What to pack for China?

What to pack for China?

“What to pack for China?” is the main question for students who received a visa and ready to go. Travel to another country is always an adventure. Exciting, but intriguing and fascinating. Even more so when it is planned to leave for a long time. Ahead is new, unknown, but quite often, expectations are much nicer than the trip itself. Why? English writer Jeff Dyer once said: “The ideal is to feel at home anywhere, everywhere”. Therefore, for the departure, it is necessary not only to prepare psychologically but also, for example, to competently approach the choice of what to take with you on a trip.

We have prepared for you check-list of things, that must be in your baggage. Read and check with yours. Ready? Go!

Clothes

We really are what we eat. And also what we put on. Clearly, that you want to take all your favourite things, but it makes no sense. For example, take a down jacket with you if you plan to arrive in China in spring, summer or even autumn. Believe me, you will have enough time for shopping.

• one jacket for the season, universally – sports, because in the fall, you can wear a sweater, sweatshirt, jumper, etc under it;
• warm hat in winter or autumn, the rest of the time – baseball cap;
• several T-shirts and tops, if desired – shirts;
• a pair of shorts, tights, several pairs of socks (you don’t have to limit yourself here, since they won’t take up much space), several sets of underwear;
• comfortable(!) shoes, the best – sneakers;
• from the accessories, it is reasonable to take sunglasses, although buying them will not be a problem. A few handkerchiefs can also come in handy.

Medicines and personal hygiene

The most important items. Not a single human body is completely protected from colds, food poisoning, and stressful situations. Take this moment with all responsibility: you may also need to consult with your doctor. We offer to take with you:

• specific medicines (appointed by your doctor, like, asthma medicine);
• medicines for digestion – Chinese food is very tasty, but
• the difference in the ingredients of the dishes, the methods of their combination and preparation + short-term discomfort from jet lag can cause many problems;
• allergy pills, since there are too many new things in China and it is not known how the body will react to this.  For the same reason, by the way, you can grab anaesthetic and antipyretic;
• vitamins will also be useful: ascorbic acid or multivitamin complexes;
• toothbrush, toothpaste (small tube), a bar of soap, razor, shampoo, antiperspirant, loofah and towel – all these things you can buy on the first day, but we recommend you to prepare it for the first time.

Gadgets

Nowadays, it is difficult to imagine anyone without a phone and laptop, so the necessary electronics, of course, must move around the world together with its owner. The development of technology, however, makes it possible not to take a hard drive – information (all scanned documents) can simply be uploaded to the cloud and downloaded upon arrival. Although the most important thing should be on the hard drive, in case of problems with the Internet. Necessarily needed:

• mobile phone: upon arrival in Сhina you will need to buy a SIM card of a local operator;
• personal laptop: of course you can by one in China (it could be cheaper than in your country), but the laptop won’t be adapted to your language;
• tablet, photo camera – if there is a need;
• battery charger, memory card and adapters (China has its own standards).

Food

Chinese food is diverse and delicious. However, there is a shortlist of food, which we advise you to take:

• coffee – if you like that drink, then for the first time we recommend taking it, especially since the inhabitants of the Celestial Empire are ambivalent about it;
• spoon and fork, they will not take much place. Don’t forget to put them into baggage, not into hand baggage;
• you can take chocolate because in China it is expensive.

Money

The main rule: “More money, less stuff”. Since almost everything can be purchased in China. Take with you:

• yuan – about 2.000 (300$). No need of dollar, euro or other foreign currencies. It will be very hard to exchange money in yuan;
• international banking card (Visa or MasterCard). They must be serviced abroad. Do not forget to also remove the limit “for cash withdrawals”, as well as connect the mobile banking service and install the appropriate (if available) application on your smartphone.

This is, perhaps, the most important thing that you should take. You will probably want to take something that is not included in our check-list, something impractical, but favourite. It can be a toy, a mascot, a book. In other words, everything that will create a good mood. We hope we answered your question “what to pack for China?”. Good luck!

If you are still thinking about admission to Chinese universities, we advise you to read our article about scholarships. And feel free to leave your questions in the comments below or ask our consultants.