Destination: China

LONELY PLANET'S OFFICIAL GUIDEBOOK INFORMATION

Dangers & Annoyances

Crime

Travellers are more often the victims of petty economic crime, such as theft, rather than serious crime. Foreigners are natural targets for pickpockets and thieves, but as long as you keep your wits about you and make it difficult for thieves to get at your belongings, you shouldn't have any problems. Certain cities and places are worse than others - Guangzhou, Guiyang and Xian are notorious. Incidences of crime increase around the Chinese New Year.

High-risk areas in China are train and bus stations, city and long-distance buses (especially sleeper buses), hard-seat train carriages and public toilets. Don't leave anything of value in your bicycle basket.

Hotels are generally safe. Attendants are on each floor, keeping an eye on the rooms and safeguarding the keys. Dormitories obviously require more care. Don't be overly trusting of your fellow travellers - many of them are considerably less than honest. All hotels have safes and storage areas for valuables - use them. Don't leave anything you can't do without (passport, travellers cheques, money, air tickets etc) lying around in dormitories.

Carry just as much cash as you need and keep the rest in travellers cheques. Always take a money belt for larger sums of cash, along with your passport and credit cards. A worrying trend is the increasing number of reports of foreigners attacked or even killed for their valuables, especially in more rural locations (a Western tourist was killed a few years ago on Moon Hill in popular Yangshuo); so be vigilant at all times. It's always advisable to travel with someone else or in a small group; individual travellers have to accept they are taking a risk.

LOSS REPORTS

If something of yours is stolen, you should report it immediately to the nearest Foreign Affairs Branch of the PSB. Staff will ask you to fill in a loss report before investigating the case and sometimes even recovering the stolen goods.

If you have travel insurance (highly recommended), it is essential to obtain a loss report so you can claim compensation. Be warned, however: many travellers have found Foreign Affairs officials very unwilling to provide one. Be prepared to spend many hours, perhaps even several days, organising it.

Scams

Con artists are widespread in China. Ostensibly friendly types invite you for tea, then order food and say they have no money, leaving you to foot the bill, while practising their English on you.

Don't leave any of your belongings with someone you do not know well. The opening economy in China has also spawned a plague of dishonest businesses and enterprises. The travel agent you phoned may just operate from a cigarette smoke-filled hotel room.

Be alert at all times if changing money on the black market. One trick is for the money-changer to take your money and then say he has made a mistake and wants to recount the money he has just given you. Taking the money back as if to recount it, the last you see of him and your cash is his heels moving at velocity down the road.

Laowai!

You will often hear calls or muttered whispers of 'laowai' when walking down the street. An excruciating 'Hellooooo', with ensuing hoots of laughter, often follows. Laowai means 'foreigner' and is used by one Chinese person to indicate to others the presence of someone non-Chinese. Laowai is used in conversation by all Chinese to refer to foreigners. Some travellers find it annoying to hear the words uttered by onlookers wherever they go. It is hardly ever said with anything but surprise and curiosity, however. Despite decades of foreign TV and films and ever increasing droves of Western travellers, the Chinese still find novelty in the sudden appearance of foreigners. Calls of laowai are far more common and more vocal in smaller towns than in the big cities. More neutral terms for foreigners are waiguoren (foreigner) and waibin (foreign guest).

Pollution & Noise

Pollution is a serious problem in China and can make travel unpleasant for everyone, but especially if you have allergies, skin conditions, or chest, eye, nose and throat problems. According to the World Bank, China has 16 of the world's 20 most polluted cities.

In recent years the Chinese government has launched an anti-noise pollution campaign. The government is on a loser with this one, but a number of cities have banned the use of car horns within the city. The Chinese are generally much more tolerant of noise than most foreigners. People watch TV at ear-shattering volumes, drivers lean on the horn, and much of China seems to wake uncomplainingly to the sound of jackhammers and earth-moving vehicles. If it's peace and quiet you want, head for a remote part of China - try the desert in Xinjiang, or a mountain top in Tibet.

Spitting

When China first opened to foreign tourism, many foreign travellers were shocked by the spitting, which was conducted noisily by everyone everywhere. Campaigns to stamp out the practice have been reasonably successful in the major urban centres - there is less public spitting in Guangzhou, Shanghai and Beijing these days (some areas impose a Y50 fine), but in the country, the phlegm still flows.

Queues

In China a large number of people with a common goal (a bus seat, a train ticket, purchasing a mobile phone etc) generally form a surging mass, although elements of queuing are appearing. It is one of the more exhausting parts of China travel, and sometimes it is worth paying extra in order to be able to avoid train and bus stations. Otherwise, take a deep breath and leap in with everyone else.