SteelBird
Colonel
Hi Guys,
I'm going to take my very first trip to China in the coming April. This is my very first trip to China.
Purposes of the trip:
1. Visiting my ancestor's hometown. I have very little info about my ancestor's hometown as they have all passed away. I got the name of the hometown via tombstone of my grandfather. The hometown read "广东省惠阳县约场村", no 乡 was mentioned. I searched the address using DeepSeek and got the current address as "广东省惠州市惠阳区新圩鎮". Search maps for Xingxu Zhen on Google Maps and found that it's quite a large and rather modern town. Not sure what I can see after getting there.
2. Visiting Beijing. I think that to visit one country, you must visit its capital. My wish is to, at least, visit Beijing, China once in my life. My visit to Beijing is very simple; visiting The Forbidden City and The Greatwall.
3. Experiencing HSR. This is straightforward, China has the largest HSR in the world. So, try it and see how it feels. If I could try Maglev in Shanghai, that would be best.
Problem facing:
1. First ever trip to China. I'm going to travel alone, so not sure what I would be facing or even get lost in such a huge country. Especially when I'd go to my ancestor's hometown which usually international visitors won't go.
2. Train and air tickets in China. All these are new to me. I've been to quite many countries but usually I have agency to do everything for me. This time I'd need to take care of everything myself. I hope I can do it, and it should not be too difficult.
3. Cash or Alipay. I've been advised that cash is possible but might be difficult to get small change. Alipay or WeChat is recommended. I've never used these apps to make payment before. The problem is how to get and charge your account.
4. Tickets entering tourist spots. Tickets for entering The Forbidden City and The Greatwall need to be booked in advance through apps. Again, never use it before. I get used to with "go directly to the gate, buy a ticket and go in".
If you guys have any advice, suggestion or recommendation, please let me know.
I'm going to take my very first trip to China in the coming April. This is my very first trip to China.
Purposes of the trip:
1. Visiting my ancestor's hometown. I have very little info about my ancestor's hometown as they have all passed away. I got the name of the hometown via tombstone of my grandfather. The hometown read "广东省惠阳县约场村", no 乡 was mentioned. I searched the address using DeepSeek and got the current address as "广东省惠州市惠阳区新圩鎮". Search maps for Xingxu Zhen on Google Maps and found that it's quite a large and rather modern town. Not sure what I can see after getting there.
2. Visiting Beijing. I think that to visit one country, you must visit its capital. My wish is to, at least, visit Beijing, China once in my life. My visit to Beijing is very simple; visiting The Forbidden City and The Greatwall.
3. Experiencing HSR. This is straightforward, China has the largest HSR in the world. So, try it and see how it feels. If I could try Maglev in Shanghai, that would be best.
Problem facing:
1. First ever trip to China. I'm going to travel alone, so not sure what I would be facing or even get lost in such a huge country. Especially when I'd go to my ancestor's hometown which usually international visitors won't go.
2. Train and air tickets in China. All these are new to me. I've been to quite many countries but usually I have agency to do everything for me. This time I'd need to take care of everything myself. I hope I can do it, and it should not be too difficult.
3. Cash or Alipay. I've been advised that cash is possible but might be difficult to get small change. Alipay or WeChat is recommended. I've never used these apps to make payment before. The problem is how to get and charge your account.
4. Tickets entering tourist spots. Tickets for entering The Forbidden City and The Greatwall need to be booked in advance through apps. Again, never use it before. I get used to with "go directly to the gate, buy a ticket and go in".
If you guys have any advice, suggestion or recommendation, please let me know.
