The flight time from Richmond, Virginia to Beijing, China is: 14 hours, 33 minutes.
CURRENCY
1 US Dollar equals 6.21 Chinese Yuan
1 Euro equals 7.17 Chinese Yuan
SHOPPING
Apple to Zara, you'll be able to find them here in Beijing They are plenty of stylish items on display; the only thing you'll have difficulty finding should you move to Beijing are plus-sized clothes, so bring these with you if you're a little on the heavy side, or opt for tailor made clothing after you arrive. On bargaining:, you might be surprised how expensive the asking prices of some of these not-that-expensive-looking goods are. The reason why, of course, is because in many parts of Beijing you need to haggle; and they'll start out at a much higher price than what they actually want. A good rule of thumb: if you're a foreigner, and you're somewhere that cheap goods are being sold at seemingly high prices, assume that the price you should pay is anywhere from 15% to 10% of the asking price, and bargain from that understanding.
FOOD
Food streets or snack streets are always popular destinations for locals and tourists, especially at night. There are many such streets in Beijing, some are time-honored, while some are newly thriving ones. Guijie (Ghost Street) is the earliest popular snack street in Beijing, and is also where night birds have a stoke of midnight. The 1.5-kilometer-long Guijie is full of snack shops, which serve snacks with different flavors at a cheap price. One of people’s favorites there is the hot and spicy shrimps. Guijie operates around the clock, and every day from six in the afternoon till four in the morning is the busiest time.
Fucheng StreetIt is one of the upscale food streets in Beijing. Nearly 50% of the consumers are business people. Dozens of upscale restaurants gather on this 3-kilometer-long street. Hunan cuisine, Sichuan cuisine, Jiangsu cuisine and many other famous Chinese regional cuisines can be found there. Several Cantonese restaurants featuring seafood are among the best in Beijing City.
-A bow of rice porridge (congee) or bean juice- A bowl of porridge costs around RMB2-3 and a cup of bean juice is not more than RMB2.
-You tiao.-You tiao usually costs RMB1 ($0.16) and 2 will fill you up.
-Sticky rice wrapped in a leaf.-Sticky rice wrapped in a leaf usually costs RMB2,5/$0.40.
-Egg pancakes (Jian bing)-One costs around RMB3 ($0.5).
How is China different from America?
Chinese People...
HOME
Whether you're looking to find a Beijing apartment or you're planning on investing in some Beijing real estate, the very first thing you'll want to decide on is what part of the city you want to be living in. And with a city this large, location is very important.
Most expatriates choose to stay close to downtown, in Chaoyang District, in areas such as Guomao (the business district), Shuangjing (a residential area near to Guomao), or Sanlitun (the embassy area and also shopping, restaurant, and nightlife center). International students studying Chinese or at a Chinese university typically settle in Wudaokou, near the schools.And, when it comes to the famous Beijing smog, you're going to encounter that no matter where in the city you can stay so don't bother trying to escape it! Beijing is an ancient city, but most expat housing was built in the last 10 years
MY APARTMENT
My apartment is worth 80,534 US dollars and includes everything listed below.
An estimated two million people in Beijing are said to be living below the earth’s surface, in thousands of 100-square-foot spaces located just one or two stories below street level that would mean 10 percent of the city’s 20 million people sleep in windowless, subterranean residences.The only affordable alternative would be way out on the city’s periphery. And yet, if you ask them, many of these people, most of them migrant workers, will tell you their choice to live underground is vastly better than the alternative.
FOOD
Food streets or snack streets are always popular destinations for locals and tourists, especially at night. There are many such streets in Beijing, some are time-honored, while some are newly thriving ones. Guijie (Ghost Street) is the earliest popular snack street in Beijing, and is also where night birds have a stoke of midnight. The 1.5-kilometer-long Guijie is full of snack shops, which serve snacks with different flavors at a cheap price. One of people’s favorites there is the hot and spicy shrimps. Guijie operates around the clock, and every day from six in the afternoon till four in the morning is the busiest time.
Fucheng StreetIt is one of the upscale food streets in Beijing. Nearly 50% of the consumers are business people. Dozens of upscale restaurants gather on this 3-kilometer-long street. Hunan cuisine, Sichuan cuisine, Jiangsu cuisine and many other famous Chinese regional cuisines can be found there. Several Cantonese restaurants featuring seafood are among the best in Beijing City.
-A bow of rice porridge (congee) or bean juice- A bowl of porridge costs around RMB2-3 and a cup of bean juice is not more than RMB2.
-You tiao.-You tiao usually costs RMB1 ($0.16) and 2 will fill you up.
-Sticky rice wrapped in a leaf.-Sticky rice wrapped in a leaf usually costs RMB2,5/$0.40.
-Egg pancakes (Jian bing)-One costs around RMB3 ($0.5).
How is China different from America?
- Chinese don’t eat scrambled eggs, bread or even cereal with milk in the morning.
- They don’t read the newspaper with a breakfast.
- They rarely cook it at home.
- Breakfast must be always hot and quick to prepare, ready to grab on the run.
- They don’t drink tea or coffee in the morning as people think.
- They never skip breakfast.
Chinese People...
- Prefer to eat their breakfast in the street, buy it at food vendors or take the food away and have it at work.
- Go either for heavy and stodgy meals such as dumplings or sweet and savory items such as doughnuts or buns.
- Always have a cup of soy milk with their meals.
- Often eat in rush loudly smacking (well, they always smack).
HOME
Whether you're looking to find a Beijing apartment or you're planning on investing in some Beijing real estate, the very first thing you'll want to decide on is what part of the city you want to be living in. And with a city this large, location is very important.
Most expatriates choose to stay close to downtown, in Chaoyang District, in areas such as Guomao (the business district), Shuangjing (a residential area near to Guomao), or Sanlitun (the embassy area and also shopping, restaurant, and nightlife center). International students studying Chinese or at a Chinese university typically settle in Wudaokou, near the schools.And, when it comes to the famous Beijing smog, you're going to encounter that no matter where in the city you can stay so don't bother trying to escape it! Beijing is an ancient city, but most expat housing was built in the last 10 years
MY APARTMENT
My apartment is worth 80,534 US dollars and includes everything listed below.
An estimated two million people in Beijing are said to be living below the earth’s surface, in thousands of 100-square-foot spaces located just one or two stories below street level that would mean 10 percent of the city’s 20 million people sleep in windowless, subterranean residences.The only affordable alternative would be way out on the city’s periphery. And yet, if you ask them, many of these people, most of them migrant workers, will tell you their choice to live underground is vastly better than the alternative.
WHAT YOU NEED TO WORK AND LIVE IN BEIJING
The age limit for China work visa applicants is from 24 years' old to 60 years' old for both male and female foreigners. However, there is some flexibility in these requirements.
The first-time China work visa applicants need to provide the recent no-criminal record certificate in their own country.
You need the Bachelor degree certificate and 2-year work experience to apply for a work visa in Beijing
Applying for a Visa Usually, your future employer will take care of obtaining an Employment License from the Beijing Municipal Bureau of Labor and Social Security for you. For this purpose, they usually need the following documents:
Alien Registration and Work Permits Within 24 hours after your arrival in Beijing, you must register as a foreign national with the local police. If you are staying at a hotel, the administrative staff normally does this for you. Now you can go about getting your Alien Employment Permit.
However, you will first need to get a health certificate! You can get it from the Beijing Entry-Exit Inspection and Quarantine Bureau. Normally, it’s enough to bring along certified translations of your medical records from a previous check-up at home. This includes a chest x-ray and negative testing for HIV and other STDs.
If you are lucky, your employer will settle the Employment Permit for you. Otherwise, you have to make an appointment with the Beijing Municipal Bureau of Labor and Social Security yourself. Generally, you need to bring these papers:
Residence Permits Once you have your Employment Permit, you are still short of a proper Residence Permit. Even a Z visa is valid for 30 days only. In this time, you need to exchange it for the one-year Residence Permit. It is basically a visa in anything but name and has to be renewed on a regular basis.
The age limit for China work visa applicants is from 24 years' old to 60 years' old for both male and female foreigners. However, there is some flexibility in these requirements.
The first-time China work visa applicants need to provide the recent no-criminal record certificate in their own country.
You need the Bachelor degree certificate and 2-year work experience to apply for a work visa in Beijing
Applying for a Visa Usually, your future employer will take care of obtaining an Employment License from the Beijing Municipal Bureau of Labor and Social Security for you. For this purpose, they usually need the following documents:
- a copy of your passport
- copies of your educational degree(s) and professional qualifications
- your CV and professional references
- proof of a clean criminal record
- a health certificate from a medical check-up examination
Alien Registration and Work Permits Within 24 hours after your arrival in Beijing, you must register as a foreign national with the local police. If you are staying at a hotel, the administrative staff normally does this for you. Now you can go about getting your Alien Employment Permit.
However, you will first need to get a health certificate! You can get it from the Beijing Entry-Exit Inspection and Quarantine Bureau. Normally, it’s enough to bring along certified translations of your medical records from a previous check-up at home. This includes a chest x-ray and negative testing for HIV and other STDs.
If you are lucky, your employer will settle the Employment Permit for you. Otherwise, you have to make an appointment with the Beijing Municipal Bureau of Labor and Social Security yourself. Generally, you need to bring these papers:
- Employment License
- health certificate
- two copies of your employer’s business license
- original and copy of your job contract (plus an official Chinese translation)
- original and copy of your passport
- completed Employment Registration Form
- several passport photographs
Residence Permits Once you have your Employment Permit, you are still short of a proper Residence Permit. Even a Z visa is valid for 30 days only. In this time, you need to exchange it for the one-year Residence Permit. It is basically a visa in anything but name and has to be renewed on a regular basis.