on safari

Update: Pierre just reminded me via Skype that this method was inspired by him. I forgot to add a link earlier, sorry Pierre. And thank you Pierre for sharing this great learning method :). I really think it works… I already remember the word for ‘keyboard’ without reading the tag.

Took about three minutes to prepare.

I guess every foreigner in Beijing already knows about this, but for a newbie like me, it’s quite hard to find the information online, hence this post:

I went to take the compulsory health check for my Chinese visa in Beijing today. It cost 634.50 Yuan and took about 45 minutes. Tests include a general physical exam, a blood test, an ECG, and a chest X-ray. Don’t forget to bring along you passport, as well as three passport size photos, and try to get there well before 10 a.m. because that’s when the queues tend to become longer. Working hours are from 8.30 to 11.00 a.m. They advise you not to eat breakfast before the tests.

Before May 8, 2008 the physical examination for foreigners can be done at the following address:

Beijing Health and Quaratine Station, Nr. 20 Hepingli Beijie, Chaoyang District, Beijing

After May 8, 2008 it will be done at:

Haidian Clinic of Beijing International Healthcare Center, Nr. 10 De Zhenglu, Haidian District, Beijing, Phone: 82403684

This is not specific for Beijing, but I have never had one before. Got to admit: I really like it. It even made me start drinking hot water just like the Chinese do. Bottles can be ordered by phone from a shop in the same building. Well, could be ordered by phone if my Chinese was good enough. At least for today’s refill I had to go down with the empty bottle to show them what I wanted. They were really friendly (and probably made a bit of fun of me, hence the smiles) and even brought it to the apartment to set it up for me.

Arrived in Beijing yesterday. I feel constantly cold, but the weather applet says it’s 22 degrees (Celsius), so I guess that’s quite warm for spring. Yes, it’s spring time. Kind of strange coming to a four season place after Bangkok. Spring is supposed to be the nicest time in Beijing. Though to me, Beijing mainly seems really dusty. I think it’s a combination of pollution and dust from some nearby desert as well as the omnipresent construction sites. I live a bit further off the center, but conveniently close to where I will be working from next week. It’s a quite a large Chinese (meaning non-expat) apartment complex where I share a flat with a Chinese girl. It’s a typical Chinese furnished two bedroom apartment with a living room, kitchen, and bathroom. Nothing fancy, but really good value compared to what you get in Bangkok for the same price. My flatmate is real fun and she speaks perfect English. The apartment faces a large busy road (Chaoyang Bei Lu) and is quite noisy, but I don’t really mind. I am quite sure I’ll get used to that in a few days.

See the full flickr photoset here.

I finally made it to Beijing! I could hardly believe it. China has been so much of a fascination for me in the last couple of years and every time I enter the country I do so with a lot of respect.

Beijing was great, however, as I went there for a conference and to meet IT people, I hardly found time to do much sightseeing. I therefore, didn’t get to see the great wall and some of the other stuff. Though I really enjoyed that fact that you can get on a bike and go anywhere in the city. This is absolutely cool for someone who has been living in Bangkok for a while.

See the full flickr photoset here.