Sapore di Cina

Learn Chinese, Travel or Work in China

How to travel by bicycle in China: The complete guide

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How to travel by bike in China

There I was. I maneuvered myself in this situation on purpose unknowingly following the first rule for starting a bicycle tour: Just tell everyone that you are going on a bicycle tour. Repeat it. Until they believe you. You don’t have to believe that you are capable of doing it. You just keep telling it to your friends, your crush, your workmates, your family (last to them, they’ll worry too much)… and then, all of a sudden, you are committed.

So that happened to me. I told everyone that I was going to quit my job to go on a six month bicycle tour. Now I had to go. I had a bicycle that was – as I quote a bicycle enthusiastic friend – “good enough”, panniers, tent, sleeping bag and a million more things I wanted to have with.

Even though I had four panniers, I didn’t have enough space. I was totally overwhelmed. And I was scared. I was totally out of my comfort zone. I would travel on a bicycle. I would wild camp. I would travel in rural China. None of this had I ever done before. I actually didn’t even know yet how to fix a tire. I had a rough idea, but nothing more.

All these questions where spinning in my head. I was stressed out. How would I manage? How would I survive? I didn’t speak any mandarin and realized I could not take all the things I wanted to. Like the three shampoo bottles I wanted to have with me. What if I ran out of shampoo? I wasn’t able to set the right priorities. I was a mess.

Was I really going to push my bicycle out of this living room tomorrow to go cycling for six months? In rural China? Wild camping? [Read more…]

Senior citizens, what a beautiful age (older Chinese and sports)

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A lady practicing Rou Li Qiu

If cell phones have made the newer generations lazy, the older age group has decided to make up for lost time during their youth. Chinese medicine recommends it, so a good Chinese person follows through: the need to 锻炼身体 (duanlian shenti), or physical exercise, keeping oneself in shape.

Whatever your movements or ability to continue may be, it doesn’t matter. So long as you can get to the square or park every day and join in with one of the collective activities that are seen pretty much everywhere in China.

The choice is between various sport classifications, for which even the least capable can find something they can do in their circumstances.

Dancers in single file

Dance

As couples, in an orderly formation, with fans, scarves, or hands like flowers: dancing rigorously to music blasting at full volume from amplifiers stronger than those used by Iron Maiden, is something the Chinese really like. Little matters if you go in single file because there’s no space of movement, if you’re going down the sidewalk, dodging pillars; in front of the bank blocking access to the ATM; at the entrance to the metro the mob of the curious will even make you late. Wherever there’s a little space, dancing will break out!

Taking a walk

Why just walk when you can include some arm exercise or an ear massage to stimulate I don’t know what energy point so that your qi can benefit. Otherwise, clap your hands: for shoulders, chest, legs, back, trapezoids, biceps, triceps and even the sternocleidomastoid! [Read more…]

Lucky numbers in Chinese culture

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Lucky numbers in Chinese culture

When coming to China it’s useful to understand various things about Chinese Culture. It runs deep through the veins of this unique country and you will experience positive and negative things about the culture every single day.

One moment the crowds during rush hour will have you startled, the next, you’ll be taking in the gorgeous sites of the Summer Palace on a crisp Autumnal day in pure peace and harmony.

Today we talk about numbers in Chinese. They bare a very important resemblance to many Chinese people with superstition perhaps running deeper than you’d expect. We’ll split this article into two parts. Our second article will focus on the numbers to avoid in Chinese and the measures that are taken in China to avoid these numbers. Today, however, we’ll spread some joy by focusing on those lucky Chinese numbers and some stories that only a country like China could produce!

Eight, 8, 八 (bā)

Lucky numbers in China don’t come much luckier than the Number 8. Number 8 in Chinese (bā) sounds very similar to the word “to prosper”, 發 (fā). People in China will go to extraordinary lengths (financially at least) to get themselves a number plate, or a mobile phone number with as many 8’s in there as possible!

To give you an idea of exactly how high the Chinese put the number 8 on the pedestal, here are some fun facts of how the number 8 is implemented in China: [Read more…]

Online Group Visas for China

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Since 2016, if you have a passport form one of the countries listed on this page, it’s possible to get a group Chinese visa directly online at China Visa Direct, a platform that claims to be authorized by the Ministry of Public Safety of the People’s Republic of China.

This means that you may get a group visa without having to go to the consulate or mail your passport.

Update: Use the coupon code #CH170302SPRDCN10# to get a 10% discount at China Visa Direct.

The advantages of online visas

  • If you have an EU passport the visa only costs 99 Euro a person for your group (the reason is because there aren’t any intermediaries or consular fees). If your passport is from a different country, here you’ll find a complete list of prices);
  • You won’t have to go to the consulate or mail your passport, saving time and worry about losing your precious document.

Disadvantages of online visas

[Read more…]

What I was left with after four years in China

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What I was left with after four years in China

After spending four years in China I returned to Italy, and have decided to share my adventure with the readers of Sapore di Cina.

The point of the situation

There comes a moment during your experience abroad where you have to figure out the point of the situation and understand what you really want.

Do you want to set your life up in China, leave for another adventure, or put down roots somewhere? It seems easy to know what you want, but deciding on it is harder than it sounds.

You feel that your life is now in that new country; you’ve built everything there: an apartment that you find hard to leave, friends you don’t want to lose, places you don’t want to forget.

But is your life there? Are you willing to spend the rest of your days in that country? If the answer is no, then you should take your suitcase full of memories and leave. Because the more you stick around, the harder it will be to leave.

Take the time to understand what you want and follow through on the decision. [Read more…]

Bupiao: An alternative method for buying a train ticket in China

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buying a train ticket in China

For four years I’ve regularly found myself in China for long or short periods, and like anyone in China for study or work, I try to tour the country as much as possible.

Many times the biggest problem when planning travel in China is booking a train ticket, and not just because of the high number of people traveling back home or for a relaxing weekend, but also because of the ticket booking system that’s difficult for us foreigners (and I believe for the Chinese as well).

In the past I had to give up traveling (or pick secondary destinations), but I finally managed to discover a fantastic way that sometimes can get you a ticket that you’ve already passed on; this method is called Bupiao (补票).

Premise

Fewer people buy tickets at ticket counters or stores, both for the long lines, which as a foreigner you’re forced to do since you’re not able to use the automatic machine, as well as the growing number of platforms that offer ticket buying services. To learn which platform to use read our article about traveling China by train. [Read more…]

Chinese VISA for visitors: Shall I apply for a Q, S or L VISA?

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visiting family china visa

Need help to get your Chinese visa?
Click here to find out more!

More than one year ago, we published the first version of our comprehensive guide for obtaining a Chinese VISA (which we update every year). Since then we received hundreds of questions and suggestions for improving it (thousands, if you consider the Spanish and Italian version of this website).

We actualized the article several times according to the feedback we received and the new laws that ruled out. However, it seems that there is still a point that isn’t clear at all.

This article will explain what type of VISA you shall apply for and what documents you need when you want to visit (or accompany) your family members or friends in China. [Read more…]

A visit to the Bingling Caves in Gansu

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A visit to the Bingling Caves

We’ve received and published this article written by Camilla Fatticcioni, author of the blog “Per Quel Che Ne So Io“.

The history behind how Buddhism came to the region of Gansu

I’ve always been fascinated by the stories of “Il Milione” by Marco Polo, about his adventures along the historic Silk Road that crosses all of Asia all the way to China, a country which at that time was so far off and unknown to Westerners that only a few legends were known about it. Never in my life would I have believed that I would be living in this place that represented the main destination along this long road that merchants have been traveling for centuries, often risking their lives.

I lived for a year in the city of Lanzhou, chief city of the Gansu region, and presently a growing metropolis: today skyscrapers sprout like mushrooms along the banks of the Yellow River, the main river of northern China that a long time ago was the mythical site of those legendary stories that were told along the Silk Road.

Marco Polo passed through Lanzhou, also stopping in Zhangye and Dunhuang, another two large cities in this arid Chinese region in the northwest. [Read more…]

Sending money to China: The guide to saving money

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Sending money to China

Do you have to send money to China, perhaps a travel agency, a Chinese school, or your supplier, but your bank asks for absurd commissions and tells you that it will take more than 5 working days?

Keep reading this guide to understand how to save time and money by using TransferWise!

What service should I use to save money on bank commissions?

At the moment we can’t help but recommend TranserWise, since we’ve been using it for years – with savings we never thought possible, – both for our own private international expenses as well as for our business.

In few words, Transferwise allows you to send money abroad (not just to China), using the official currency transfer rate and having you pay only a percentage (which is more than reasonable) of the amount sent. [Read more…]

Solo Female Travel Advice for Asia: The Complete Guide

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Solo Female Travel Advice for Asia

Do you think about traveling the world – and especially Asia – solo? As a female? Are you already doing it? Are you worried by all these questions that friends and family members ask about the dangers of the world might be true, and that it’s not safe to travel solo?

I’ve been there. I did that. And I really recommend it! Do it! It’s the most amazing thing you can do.

If you’re not convinced yet, I’ll come up with some details for you

Upsides on traveling alone (especially as a woman/girl)

Traveling alone has many upsides compared to traveling with a partner, friends or in a group. [Read more…]