'Mainland China' ↓

In major China cities such as Guangzhou and Hangzhou, taxis are equipped with metres and machines to print receipts. Ask for a print receipt when you leave the taxi, which usually shows the taxi fare, the taxi number and the license number of the taxi driver.  This receipt would be useful if you suspect that you are ripped off and want to lodge a complaint.

Nowadays, because of the rise in fuel price, many cities allow for taxi fuel sub-charge ranging from RMB0.5-1.0 per journey. Say Guangzhou, which imposes on passengers a fuel sub-charge of RMB1 per taxi journey. So do not be surprised if you are asked to pay RMB1 more on top of the charge shown by the taxi metre.

According to the South China Morning Post report today (24 July), five Olympic cities in China - Shanghai, Beijing, Qingdao, Shengyang and Qinhuangdao - have stopped issuing invitation letters, which are necessary for a foreigner to get a China business visa.

This is confirmed by the local authorities of all five cities. The Shanghai authority was quoted as saying that the only exemptions would be given to work-visa applicants and those who need to go to Shanghai in “emergencies”.

The only other Olympic city that denies that such a restriction is in place is Tianjin, where preliminary soccer matches will be played.

The lack of transparency in Chinese policy is once again demonstrated in this case. A Beijing official admitted that Beijing has had such a restriction in place for two weeks, but thus far without any public announcement.

Thus, do expect that China visa applications will not get back to it normal course until Sept 20, when the Olympics is over.

Since last week, the Beijing authority has been placing bikes in more than 100 hotels for the free use of tourists. It is intended that a total of 10,000 bikes will be placed in these hotels, with each hotel getting an average of 20 bikes.

This new measure is obviously for welcoming in Olympics. However, the good news is that the bikes will still be kept in the hotels for tourists’ free use, even after the Olympics. So ask about free bikes if you stay in a Beijing hotel. You may stand a chance to get one.

A special report conducted by Li & Fung Research Centre, and Secretariat of the Expert Committee of China General Chamber of Commerce, highlights the following. Maybe it is helpful to those wanting to do , or doing business in China.

1. An ever-growing retail sector – retail sales rising at the fastest pace in a decade

2. Growing concerns about the food industry among government authorities and consumers

3. Mergers and acquisitions, company restructuring and public listings rapidly transforming the commercial landscape in China

4. Foreign commercial enterprises looking for new growth paths in China

5. Rural commercial infrastructure development achieving impressive progress

6. Development of commercial businesses in residential communities gaining momentum

7. Industry organizations playing a bigger role in the economy

8. Commercial property market facing both opportunities and challenges

9. From sheer scale expansion to building a critical mass – retail businesses striving to increase overall competitiveness

10. The landmark Anti-monopoly Law – paving the way towards a more regulated commercial sector

Shenzhen was being labeled as one of the dangerous Chinese cities because of its large migrant population. In response, the municipal government has been aggressively setting up video cameras in public space to monitor its population to curb the crime wave. 

According to the report in South China Morning Post magazine, over the past two years, more than 200,000 video cameras have been set up along main streets, in train stations, in shopping malls, in parks and along highways. And to disguise the surveillance cameras, many of them pass off as lighting columns. The cameras then beam live video to a central city database.

It is projected that within two years, Shenzhen, a city of 12 million, will have as many as 2 million surveillance cameras, the highest concentration in the world.

The deputy police chief of the city boasted that this surveillance “social experiment” was paying off with crime rates having fallen by more than 10% since 2006 when the surveillance cameras started to emerge.

Of course, the surge in the surveillance cameras in Shenzhen is only part of the Central Government’s move to monitor its vast population with latest video and internet technology, especially ahead of the Beijing Olympics, as stepped up security measures. It is worried that this surveillance campaign will only further gather up pace, not lessen, after the Olympics.

But first of all, image touring or living in a city where you are monitored everywhere. In fact, the increased surveillance has angered some residents in Shenzhen. News broke out in May that a rooftop surveillance camera set up just 3 km from the Hong Kong border, was used to scan an apartment block and shots of naked women getting in and out of bath, images fed from the camera, later splashed across a local newspaper.

This is no coincidence. For in a city or country where its people are closely watched , incidents like this - violations of privacy - are bound to happen.

From reading reports, comments and experiences on this blog and others, it is obvious that Hong Kong and Macau are no longer havens to get a China visa – at least not until the Beijing Olympics is finished in October this year.

You must take note that if you are only given a 7-day China visa in Macau, as reported by many, once you are inside China and you want to renew the visa, it is most likely that you will have an extension of 7days only, based on the first issuance, and not more. So be prepared for it and think again when you want to get a China visa in Macau or Hong Kong.

It is ironic that while the Beijing Olympics is intended for an opportunity to welcome the world to China, visa regulations are being tightened up for security reasons and the outside world experiences only the unfriendliness and inconveniences.

Beijing’s Qianmen Dajie (Front Door Main Street) was the city’s busiest and most famous business street during the late 19th century and the early 20th century. The street, in decline since the mid 20th century, has recently been restored to its look in its prime, lined with wooden buildings and decorated in “old Beijing” style. Famous traditional Beijing eateries are grouped into a corner of the street.

To be reminiscent of the “old Beijing”, the place has a tram running, which was a familiar Beijing sight from 1924 to 1966. The tram’s whole journey is about 10 minutes, crossing the whole breadth of the street of more than 800m.

The restored Qianmen Dajie has been open to the public since May 2008, after a 2-year facelift work.