My reference sheet for China

I’m heading to China soon and this post has been sitting in my Drafts on my old web server for a long time now. Since I lost all my data from that side because I have poor back-up habits, I had to try to recreate the list. It’s still nowhere close to the size of the old one, but it will have to do for now. I made this list to keep track of China-related stuff that I could go back to whenever I needed it. I had it in Private, but figured it might be helpful for someone else too. When I remember what other things I had on it, I’ll add or make a new post.

Chinese Consular Information in Toronto

Consulate General of the People’s Republic of China in Toronto
240 St. George St. Toronto, ON M5R 2P4
Office Hours: 09:00 – 12:00, 13:30 – 15:30 Monday through Fridays (except holidays)
Tel: 416-964-8861
Fax: 426-324-9010

• Chinese Visa Application Requirements
  • Passport, original copy. Make sure it expires no more than six months after your return date and has enough blank pages.
  • Visa Application Form. Don’t forget to sign the form.
  • Passport Photo. Attach it to your visa application form.
  • You must apply and pick up your visa in person.
  • You pay for the visa when you pick it up. Bring cash.

Be aware that you have to leave your passport with them when you apply for your visa. In addition to the above, having the following documents with you will save you time and reduce the chance that you’ll be turned down and asked to come back another day with the proper documents.

• Flight itinerary
• Hotel/accommodation reservation receipts

It’s better to have the documents than to be turned away if they need it. When I went to get my visa I didn’t need them but someone in Vancouver said he had to show them his itinerary and proof of accommodations. Make sure you apply for the correct visa:

• L-Visa: Tourist/Family-Visit Visa
• F-Visa: Business Visa
• Z-Visa: Employment/Work Visa
• G-Visa: Transit Visa
• J-1, J-2 Visa: Journalist Visa
• D-Visa: Residence Visa
• C-Visa: Crew Member Visa
• Diplomatic or Service Visa

They claim it takes four days to processing your application, all else being equal. My visa was ready in four days in July before the Beijing Olympics. I’ve been told it takes seven days in Vancouver, this was in June before the Beijing Olympics.

Description of Canadian Government Offices Abroad
EmbassyWorld.com – Database of embassies

Learn Mandarin

There are a variety of options for learning Mandarin: private tutor, in-class sessions, online courses, podcasts, coffee with a Mandarin-speaking friend, voice chat with new friends around the world. If you’re like me and didn’t have the foresight to take classes there are so many ways to learn online. I found one of the most effective ways to learn Mandarin was finding a podcast that I could bring around with me. Log onto iTunes and you’ll find 8 or 9 podcasts for learning Mandarin.

• Chinese – SurvivalPhrases
  • This podcast reminds me of those pocket phrasebooks from the Lonely Planet series in a podcast. They teach Mandarin phrases like, “Where is the bathroom?”, “Please say it once again.”, “Can you speak English?”, “I don’t understand.”, and “Do you take credit card?”. Great for the “tourist” essentials. The teacher also fits in some commentary on Chinese culture. This podcast doesn’t focus on Mandarin dialogue but phrases.
• Learn Chinese – ChinesePod
• Learn Mandarin Chinese with mychinesepod.com
• Mandarin Chinese Conversation
• Manadarin Chinese Lessons with Serge Melnyk
• World Learner Chinese – Learn Chinese . Manadarin

The following are great for Mandarin Intermediate level or higher. The instructions are given in Mandarin. Great for those that want to increase their vocabulary and perfect pronunciation.

• Learn Mandarin Chinese
• Learn Chinese & Culture @ iMandarinPod.com
• CSLPod

Stay away from:

• Chinese Cast from eChineseLearning.com
  • I listened to episode 29, it had really poor quality and it was difficult to hear the pronunciation of the words. It was like listening to the woman talk from across the room with a lot of white noise from the microphone. I wouldn’t suggest this podcast.

There are lots of different sites that offer Mandarin lessons, find the one that meets your needs and get started.

• LiveMocha
  • Free to register and use all services.
  • Offers self-study lessons, tutors, motivational tools and a community where you can speak with others whose native language is your target language.
  • Uses social networking and user-generated content concepts to keep the site running.
• iTalki
  • Free to register and use all services.
  • Uses social networking and user-generated content concepts to keep the site running.
  • Larger offering of languages than LiveMocha.
• ChinesePod
  • Free to register. There are four additional subscription levels. The basic plan at $5/month to the executive plan at $125/month.
  • Free Subscription: Podcast lessons, mp3 format
  • Other Subscriptions: RSS feeds of your lessons, lesson transcripts, review audio, review suite, vocabulary study tools, iPhone access, counseling sessions, personal study plans, and daily speaking practice.
• Learn Chinese
  • No need to register. Free lessons.
  • Offers traditional textbook lessons with accompanying audio files.
  • Some of the audio files don’t work but it looks like the site is still in the works.

Getting Ready for the Flight

Air Canada Before You Go: A ‘To-Do’ List
Air Canada Baggage Information

Tips and Guides

Travel Report for China

JourneyWoman Clothing Tips for China
JourneyWoman Cultural Tips for China
JourneyWoman Travel Tips for China
TravelChina Guide What to Pack
wikiHow to Pack for a Trip to China
World Travel Guide on Money Matters

Living in China

Wuhan Travel Guide
Wuhan Map

Registration of Canadians Abroad
Passport Renewal
Canadian Embassy/Consulates in China

Tags: China, consulate, Mandarin, Shanghai, Toronto, travel, visa, Wuhan

This entry was posted on Wednesday, July 30th, 2008 at 22:45 and is filed under Abroad, Personal. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.