In the hotel lobby in Beijing I met a British who turned out to be a guide for Western tourists. We started talking because we were the only white at the reception, and when in China White meets, there is a good chance that he will speak English.
He asked where I was from, he smiled and mentioned that on his last trip Poles were the largest national group. “You see, everyone wants to get to your country and you go to China,” he joked.
Undoubtedly, in recent years, the image of Poland and Poles has grown in the eyes of the world. In addition to economic relations, perhaps this is one of the reasons why we can enter from mid -2024 Chinese People's Republic without having to apply for a visa. For tourist purposes, you can stay in China up to 30 days. The regulations apply until December 2025.
However, before we go on a journey, it is worth preparing for it.
China. The whole world on a smartphone
During foreign trips, one of the basic issues to be overwhelmed before leaving is the amount of cash, which we should take with us. How many currencies should you replace for a trip to China? If we plan to visit only Beijing, the answer is: nothing.
In the capital, but also in many other cities, we will easily pay by phone. In some places, no one will accept cash from us. Universal technological development meant that for the Chinese mobile payments have become the basic form of fees.
The whole joke is, however, that we will not pay using the Polish banking application or the western application supporting payment. We will not use Visa and Mastercard cards. There are places where Western banking cards are served, but it is better not to treat this solution as basic and not be surprised.
The alternative are Chinese payment applications in which we will register by providing the data of the Polish banking card. The most popular are two – WeChat i Alipay. In the first case, we get access to more services, but the user interface is slightly less transparent. What's more, many of the services are available only in Chinese.
The second application offers similar possibilities, but it resembles Western mobile solutions more, so it's simply easier to move on it. Once we deal with creating an account in the application, we make payments in China most often either by scanning QR code, for example in the store, or by providing seller QR code from our application. QR codes in China are a separate topic, are ubiquitous and allow access to information, public services, advertising offers or just payments.
However, Chinese payment applications offer much more. You can book tickets, use a mini-program for translations or order a taxi Didi, i.e. the Chinese counterpart of Uber. In addition, it is also worth getting an application with maps.
Since we already know how to pay, it would be good to stay in touch with loved ones.
Theoretical censorship in China
In general opinion, there is a conviction that in China you cannot use western websites and messengers such as Google, Messenger, Facebook, Instagram Whether WhatsApp. This is a partial truth, because in fact, the Chinese cannot use them, listed Applications are blocked by censorship. However, there are ways to bypass her.
First of all, nobody wants to overpay for connections or the Internet abroad, so we'll need Chinese SIM cardwhich we can easily buy at the airport. However, there is a simpler solution.
We can use Karted egi.e. the digital equivalent of the physical card. Such a service can be installed on the phone before departure to China so as not to stress the lack of internet on site. After landing and before turning off the aircraft mode, we simply turn off the Polish SIM card and activate ESIM in the settings of our smartphone.
The ESIM offer is worth choosing very carefully and it's not just a price. To bypass censorship, most digital cards will require additional software VPNwhich ensures anonymity on the web. The problem is that theoretically using VPN in China is only possible with the consent of the local authorities. The use of VPN for purposes contrary to the policy of the ruling communist party of China, i.e., for example, informing about protests in Tibet or the massacre on Tiananmen Square in 1989 is strictly prohibited.
However, there are ESIM cards that do not need VPN to support Western applications in China. It is not proper for me to promote private companies here, but it is worth to trace the online forums of experienced travelers before traveling to Beijing, who are thoroughly studied.
So we have something to pay and how to contact. We can go to the forbidden city.
Tiananmen in the shadow of the drama
U bram Forbidden city The largest public square in the world – Tiananmen. It has dimensions of 800 by 300 meters and the main tourist attractions of Beijing are located here. Its formal name is Square of the Heavenly Peace.
To get to the square, you need to get a ticket. There are free, but during the tourist season tourists besiege stationary tickets, so to avoid queues, it is worth buying an online reservation.
You can do it by a tourist broker – for a small fee, or for free in a mini -program in one of the Chinese applications. In this case, remember to make a reservation at least the day before your visit.
Then we will have a safety control at the control point. Among the few entrances to the square, it is wise to choose those in its southern part. We can then walk throughout the entire length of the square to finally reach the gates leading further to the forbidden city.
However, before the headquarters of the emperors, we are waiting for admiring the architectural monumentalism of communist China. There is a mausoleum on the square Mao Zedonga – founder of the People's Republic of China. Is also Great People's Halli.e. the Chinese parliament and the National Museum.
In the central part of the square stands the national monument of China – a monument to the heroes of the people. There was once another monument nearby. The White “Statue of Freedom” was a spontaneous symbol of students who protested in 1989, demanding democratic reforms, freedom of speech and fighting corruption.
The protests lasted a month and a half. In June 1989, the communist authorities decided to accelerate thousands of demonstrators. Tank and machine guns were used. According to the Chinese Red Cross estimates, about 2.6 thousand died as a result of pacification. people. Those events still remain in China the subject of taboos, and the authorities officially call them an “incident”.
Imperial gates of the forbidden city
The square owes its full name to the building in its northern part – The gate of heavenly peace. It is a symbol of China and the gate to the forbidden city. For centuries, the building was the only way to connect between the people and the emperor. Imperial edicts were drained from the gate walls or death sentences were approved or canceled.
Interestingly, the building was destroyed and rebuilt several times. It is currently a replica of a historic building. In the 1960s, he was in such a poor condition that the then Prime Minister China ordered to cover the gate with scaffolding, secretly disassemble and then rebuild using traditional technologies. Today, the building has a huge portrait of Mao Zedong.
Behind the gate, there is a set of fortifications leading to a forbidden city, i.e. a palace complex built in the 15th century by Emperor Yongle z Dynastii Ming. The rulers lived here later dynastii Qing And for almost the entire period of the rule of both families, imperial palaces were inaccessible to ordinary mortals. The people can only visit them since the 1920s.
There are several museums in the huge complex, where you have to pay for the ticket.
There you will find monumental internal gates of the palace, official throne pavilions or private imperial residences. The central building of the forbidden city is Pavilion of the highest harmonyin which Imperial Audiences took place. Visiting individual museums depends on the level of our interest in the history of China, on which it depends on how many hours we will spend on learning the complex.
It is impossible to tell exactly about the headquarters of Chinese emperors even in a long article. This specific was to be above all a handful of tips and an incentive to explore the past on their own, seeing her with his own eyes. Only then history teaches us the most and gives us the most fun.
In the “History in Interia” cycle, we have known the past together for two years. Thank you for being with us.