The Connection

What are the ways of communication when you are in China?

1. Snail Mail

In BLCU, we have a post office inside the campus. You can send mails and packages to your love ones abroad through snail mail. The Post Office is beside Cernet, (we will talk about Cernet later)

2. Phone (Telephone or Mobile Phone)

Let's talk about the mobile phone or cellphone. I am not familiar with telephone or fixed-line.

There are 2 popular mobile service provider in China namely China Mobile and China Unicom.

China Mobile

China Mobile is the more popular in China because its rates are cheaper and it gives customers more choices. It has different brands such as M-zone (this targets the youth), Go Tone, Easy Own, etc. When you register in BLCU, the teachers will give you an M-zone sim card. However, you this SIM card cannot be used for foreign calls/SMS.  This can only be used locally. You can either buy Jia Jia or Hello.

China Unicom

China Unicom is positioned for the high-end part of the market. Their rates are a little more expensive than China Mobile. The advantage of China Unicom over China Mobile is the 3g network. China Unicom has been awarded to provide for 3g networks. Their WiFi coverage is also better.

Side note:

The Sad SIM card Story

September 9, 2011, I arrived in Beijing International Airport. There are many booths all over the airport which sell SIM card. When I asked the sales lady how much, she said 150RMB (roughly more than Php1000. In the Philippines, SIM cards only cost less than Php50.). At that time, I did not buy because I thought it was expensive; and it's the airport, everything there is more expensive than the outside. During my registration in BLCU, I was given an M-zone sim card. But, I cannot send message or call using that SIM card.

The following day (Sept10), my mom and I went to Wangfujin Street. It's a tourist shopping area similar to Hong Kong's Nathan Road or New York's Time Square. I saw a "China Mobile" shop. So we went and ask why I cannot use the SIM card. Only one sales person knows English. She explained to us that M-zone SIM cards can only be used in China; it cannot be use for communicating abroad. In addition, that SIM card does not have fund/balance/credit in it. She said if we want to call or text abroad we need to buy another SIM card. She then showed us different numbers; each number has a corresponding price. In China they have what we call "lucky numbers". We ask for the cheapest, she said 280RMB. This one is a random number with no credit at all, just the SIM card. She said we need to put 200RMB credit to activate the international call/text. Therefore, I paid 480RMB for the SIM Card. 480RMB can already buy me a low-end cellphone!

When my mom left, I roam around the airport for the free WiFi. I approach one seller of SIM cards and asked again for details of SIM cards. I showed her my SIM card and told her the story. The very same brand of SIM card that I bought in "China Mobile" Wangfujin is the same SIM card that is sold in the airport for 150RMB with 30RMB credit. Mine was 280RMB with 0 credit! She was very helpful. She called the China Mobile hotline to ask my questions. In the end, I went to China Mobile office in the airport and even the staffs in the office was shocked by the price of my SIM card. They do not know why my SIM card is so expensive but they offered an intelligent guess. They said that the "China Mobile" in Wangfujin is not really China Mobile despite the fact that their store signage said "China Mobile". Therefore, the difference is the price could be profit of the retailer or distributor. In fact, after this incidence, I realized that many stores will have "China Mobile" and "China Unicom" as their store signage but they are only retailers and distributors.

Therefore, I suggest it is better to buy in the airport because (1) sellers can speak English and (2) you can be sure that they are not retailers.

3. Mobile Internet

Again, there are only two popular choices in terms of mobile internet. Let's talk about China Mobile first.

China Mobile offers GPRS, TD-SCDMA (see Wikipedia for definition), and WiFi. Hello SIM Card does not have mobile internet capabilitie,  JiaJia, M-zone, and the rest have. Here is the GPRS packages

Cost in RMB	Monthly Allocation
2	10MB
5	30MB
10	70MB
20	150MB
50	500MB
100	2GB
200	5GB

You have to note that these packages will not be available to you immediately. Your SIM card should be 1-month old before you can avail of these packages. For the time being, the GPRS rate is 0.01RMB/KB.

If you want to use WiFi instead of GPRS, just turn on your device's WiFi, scan and connect to CMCC hotspot, and open an internet browser and go to any site. It will load a page of China Mobile like this:

Encode your China Mobile number and choose the package that you prefer. After that, wait the username and password that will be sent to your mobile phone. Use those to log in.

The rates are:
0.05RMB/minute (any excess of the packages are charged at this rate)


Monthly package
30RMB/12hrs
50RMB/40hrs
100RMB/200hrs.


Unlimited package
2.5RMB/1hr
20RMB/1 day
70RMB/1 week
200RMB/ 1 month

China Unicom, on the other hand, offers 3G service. Their Wifi hotspot signal is way better than China Mobile. I experience WiFi network interruption a lot from China Mobile, for instance inside the Dinning Hall there is no China Mobile Wifi hotspot. There are many places in BLCU which have low or no signal for the China Mobile WiFi. China Unicom's WiFi signal is pretty strong and consistent. However, I do not know the rates of their WiFi. But here's their monthly rate for 3G plan:

Monthly Package for China Unicom

There are other packages, but the above packages is more focused on 3G service. I cannot provide much info on China Unicom aside from the table above because I personally do not use it. 

4. CERNET

The last way to stay connected with your love ones is through a local area network connection or wired internet connection. Remember I told you that rooms in the dorm have provision for wired internet? (If you cannot remember, read this.) There is only 1 wired internet provider in BLCU, CERNET. What you need to  get a connection. You need:

• Passport
• Laptop (you need to bring you laptop to the office)
• Money

Their office is open from 10am-6pm, Mondays-Saturdays. Go there, and just say you want internet, they will give you application form and ask for your dorm and room number. Come in before 5PM. I went there at 5:15PM, Friday (Sept 16, 2011), and they told me to go back next Monday. They no longer entertain customers, when they no longer want to entertain customers.

They charge 140RMB/month for unlimited internet usage. If I remember it correctly, you can get 1 year subscription for 1600RMB. They also have 40hrs, 80hrs packages, but I cannot remember the prices. Aside from the subscription fee, you will be charged 50RMB non-refundable connection fee. You will also pay the LAN cables. 

CERNET is located very near the West Gate. Here's visual aid:

The Quest for Cheaper Dorm Stuffs (Episode 1—“The Dorm”)

When you are living in a dorm, particularly Dorm9 of BLCU, you will be needed loads of stuffs. When you enter your room will only be provided with

•   bed with 1 bed cover and blanket plus one pillow with pillow case
•  a study lamp
• a desk and chair
•  closet
• a small basin
•  To be shared if you are in a double room: trash can, TV, mini ref, and an electric kettle (in my case, the previous user of the electric kettle forgot to empty the water in the kettle. When it was my time to use it, it was infested with larvae. Thus, I bought my own electric kettle)

 Each person is also provided with an electronic card key for the room. Each room has smoke alarm aside from the "amenities" mentioned above. Each room also has a telephone, but I am not sure if it is working. I think you need to pay to use it. Every room also has provision for local area network or wired internet connection.Go here for more info on internet connection. 

Here’s an overview of Dorm9 Room 306.

I advise you to bring extra bed covers and blanket. You may use these as cushion because the bed is not as pretty as the picture. You can feel the springs of the bed if the bed cover is thin. What I did was to cover the bed with a blanket first and then cover it with bed cover; not as bad as before but I can still feel the springs. 

This type of room is the cheapest room there is. It’s 35RMB per day. All CSC scholars (if you do not know what CSC is, go here) are assigned in the cheapest accommodation by default. For CSC girl scholars, we are assigned to Dorm9. Here’s the side view and the entrance of the building:

Dorm9 Entrance and Side VIew

 And Dorm9 is located in front of Dorm 7 and 8 and at the back of HSK (Bldg 5) building and Dorm6. Well, at exactly "in front" and "at the back" of. See the map below. Dorm9 is encircled in red with yellow label "Dorm9". The five buildings,Dorm6, 7, 8, 9, and HSK building form a somewhat "X" shape.

This map was taken from the back of the Student's Book of the College of Advanced  Chinese Training.

What is inside Dorm9 or the Scholarship Dorm?

Let's start with how many floors. There are 4 floors in this Dorm. No escalators. No elevators. Just stairs. Each floors has the following:

Public toilet with three stalls. Yes, you are correct! There are no toilet bowls. All stalls are squatting type. See picture below. Rm306 is right beside the toilet.

The Toilet Room

The Sink

The Throne

Each floor also has a fire extinguisher and CCTV. There is a public kitchen in the ground floor. Essentially, there is only 1 electric stove and 1 microwave there. Some students, here in Dorm9, purchase their own kitchen appliances such as rice cooker and the cook in their rooms. There are students who even buy refrigerator. 

Each floor also has a bathroom and wash area. There are 2 showers with heaters. Each shower stall has a small cabinet where you can place your dry clothes and other bathing goods. In this room, the washing machine can also be found. There are NO dryers, unfortunately. (I hang my clothes in the ceiling of my room to dry) To use the washing machine, you need to buy a token (like in the arcades) worth 4RMB. Each token is good for one washing cycle. But, you do not want to do the laundry by yourself, there is a laundry shop inside the campus. Here are the visual aids of the bathroom. Enjoy!

The Shower

The Small Cabinet in the Shower Stall

The Washing Machine

The Bathroom and Wash Area

This is the condition of Dorm9 as of Fall Semester (Sept-Jan) of 2011.

The Physical Exam

I don’t why the Chinese are so obsessed with the health exams. Before arriving in China, the medical examination was my biggest problem. Don’t get me wrong; I am not sick or whatsoever. I am perfectly fine, but I was rejected twice by the Chinese embassy for my visa application because my Foreign Physical Exam Form was incomplete. Well, it’s not my fault; it was the fault of St. George Clinic (damn them!) Anyway, that is another story. Lets go back to the Physical Exam when I arrived here in BLCU.

September 16, 2011 (Friday), 1230PM was my schedule. At 12noon I was already outside the library waiting for the bus while watching How I Met Your Mother. The physical exam is done by batches. Make sure you do not miss your schedule. During the scheduled time, the school provides for free bus transfers to and from the Beijing International Travel Health Center in Haidian District. If you miss your schedule, you have to go there on your own. And here’s the address:

Beijing International Travel Health Center

No.10 Dezheng Road, Haidian District, Beijing

Commuter’s guide (from BLCU handbook)

·         Take subway Line 13 from Wudaoku station to Xi’erqi (Take the train going to Dongzhimen station. From Wudaoku, Xi’erqi is just 2 stations away)

·         From Xi’erqi station, take the bus No.333 and get off at Xialinyuan stop.

This is the building you will see:

During registration, you will be instructed to do the physical exam and you will be given a 1-page form. This is some sort of the checklist of medical history such as AIDS, Asthma, etc. You have to write your contact number and address in China, therefore you should have an accommodation by this time. (Check this if you still don’t have an accommodation).

 Things to remember/bring in the Physical Exam

• ·         PASSPORT
• ·         1PC PASSPORT-SIZE OR 2X2 PHOTO
• ·         MONEY (amount depending on scenario)
• ·  ACCOMPLISHED FOR (the medical history checklist form given to you during registration)
• ·         FOREIGN PHYSICAL EXAM FORM with supporting medical records*

*A Foreign Physical Exam Form (here's the form in .pdf) is the form you should have submitted to your Chinese embassy during visa application. Usually, the Chinese Embassy has a list of accredited local hospital and clinics for the physical exam. In the Philippines, Chinese Embassy will not accept the physical exam if it is not done by accredited hospital/clinic. If you’re from the Philippines, the list of POEA accredited clinic/hospital is also the list of the Chinese Embassy.

Supporting medical records are the HIV-AIDS test certificate, Blood Test Results, Xray results, ECG results, etc. Attach whatever you can attach.

There are 2 possible scenarios.

Scenario 1:  NO FOREIGN PHYSICAL EXAM FORM

If by any chance you lost or you have forgotten or simply you do not have a complete Foreign Physical Exam Form with supporting medical records, you will have to undergo the whole process of the physical exam which are:

Step 1: Registration. Present your accomplished form and your passport

Step2: Cashier: Pay RMB400 and you will be issued with a yellow receipt.

Step3: Physical Exam: You will have to undergo the medical exams such as X-ray, blood test, EENT test, etc.

Step4: Complete forms. Once all medical tests are done, you approach the teacher/coordinator. He/She will collect your papers and your photo.

I am not really familiar with steps on this scenario because I did not personally go through the steps. What I underwent was Scenario 2.

Scenario 2: WITH FOREIGN PHYSICAL EXAM FORM

Step 1: Registration. Show your passport, accomplished form, and the Foreign Physical Exam Form with supporting medical reports.

Step 2: Cashier: Pay RMB60 and get the forms and receipt.

Step 3: Go to coordinator and submit the papers with your photo.

Some students choose not to wait and take the taxi or commuter bus back to the school.  The free transfer only leaves once everyone is done. It’s really up to you if you want to wait.

How long this process does takes if you are going to wait?

12:30-1:00 PM	The bus will be waiting for the students in near the Library.
1:00PM-1:30PM	Travel time (this can be extended up to 1:45PM depending on the traffic condition)
The actual Physical Exam will depend on what scenario and on the number of people in the Center. In my batch’s experience, when we arrived at the Center, there were around 60 military men who came before us. So we have to queue behind them. As for me, I had Scenario 2. It took me around 30minutes for Step 1 and around 2minutes for Step 2 and 3. By around 2:15PM , I was already in the bus watching How I Met Your Mother in my cellphone.
3:00PM-3:30PM	Travel time
3:30-3.45PM	Back to BLCU library, again this depends on the traffic conditions

The Dining Hall

This is my first time to see a cafeteria this big. Well, the selection of food is not very diverse, but still, a 4-level cafeteria! Literally, the cafeteria is one building (with escalators and elevators). I find it weird that the cafeteria has escalators, but the dormitories only have stairs. I had a difficult time bringing up my 25kgs luggage to the 3^rd floor of Dorm9.  Anyway, here’s a snapshot of Dining Hall Level2:

Level2 Dining Hall

This is only one side of the Level2. You can see a big screen flashing some recent important events that happened in BLCU. The one in the right-most corner of the photo above is one of the many “food windows”. The fourth level is more posh than the rest. There is a sushi restaurant, Korean restaurant, MAAN Cafe. In the 3^rd Level, you will see almost the same setting except without the big screen. There are more patrons in Level3 because (1) food sellers accept cash and (2) there are more and better choices. Here's Level3:

Level3 Dining Hall

Now, you need to know that there are food windows that do not accept cash payment. You need to have an “all-in-one campus card”, as the BLCU call it. What the hell is that? I honestly do not know as of the moment. I am assuming that is the school ID. But if you don’t have your all-in-one campus card yet, just like me, you can purchase a temporary card just like this:

Here’s my first time experience with the Dining Hall.

September 19, 1PM

My class just ended. We had a bit of an over time. I went to the Dining Hall for lunch. This is my second time to enter the Dining Hall. The first time, I just entered the building and after realizing that they do not accept cash, I bought lunch elsewhere. Now, my second time was a successful attempt. After receiving my student handbook with English translation, I read that the card can be bought in the Network Information Center, wherever that is.

Upon arriving at Level2 of the Dining Hall I noticed a line. I read some of the postings in the window and I realized, Eureka! This is where I buy the card. But when I was in the line, I noticed that people already have their cards and they were just reloading the balance of the card. So, I told the lady in the counter that I do not have a card yet. I said it in English. And she replied to me that I should look for someone who can speak Mandarin because she cannot understand me. (I understood her. Do not ask why. I am here to guide you to BLCU not to answer mysteries). I ask the blonde girl behind me where she got her card. She said, just give her (the lady in the counter) money. Since I am an abiding citizen, I gave her money, 100RMB, and she handed me my temporary card with 80RMB balance. I bought rice worth 0.60RMB (the rice here is cheap!) and a viand which I am not sure if it is chicken or beef or what with potatoes (I think) worth I really do not know. I was not able to track how much the viand is worth because when I tapped it, the numbers appeared so fast. Well, here’s my meal. I am pretty sure that this cost less than 10RMB. I got this in Level2.

Things to remember from this entry:

• You need a card. If you don’t have the all-in-one campus card, you can buy a temporary card in Level2 or Level 3 of the Dining Hall. The card cost 20RMB. Don’t worry; this is refundable. If you do not want the card anymore and you still have balance remaining, just surrender the card and you will be refunded 20RMB+ the remaining balance of the card. If you do not want a card, you can dine at Level3.
• The Dining Hall practices CLAYGO. (This is how we term this in my previous university) or Clean as You Go, meaning self-bussing.
• The food is not expensive. It can range from 2RMB to 20RMB. However, they very seldom change the menu. (Monday's menu is also Tuesday's menu)
• If you have a temporary card, you will be charged 20% higher than the labelled price. In my experience, my rice was worth 0.60RMB instead of 0.50RMB. Again, do not ask me why.

Viola! The BLCU Dining Hall