This is a collaborative page to ensure things get done in preparation for leaving for Beijing
| Date (Done?) | Activity | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| ongoing | read about Beijing | See http://www.beijingpage.com . See http://chinese-forums.com (especially about Universities, and Living in China). Read “Getting Lost in Beijing” at by an Australian journalist, describing bus experiences from the Beijing Friendship Hotel. |
| soon! | FAQs | There’s an FAQ for foreign students at BeiDa that seems quite helpful. You’re up the street! |
| done | Beijing maps | Open Air Books & Maps, 416-363-0719, 25 Toronto Street, Toronto. There’s also an online map (in pinyin, but not Chinese characters) available as PDF at mapmatrix.com, which is useful online, but too ridiculously large to print! The Friendship Hotel is near Renmin University, and has a not-to-scale map on HTML. |
| ordered on 8/22 | Bell calling card | Bell said the card may take 5 to 7 days. The Canada Direct number from China is 108-186. It’s expensive, at $3.50 per minute and $2.99 for the call, so it’s probably cheaper to use the mobile phone directly, if it is not an emergency. |
| TBD | MEC for winter clothes | Adam and Diana, but it only makes sense if inventory has arrived after the dock strike in Vancouver |
| when time | Canadian identity | Don suggested getting some Canada pins (from the MP), and sew some Canada flags on your backpacks |
| shopping | water purifier | The dorm will have a boiler, but you need to be careful because it’s 100 degrees Celsius and you can burn yourself. Water will take 5 hours to cool. The water is then safe, but may be yellow. It may also have sediment, which could make you sick. If you want a water purifer (Don said $50), it will remove the yellow and the sediment. It’s your choice |
| done | Yuan from BMO? | Thomas Cook on 1168, Bay Street, south of Bloor, 416-975-9940 |
| before leaving | Travel medical insurance | Get short-term medical insurance, until Chinese coverage takes over |
| packing | Things that are hard to get in China | At chinese-forums.com, they suggest dental floss and deodorant |
| paperwork | PC support | Find out IBM/Lenovo phone number for support if your Thinkpad breaks down in China, at http://www-307.ibm.com/pc/support/site.wss/homeLenovo.do . Get copies of the original purchase receipt, for 3-year warranty. |
| Wednesday, August 31 | AC131 YYZ T1 8:00am YVR 9:57am / AC029 YVR 12:20pm PEK 2:40pm | We need to check with Air Canada whether AC131 counts as a 60-minute check-in or a 120-minute check-in. In addition, for reference, how long is the walk changing gates in Vancouver? |