Travel Tips in China
Being in China has taught me many things that I had wished I had learned before I stepped foot off the plane. One of them being that although some Chinese people here speak English, a good 80% do not speak English so your body language skills must be fantastic if you are coming to the country knowing absolutely nothing, like me. I have encountered many awkward encounters with locals where they would speak to me and I would be there with confused eyes asking, “什么,” which means “what?” I will not lie, I may have not understood a great amount but I was still able to get what I wanted so, I would say the experiences were successful. Personally, I reached out to my roommate and friends here for a few pointers on both traveler secrets and safety tips. In Traveler’s Secrets they said: American credit cards do not work in most places so please bring enough money for your expenses (please be generous if you spend a lot), squat toilets exist here so always carry toilet paper if you need to go. Also, keep in mind, when in public, most Chinese people tend to shove and not use words in order to have get you to move. Lastly, main key of advice, and I CANNOT STRESS THIS ENOUGH, pack for different seasonal temperatures. It might be the summer time but temperatures are wild and they range from the low 60s to the 80s in a span of a few days and rain is not a stranger around here so do not hesitate to bring a rain jacket and rain boots. To this day, my rain boots have become my most prized possession.
Safety tips may just be a little cliché to talk about but in all honesty, watch what you eat; especially street food. Unless you know someone has not gotten sick, avoid getting foods from the street vendors. Prepare to be sick. Even if you might not get sick, be prepared; bring ibuprofen, gatorade powder, zzzquil, hand sanitizer, pepto bismol, and buy only bottled water. There are a lot of mopeds in this area so driving etiquette is at the most minimal. Please be careful when crossing the street and do not be afraid to be a little aggressive but do not put yourself in harm’s way in doing so. 
