On my first of twelve trips to China, I was astounded and perplexed by this remarkable nation, which seemed so alien to a young Australian man. China requires and rewards preparation, so you shouldn’t travel there on a whim. Before visiting China, you should be aware of these six things.
Be wary of China’s phony “ancient” cities.
Amazing old towns and villages can be found all over China; these are real locations where traditional architecture and ways of life have endured. Additionally, it contains dozens of false “ancient towns,” which are ugly and unauthentic replicas of past settlements.
This phenomenon is new and strange. Many of China’s older neighborhoods have been destroyed to make room for new construction as a result of the country’s hasty modernization. It has constructed innumerable fictitious old towns in an attempt to bridge the gap, giving most local tourists a glimpse of what Chinese communities were like in the past. With their arched bridges, charming teahouses, winding stone streets, and elegant buildings adorned with elaborate multi-tiered roofs, they are undoubtedly beautiful. Except that, like a movie set, the pretty exterior hides nothing.
The actual ancient cities are farther away, and these tourist destinations are typically found on the outskirts of Chinese cities. Do your homework before you go because the former are a waste of time and the latter are worth the effort. In this World Nomads story, I’ve described five of my favorite ancient Chinese cities.
The railway network in China is amazing.
Because it invented this futuristic form of transportation in the 1960s, Japan is well known throughout the world for its bullet trains. China’s rail system was brittle and had a small reach at the time. But in the last 15 years, China has not only overtaken Japan, but also caught up to it.
Surprisingly, China currently has almost 37,000 km of high-speed rail, more than all other nations combined, and the network is still growing. There are high-speed stations in all of China’s major cities, and these bullet trains are effective, up-to-date, cozy, and reasonably priced. For instance, it only takes sixty minutes and costs twenty-four dollars to travel the 290 kilometers from Shanghai to the ancient city of Nanjing. In Europe or Japan, a comparable bullet train trip can easily cost over $70.
Don’t Miss China’s Magnificent National Parks
China is known for its skyscrapers, colossal temples, and vibrant marketplaces. Because of this, a lot of tourists consider China to be an urban location and include urban experiences on their itineraries. How incorrect that is. The Swiss Alps, which are renowned for their breathtaking alpine scenery, were no more spectacular than many of the mountainous places I’ve been to in China.
I still think back on the times I hiked and marveled at the breathtaking Jiuzhaigou National Park. Part of a collection of wild national parks on the Tibetan Plateau, this wonderland is located in the Sichuan province of central China.
The rocky karst mountains and meandering rivers of Guilin Lijiang National Park captivated me just as much. Not to mention Hangzhou’s serene West Lake National Park, which is encircled by willow trees, stone bridges, classical gardens, and historic buildings. Although China’s cities are vast and incredibly fascinating, don’t let them take up too much of your schedule.
At the airport, purchase a SIM card and exchange cash.
It is very simple to exchange money or get a SIM card in well-known Asian travel destinations like Thailand, Vietnam, Singapore, and Malaysia. The latter is now necessary to enable contemporary travel. All tourist locations have money changers, and phone shops and convenience stores sell SIM cards.
In contrast, it can be quite annoying in China if you don’t finish these two important tasks before you leave the airport. I can speak from experience. The majority of Chinese hotels and, even more unexpectedly, most Chinese banks do not exchange foreign currencies. Bank of China is your best option if you’re stuck, but each time I’ve exchanged money there, it’s been a drawn-out and difficult procedure.
In order to find a shop that would sell me a SIM card, I also had to stoop through Chengdu, a massive Chinese city. Hours passed. It was my fault; I should have purchased a SIM card and made the money exchange at the airport, where it is comparatively simple and quick.
Chinese cuisine isn’t what you might think.
Chinese food has been my favorite since I was a child growing up in Australia. Then, when I first arrived in China in my twenties, I was unfamiliar with all of the cuisine. Westernized dishes that aren’t actually found in China are what many people from North America, Europe, and Australia mistakenly believe to be Chinese cuisine.
You won’t find General Tso’s Chicken or Orange Chicken, much less fortune cookies, in a Chinese restaurant. However, there is some good news: real Chinese food is amazing. Try the incredibly spicy smoked pork sausage in Chengdu, the cold langpi noodles with chili oil in Xi’an, the enticing steamed crab in Shanghai, and the lamb-rich Mongolian hotpot in Beijing.
Expecting locals to speak English is unrealistic.
Finding someone who speaks at least some English is rarely a problem in many of Asia’s most popular travel destinations, including Japan, India, Singapore, Thailand, Malaysia, and Vietnam. Not in China, particularly if you’re not in Beijing or Shanghai, the country’s two most popular tourist destinations.
It is extremely uncommon to find someone who speaks (or is willing to speak) English outside of upscale hotels in Chinese cities. Undoubtedly, the individuals that foreign visitors need to communicate with the most in China—cab drivers, store clerks, and restaurant employees—are unlikely to be able to carry on a conversation.
Please don’t judge me because I don’t speak a word of Mandarin or Cantonese. However, failing to prepare for China’s language barrier by downloading translation apps or using a printed guide with Chinese language translations will cause you a great deal of inconvenience.