Trip Preparation and Helpful Links - China
http://travel.state.gov/travel/cis_pa_tw/cis/cis_1089.html
Passport: Required; make sure it is valid through 6 months after the end of your trip.
Visa: Apply for a 12 month, multi-city visa (through Kenny). This can take several weeks. Confirm with Matt and Jewell.
Insurance: International Student ID Card (ISIC – through STA Travel, or myisic.com). Confirm with Matt and Jewell.
Vaccinations: http://wwwn.cdc.gov/travel/destinationChina.aspx
Routine – MMR, DPT, flu, chickenpox, polio, etc.
Hepatitis A and B
Typhoid
Rabies
Japanese Encephalitis
Malaria: No risk in Chengdu
Dengue Fever: Cases have not been reported in most of China, but anyone traveling to India or anywhere in Southeast Asia, there have been cases. There isn’t a vaccine, but bring insect repellent, clothes with long, baggy sleeves, mosquito netting, etc.
[insect repellant: 30-50% DEET]
Notices: See the above CDC link for travel and safety notices about H1N1, Bird Flu, dengue, measles, and other recommendations for safety.
Currency/Exchange: yuan - 1/26/10: $1 = 6.82 Chinese yuan
Money: Most places in Chengdu do NOT accept American credit cards. There is an ATM near campus. Check with your bank: some US banks are partnered with foreign banks and will not charge you fees for using those ATMs.
Weather: It will be warm, humid, often rainy (but July is worse!)
In June: Average temperatures: 82 high / 68 low. Average rainfall: 4.1 inches.
IPO 24 Hour Emergency Number: +1(602) 220-1372
Other Notes
Traveling to Chengdu, China, be sure to bring a roll of toilet paper with you. Or several small travel Charmin tissues (found in drugstores). Paper products are at a premium in Chengdu and the language building has squat pans but no tissue. BRING, too, hand sanitizers; a few power bars.
You will need a power adapter in order for your plugs to fit. You can probably get them there, but you may want to buy one here before the trip.
http://www.world-import.com/plugs.htm
Get a card from faculty housing that tells of your location – it’s easy to get lost on the campus and you'll need the card to explain where you want to go.
There is a grocery store on campus where you can purchase bottled water, food, and toiletries. Near campus are many good fruit merchants.
Travel light! Aim to pack what you can carry. There will be laundry services in Chengdu (and elsewhere, though more expensive).
Call bank and credit card companies to inform them you will be out of the country and using your cards abroad, so they don’t freeze them.
ATM – in China, the order of numbers on the keypad is reversed.
At LAX, you have to walk outside to the international terminal, or take a bus there. You may consider looking up the layouts of the airports you will be using in advance.
Helpful Links
Sichuan University, Chengdu, China
http://www.scu.edu.cn/
This website is in Chinese: in Google, search for “Sichuan University” and on the link for the same address as above, click “Translate this page”
Sichuan University and ASU partnership
http://www.scu.edu.cn/news/cdxw/webinfo/2006/05/1204269552685219.htm |
