content adapted to all levels. In addition, it offers a variety of tools to make your learning as efficient as possible.
[Read more…]
Visiting the continent of Asia is high up on most travelers’ bucket lists. Whether you are backpacking through South East Asia, exploring the traditional cuisine in the bustling food markets of Tokyo, or relaxing on the beach in Thailand, you’re bound to find a place to fall in love with. There’s so much rich history to explore and learn about, and you can do it all on a pretty decent budget.
However, Asia isn’t always the easiest place to travel to, especially during the pandemic. For the majority of the last three years, most countries in Asia were under a strict lockdown. The borders were completely closed without any mention of when they will welcome back international tourists.
While you might need to put a little more research into your plans, it’s well worth the effort. As different countries start to open up, there are a few things you need to know about traveling safely through Asia in 2022. [Read more…]
ExpressVPN: Very fast and easy to use. The recommended option for people who aren’t technology experts.
NordVPN: Reliable, complete and easy to use. One of the most popular options currently.
Surfshark: Cheap, unlimited connections, very complete and excellent performance. A good alternative to large VPN providers.
Ivacy: Good performance at a very low cost. The recommended option if you want a cheap but high-quality VPN.
This article is based on our years of experience using VPNs in China, where the Great Firewall severely restricts normal Internet use.
A Virtual Private Network – or VPN – allows you to send and receive data over the internet as if you were directly connected to a private network. However, we don’t need to go into the technical details. Below, you will find the main uses of a VPN:
Many platforms for live streaming television, films, or series have geographic restrictions and don’t offer all of their content in every country, especially in China. This is the case with Netflix, HBO Go, Amazon Prime Video, Hulu, Sky Go, and BBC iPlayer, among many more.
Using a VPN is usually the best solution to be able to enjoy these platforms without restrictions.
However, many of these platforms have started to detect and block users using proxies and VPNs.
Security online is one of the things that we should start to keep in mind, especially when we are traveling or moving to another country. Another thing that we should keep in mind is whether access to the Internet is restricted or not.
In Vietnam, there exist multiple cybernetic laws which are theoretically aimed at preventing information leaks, promoting security in the interchange of information, and permitting secure transactions. However, these laws have mainly been used to block, filter or monitor the use of the Internet in the country. Many websites in Vietnam are blocked or have restricted use, including sites as popular as Facebook, Twitter, Blogger, the BBC, and WordPress, following the lead of countries such as China.
Despite this, recent reports indicate that Vietnam is among the countries with the highest risk in the world for cybernetic attacks along with Thailand.
To improve security online and to avoid potential restrictions on access to certain websites, one of the most useful tools is the use of Virtual Private Networks (VPNs), as you will see in the following sections.
Important: Starting as of November 2021, it is necessary to get a Thailand Pass in advance to enter Thailand (click here for more details).
The matter of visas takes the most time and research for those planning a mid to long-term stay in Thailand.
First of all, if you want to vacation in Thailand for less than 30 days, have a passport valid for at least six months issued by one of the countries on this list (Australia, Canada, US and UK are on it) and a ticket to leave the country (within 30 days from the date of arrival), then you won’t need a visa.
If instead, you want to stay longer, you first need to understand why you need a Thai visa and what type of visa you need to apply for.
Important: One of the requirements for obtaining a Thailand Pass (necessary to enter the country) is to have a hotel booking for at least your first night in a hotel certified by the Thai government. Click here for more information.
Despite the fact that there are lots of online portals for booking a hotel in the Land of Smiles, in my opinion the best are Agoda and Booking. [Read more…]
IMPORTANT: Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, travelers are currently required to possess health or travel insurance to enter Thailand
World Nomads: Comprehensive low-cost health insurance. Currently not available for residents of the European Union.
Safety Wing: Basic, very cheap health insurance with comprehensive medical coverage.
If you come from Europe or a country with a free universal healthcare system, it’s important that you read the first part of this article, as the freeness and quality of the public health care system in Europe make many people forget how expensive medical treatment can be. If you come from a country like the United States, you will already be aware of the importance of having a good health insurance policy. [Read more…]
Even though new applications and online shopping sites no longer offer Taobao as the only tool for purchases, it still remains one of the most preferential for online purchases.
Just think about the success Taobao has each year with 11.11 (双11, “double 11”), which isn’t just a party for singles, but also a chance to give free rein to your shopping desires and make purchases.
The figures expended these days make one’s head spin: in the first two minutes after midnight this November 11, 2017, a billion dollars were already spent, to then surpass 25 billion by the end of the day.
If you too want to enter the world of online shopping but the language barrier blocks your access, this guide is for you, showing step by step how to make purchases on this platform, even if you have very little knowledge of the Chinese language.
This guide isn’t designed to be a complete manual on the use of Taobao, but rather guidelines for using it on a mobile device for the foreign user living in China who doesn’t speak Chinese. [Read more…]
Getting Internet access in China is easier than it may seem, but there is important information that you should know. The purpose of this article is to help you choose the best company for your home or phone. In the end, you will find a section on travelers.
Today is an honor for me to interview Simon Gjeroe, a Danish long-time ex-pat and he has written articles and books on Chinese travel, food, culture, history, and politics.
Simon lived in China from 1995 to 1998 and again from 2003 to 2013 where he got married and raised two mixed boys. From his bibliography, I would like to mention Made in China: A Memoir of Marriage and Mixed-Babies in the Middle Kingdom a must-read book for anyone interested in Chinese society or is planning to move and maybe settle down and have children there.
First of all Simon, I would like to thank you for agreeing with this interview and congratulate you on your book.
In my opinion, Made in China is an easy-to-read and funny piece of work that shows, from the inside, the radical changes that China has undergone during the last three decades.
Once that’s said, let’s get started:
[Read more…]
You probably already know that websites such as Facebook, YouTube or Google are blocked in China and that the best way to access them is with a VPN.
But what about the other hundreds of websites or apps that we use every day?
Can you be sure that they’ll work in China?
One of the most common questions we get is whether a given website or app, such as Dropbox or Google Play, is blocked in China.
In this article, we list all of the popular websites and apps which currently don’t work behind the Great Firewall of China, which is the system developed by the Ministry of Public Security (MPS) to control access to online services considered “dangerous” for Chinese citizens. [Read more…]
Getting a Chinese phone number when you arrive in China is one of the first things to figure out for anyone wanting to avoid annoying problems and wasting time with many apps and digital payments.
But having a Chinese phone number to get text messages could also be useful outside of China. For this reason, in this article, I will explain how to get a virtual Chinese telephone number.
Virtual telephone numbers (also known as DID, direct inward dialing) are simply telephone numbers that are not associated with a direct telephone line. Generally, these are numbers that forward calls and text messages to which you can respond from your cell phone without needing to get a new one or pay excessive rates for international calls and messaging. [Read more…]
This article contains a list of free resources to learn Chinese online. Click on one of the following links to “jump” directly to the section of the article that interests you most:
When we first published this list, in June 2012, it contained 25 resources. However, we update it every year with the best websites and free apps that we “discover” (many of which were suggested to us by your readers).
Our goal is not to list all the free resources dedicated to learning Chinese; rather it’s to present to you the best of each of the categories listed above.
Keep reading to find a brief review and corresponding link to the web site of each resource cited.
Enjoy!
This article is a guide for people who want to study Chinese in Suzhou. Whether you already live in Suzhou and don’t know where to study or want to know if Suzhou is the right city for you, this article might be useful for you.
PS: if you’re interested in a more general overview of learning Chinese in China,
you can read our complete guide to it.