Guangzhou

area dialing code

The area dialing code for Guangzhou is 020. From overseas, dial +86 20 XXXX-XXXX. Phone numbers are 8 digits. Mobile numbers are 11 digits and city code is not required.

Internet cafes

Are common in major chinese cities, though are often the target of government crackdowns. popular ones in guangzhou include:worldwide network on jiangsu roadthe famous elite cafe sparkice 实华开 in central plaza on huaihai middle roadchina mayors plaza 市长大厦. 189 tianhe north road 天河北路189号budget internet cafe on fuzhou roadstarbucks

laundry

Few lower end hotels and hostels have coin-operated self-service laundry room. Self-service laundromats are not available on the streets, although dry clean and laundry stores are available to clean your clothes. Normally you can drop your clothes off and pick them up the next day. One laundry chain is Tiantian 天天洗衣, which is conveniently located in most Metro stations. There are many stores on Shamian Island that have laundry service. An average load of laundry costs about ¥100.

In other parts of the city, there are laundry and dry clean shops sprinkled throughout neighborhoods. An average load should cost no more than ¥40. If you are doing sheets and blankets, they should charge no more then ¥10 for a blanket, ¥30 for a quilt. Dry-cleaning a sweater is about ¥8.

gym

Guangzhou has over 15 branches of Total Fitness (http://www.totalfitness.com.cn). One of the locations is at the 8th floor of Grandview Mall Zhengjia Plaza 正佳广场. Many locations are close to metro stations. Membership costs about ¥3000-4000 a year. The Guangzhou Marriott see sleep has a complete new gym with Star Trac equipment, a swimming pool, tennis court, sauna and steam.

newspapers and magazines

The China Daily and/or Global Times are the two only English language newspapers available in Guangzhou unless you go to a library, and both can be found on newsstands throughout the city. There are several bookstores throughout the city that sell current English and Foreign periodicals. The South China Morning Post from Hong Kong is also available by subscription only. South China TALK is a monthly English-language magazine based in Guangzhou.

banking

ATMs that accept foreign credit or debit cards are common in shopping malls and tourist areas. Withdrawal is available in Chinese currency only. Most banks in the city center also accept exchanges from your local currencies to ¥. Your passport is required for this service. Some banks allow you to change back to your local currency with the original exchange memo.

Bank of China

中国银行 (http://www.boc.cn/en/stat...) There is a branch inside Garden Hotel. ATM is available on the ground floor of White Swan Hotel and over 100 locations in Guangzhou. Their ATMs are the best bet for using foreign cards.

Bank of America

(http://www.bofa.com/) Rm 2506, 555 Renmin Middle Road +86 20 8130-0888. The bank has alliance with China Construction Bank.

Citi

(http://www.citi.com/) Unit 101, Fortune Plaza, 118 Tiyu East Road. +86-20 3898-1688. This bank has a full service branch with currency exchange services and 24-hour ATMs.

places of worship

All the religious sites listed in the See section are open to worshippers.

Christian:

Guangzhou International Christian Fellowship (http://www.gicf.net) holds weekly service on Sundays at 10AM for expats from around the world in English. You must show your travel documents to enter since residents are not allowed there due to local laws. The meeting location is Star Hotel 景星酒店 near the East Train Station. Phone: +86 1366 234 6904. Hotel Address: 89 Linhe West Road 林和西路89号. Metro 1 East Railway Station

guide

Guangzhou4U

(http://www.Guangzhou4u.com) offer business tour guides and interpreter services

laptop scam

In some touristy places of Guangzhou, like Beijing Road, strangers may appraoch you on the street and try to sell you a laptop computer. The laptop will look quite new, and when you check the system information, it will display high specifications like 4GB Memory, 360GB Hard Drive, and a high-end graphics card with 512MB of video memory. When you ask them how much, they may first say 2000 RMB, but will then let you beat them down to 1000 RMB very easily.

You may then wonder why the laptop is so cheap: Is this laptop stolen? Is something wrong with it? The truth is the laptop is old and has been disguised to look new. They have used some software to change the system information in Windows, and have setup a boot screen to show bogus BIOS information when the laptop starts.