Going to China for 2 months! Options

[xconnieLOOHOOx07]

UGH. I'm going to Japan first for about 3 days, then off to China-land for roughly a hellish 2 months. Coming back the week before school starts...

(I leave next Tuesday.)

GAHHHH!!!! What should I bring besides the essentials (toothbrush, toothpaste, clothing, etc.)?? What should I NOT bring??

Also, does anybody have a rough idea of what most of the urban cities look like today? I haven't been there in 5 years...and China has changed alot in 5 years...

How are airplanes? GAWD...I CAN'T EVEN BELIEVE I'M ASKING THIS QUESTION! But...still. How are the airplanes...? I heard that some have SHOWERS...n stuff. What's there to do on airplanes? Plus, how long do you think I'll have to stay on an airplane to get to Japan? To China from Japan?

DO THEY SPEAK *PROPER* ENGLISH IN CHINA?? (Not ENGRISH!)

Somebody tell me if China's status on communism...I mean, I know they're still Communist, but it doesn't really seem that way from what I saw online (only for the urban areas, not for the poor & rural areas)...hmmmM...

[Nicolatofu]

Well, seems like you'll have a long flight, so be sure to bring things to keep you occupied. OH and don't forget a camera

I suppose airplans that have longer to travel on might have showers.. usually they play movies that you can watch and they also have radio channels... none that impress me, though.

I'm sure there are people who can speak english there, but considering that isn't their primary language, I'm certain a lot of them have an accent.

[cherry_toothpast...]

wow that's kinda weird.

i live in japan, and i'm going to visit china this summer. i'm not staying that long though, only for a week.

ANYWAY, i've never been to china before. but for japan, you should be more specific of where you're going. if you're going to tokyo, it's very, very crowded.

you can't expect people in japan and china to have perfect english either.

bring whatever you bring on usual holidays. japan has really weird and unpredictable weather, especially in june. some days it's really, really hot, and on other days it's rainy. it's always humid though.

for the plane ride, it depends on where you live. if you live in america, it's a pretty long flight to japan. take something that'll keep you busy. the flight from japan to china isn't that long though.

hope that helps.

[liSerS x3]

well, the flight to china does take a long time. and umm, i haven't seen any planes with showers. it's usually around 20-24 hours for the flight leaving from the U.S. i'm not sure how long it will take from japan. i'm assuming a few hours?

not that many poeple speak english there. or at least the people i know there don't speak english. like i just go to china to visit my relatives. i'm sure that there are people you can find that speak english.

china doesn't really seem that communist either. the government really doesn't control that much. like you can't elect your own leaders and stuff, but there's really nothing else besides that.

there's nothing i can think of that you shouldn't bring. just don't bring the stuff that you can't bring onto airplanes. make sure you have no aerosol spray cans like hairspray. i've gotten that taken away at an aiport before. and umm, of course, don't bring weapons.

haha, enough rambling already.

[cocoalightning27]

Been to China 4 times.....Take this advice seriously....BRING A FAN AND AND AN UMBRELLA....you'll need the fan....it's gonna be about 100 degrees F

....lets hope where you are will have Air conditioning...if it's in the
Countryside...prolly not....and the umbrella....you're gonna get killed by the sun if you don't bring one...

for the plane rides....bring a book or something to keep you busy...I usually just sleep. I estimate about 20 hours on an airplane to China or Japan...and about 2 hours to get to japan from China


and where I went...srry...but they do speak engrish...IT"S UNDERSTANDABLE THOUGH

Gah Have fun!!!!! Bring Cb back lots and lots of Pirated DVD"S!.......j/k

[sweetxsimplicity]

Wow, why is everyone going to China? My cousin's going to China this week and next week, and my friend is going to China next next week.

[lilliannnn]

i've been to china too, but not for about 5-6 years.
it's gonna be HOT! and the plane ride there was 24-29 hours (no lie)
it was pretty crowded, so i'm sure its even more crowded now.
HAVE FUN!

[aera]

im going to japan!

well... china's gonna be reallyyyyyy hot. bring one of those electric fans with you.

[gigiopolis]

What should you bring? Um...I don't know. Something to entertain yourself with? But if you want any electronic stuff...get it in China. It's cheaper.

The urban cities in China look like...um, the urban cities in any other country, like the United States. Hong Kong reminds me, in many ways, of New York. Big urban cities are all alike.

Airplanes don't have showers. There are small, cramped toilets on airplanes. Um...yeah. To Japan it'll take...10 hours ish, depending on where you live. Japan to China...again, depends where you're going...A plane ride from Vancouver to Hong Kong takes around 14 hours, so yeah, you could calculate and estimate from that.

No, most people don't speak PROPER English in China (if you mean unaccented, perfect grammar and stuff) but it depends where you're going. If you're going to an urban area, most people will know English well enough for you to understand.

[xconnieLOOHOOx07]

how many pairs of each clothing item should I bring?

[gigiopolis]

I usually bring...10-20 tops, 3-5 pairs of pants, 10+ pairs of socks...Yeah. You're living there for 2 months, I mean.

[demolished]

bring laptop w/ you so you dont forget us.
pictures .. if you miss someone badly..

[aznxdreamer]

bring your own toilet paper because you have to pay for them when you use the public bathroooms...yeah it sucks. and its really smelly, not just the bathrooms so you might wanna bring some kinda towel to hold over your nose to filter the air hah. and i hate the plane ride. its like..15 hours of sitting there and listening to a loud hum. never heard of showers on a plane. i would enver use them. im going to china in july. i go there about every year to visit family.

ther emight be random crazy hobos walking around the city trying to sell stuff and you'll most likely get grabbed by an insane fast talking hobo thats trying to sell you little necklace things that look like they'll break if you try to put them on. just ignore them.

fyi...the sky is kinda grey during all hours because of the pollution.

[azn_r4pf4n]

Well, seems like you'll have a long flight, so be sure to bring things to keep you occupied. OH and don't forget a camera

i agree with that. Cameras... oh boy, there's lots of good pics to take there. suzhou gardens, old ancient cities, and if u can, get a good shot of nightlife pictures. I heard night time looks great in HK. Night-time pics look great if ur going to take pictures of urban parts of china.

[Tung]

wow your one lucky person. cherish every momemnt you are there. china is a great place !!

[Paradox of Life]

^Yeah. China and Japan are awesome places. Why are you worrying so much? It's going to be a blast. Pack money of course, a few books, your CD player or a portable DVD player if you have it. It's going to be a hella long trip (takes 30 hours to get to Vietnam, I know that ). Bring sleeping pills maybe because of the jet lag. You know a lot more than me because you've been there before.
You're so lucky your parents even let you go to China. You sound like you're stressed out. CHILLAX.

Most likely they'll speak engrish because I mean, what do you expect? Chinese people having american accents?

[*salcha*]

CHINA! I've been to China:

TO BRING:
1. sunscreen (YES, I got sunburnt)
2. shorts
3. t-shirts
4. tank tops
5. loose clothing
6. insect repellent (you'll love me forever)
7. a camera
8. a book for the plane ride there
9. a body that's in shape if you plan to climb the great wall of china.

NOT TO BRING
1. heavy clothing

Annnnd, I'm going back to Taiwan in two day, so the weather and all is the same.

[Where We Are]

the plane trip takes 13 hours not 20 O.o

Urban life is pretty good in China. You'll probably see a lot of skyscraper construction in the cities. Beijing is currently transforming itself to better accomadate its 2008 Olympics. Maybe the taxi drivers will know some English? They didn't last year..but you never know, China is changing faster and faster these days.

[whomps]

I haven't been to China in uh.. 3 years. I stayed for about 2 months also. I liked it.. You should uh, bring a lot of money because there's going to be tons of cheap crap to buy. Seriously, life isn't like.. super hard in China. It was fun.

What part of China are you staying in ?

[highly_evolved]

japans a sauna right now.

no airplanes do not have showers

Japan is ugly in some places but nice in others - roppongi is brilliant at the moment
you dont get carded in japan
thers nothin to do in japan except go clubbing
bring money

China is actually a really nice place

[xconnieLOOHOOx07]

Places where I'm going:

-Beijing
-Chongqing (staying here the longest...my parents are currently thinking about 4 weeks)
-Smaller cities around Chongqing

NO, my parents are too stubborn to go to Shanghai, Hong Kong, or Taiwan. X(

Well...at least I get to sweat out all of my "troubles" in the hot land of the Sichaun province...

[sammi rules you]

you can't expect people in japan and china to have perfect english either. 

have you always lived there? if so, it seems like you speak better english than some of the english-speaking people on here..

however, she's right, these people don't speak english normally so i doubt it's going to sound perfect. going to a country is for the experience of the other country, not to go and act like you're still in america.

why are you so hesitant to go? i would love to go to china and japan. it would be such a different atmosphere..plus their style is so different from ours. i would love the experience and to see how people live in other cultures.

[llpurpleskyll]

well i think your questions have all been answered...anyhow just a warning..its going to be REALLY REALLY REALLY hot there ^_^

[gigiopolis]

DON'T FORGET YOUR INSECT REPELLENT.

My brother's working in China for the summer and he's gotten 40 mosquito bites in his sleep, even with the windows closed.

[JlIaTMK]

Okay, I don't think you should worry too much about all the other stuff after your second paragraph.

But, bring.... what you feel like bringing will satisfy you for 2 months.
That is a long time.

Hm, have fun though. I mean, what, you live here anyways.