If your level of spoken Chinese is low, responding to phone calls can be a pretty stressful experience. And while a simple “Wei nihao. Hao de” will usually get you through a waimai delivery, this won’t suffice when your mobile phone service provider, bank, gas company, or pretty much anyone else comes a-calling.

One strategy that I use to manage phone calls like these, is to use the Reply with SMS function on my phone. If an unknown call comes in, I simply swipe up and select an automatic response in Chinese: “对不起，我的中文不好。请给我发短信” Duìbùqǐ, wǒ de zhōngwén bù hǎo. Qǐng gěi wǒ fā duǎnxìn. “Sorry, my Chinese is not good. Please text me.” Sure enough, a few seconds later I’ll get a text message that I can copy-paste into a translation app and continue the conversation that way. This is also a good way to deter telemarketers, who will simply give up when they realize they can’t talk you into anything.

The Reply with SMS function is a quick easy way to manage difficult phone calls

A quick poll around the beijingkids office reveals that this function is available on pretty much every single model of phone you could imagine, including iPhone, Samsung, One Plus, Lenovo, Xiaomi, and more.

To set up an Automatic SMS reply on your phone simply;

1. Open Settings on your phone
2. Navigate to the ‘Phone‘ or ‘Calls‘ category
3. Look for something like ‘Quick decline messages‘ or ‘Reply with SMS‘
4. Activate the function
5. Create a new automatic reply, copy-pasting 对不起，我的中文不好。请给我发短信 or whatever you prefer
6. Deploy your new message at will!

You could create a few different Chinese auto-responses for different circumstances, but if your Chinese reading level is not very high, it may be difficult to remember which is which in the spur of the moment.

Do you have any other useful Chinese communication hacks? Share them in the comments! 

KEEP READING: WeChat Netiquette 101

Images: Kelly Sikkema (via Unsplash)/beijingkids, Anna Pellegrin Hartley

Embassies of the United States, including the US Embassy in Beijing will discontinue adding pages to American passports as of December 31, 2015, with holders required to apply for new documents after that point, the US Embassy informed the Beijinger by email.

"For cost and security reasons, the U.S. Department of State has begun phasing out the option of additional visa pages for US passports. Beginning October 1, 2014, all Embassies/Consulates worldwide will issue only 52-page passport books for full-validity passports. The thinner 28-page book option is no longer available. Requests for additional visa pages will be accepted for existing passports only through December 31, 2015. Starting January 1, 2016, applicants who need extra pages will need to apply to renew their passports and be issued the standard 52-page book," the US Embassy posted.

For US passport holders, this sucks. Whereas adding pages to an existing passport is currently a 20-minute errand at the US Citizen Services offices, it’s now about to become the same hassle that citizens of other countries including the UK must accept. Fifty-two pages provides quite a bit of room for entry and exit stamps and visas, but for frequent travelers, it means applying for a new passport much sooner than the 10-year validity permits.

Travelers, especially Beijing-based, frequent, international travelers will now have to plan for their annual 10 business-day visa renewal, plus the occasional passport renewal. Holders of a 10-year China visa may find themselves not one, but two passports beyond the original that holds the visa itself. Don’t forget to take off your belt and shoes.

A version of this article appeared on theBeijinger.com on September 3, 2015.

This article is first appeared on theBeijinger.com on December 2, 2015.

The Pojie Arts team is growing, and they are looking for like-minded volunteers that are passionate about inclusive arts education and innovative performance to help sustain this growth. The Pojie Arts organization delivers both performance projects and therapeutic movement workshops to people with intellectual disabilities.

Workshops offer self-advocacy and awareness-raising opportunities and help otherwise often marginalized individuals find their voice. Participants use the classes as an opportunity to communicate, exercise, and generally get creative, harnessing the facets of physical, social, and personal development that dancing provides.

To be able to help as many people as possible, Pojie Arts are looking for people who are patient, reliable, and love to dance. If you want to help facilitate creativity in orders, believe in the restoring power of the arts, and are available and willing to lead a group of people with disabilities in a weekly dance workshop, get in touch at pojiearts@gmail.com.

You’ll receive training over two days in Beijing (November 28 and December 6), which includes an introduction to the organization and workshops to develop your performance.

This post first appeared on thebeijinger.com on November 19, 2015.

While everyone else is preparing their costumes for Halloween, our thoughts are fleetingly touching upon Christmas, too. Especially the highlight of every Christmas in Beijing, the German Charity Christmas Bazaar held at the German Embassy. Due to popular demand, and to avoid the hours of queueing like last year, this year they have changed the ticketing policy: you’ll now have to pay to get in. The mulled wine and snacks will be worth it though, we’re sure.

There will be two kinds of tickets: red tickets, which are valid from 11am, and blue tickets, which are valid from 2pm. Tickets are RMB 100 a piece, or RMB 25 for children, and will include vouchers for beverages and food sold at the bazaar, which will run from 11am-6pm on Saturday, November 28.

As is the case every year, all proceeds go to carefully-selected charity projects. To buy tickets, go to the German Embassy School Shop (49A Liangmaqiao Lu, Chaoyang District) between Monday-Friday 9.15am-1pm, or the Beijing Riviera Clubhouse in Shunyi (1 Jiangxiang Beilu, Chaoyang District) every day 9am-7pm starting on November 2. Tickets will be available on the day too, while stocks last, but pre-sale tickets will have preferential access.

Don’t forget to bring your ticket and valid passport or ID card to get into the bazaar on the day. All nationalities are welcome.

This post first appeared on thebeijnger.com on October 30, 2015.

Photos: Courtesy of German Charity Bazaar

My parents’ visit this time around presented a new challenge to test my problem-solving skills: they were bringing my bicycle over from Holland, but we were concerned that the box wouldn’t be able to fit into a regular taxi. Thankfully a good friend suggested I download the ’58 Daojia Suyun’ app, pictured below, which would hopefully solve all the logistical nightmares that apparently transpire when taking on a task past getting dressed in China.

The app allows you to book a van of any choice (choices listed below). Doing this definitely requires knowledge of Chinese characters, so make sure you’ve got someone around who can help you if you’re not sure what you’re doing.

After choosing the type of van (I went with the 小型平板 xiaoxing pingban option at RMB 43) you have to enter the set-off point and the destination, along with your name and phone number (if you’re going to drive with your freight) or the receiver’s name and phone number. Don’t forget to edit the time on the top (circled) as you can book for now, or up to five days in advance.

After going through the steps, and selecting whether to pay the driver in cash at the beginning of the trip or the end, you will receive a confirmation over text when you do have a confirmed booking.

The day before my parents were set to arrive, I called to confirm with the driver. To my surprise he kept saying that the booking had been cancelled (which I certainly hadn’t done, and he hadn’t either), and I had to get a friend to help convey to him that we wanted to uncancel the booking and have him pick us up at the airport with the bicycle-in-a-box anyway.

Many confirmations later, he said he would come and get us but was very confused about where to wait. Approximately four phone calls later we found him in the basement of the parking lot, sporting what definitely was not the type of van we booked. Thankfully the box fit regardless.

As we did not have a booking through the app anymore, we had to haggle a little bit (the driver conveniently waited until we had loaded up the van to express his unwillingness to actually take us anywhere) and ended up paying RMB 200 for him to take us and the box to Yonghegong area instead of the RMB 142 estimated by the app. Not bad. Next time we will have to work within the app, and see how that goes.

Basically, to round up my experience, don’t use this app if:

• Your meeting point might not be clear. Airports specifically come to mind. 
• You don’t speak Chinese.
• You have huge things to move during the day but live within the Second Ring Road (due to traffic restrictions).

If you do speak Chinese, and are moving house, 58 Daojia Suyun is a great option as the vans are pretty cheap and you can haggle with the driver to have him help you move things too.

This post first appeared on thebeijinger.com on October 20, 2015.

Photos: Margaux Shreurs

As our vendors organizers scramble around Galaxy SOHO hauling humongous bags of cheese, mountains of dough, swimming pools worth of sauce, and all-importantly, fire up those pizza ovens, we wanted to give you a quick reminder as to how to get there to the Beijinger 2015 Pizza Cup Launch Party, Saturday and Sunday from 11am to 8pm.

Zaha Hadid’s famed Galaxy Soho/alien termite mound is located just a stones-throw south of Chaoyangmen Subway – if you’re coming via subway take the southwest exit and head straight down the East Second Ring Road. Here, have a bangin’ map:

One other way to reach Galaxy SOHO is via Uber, which is offering a special deal this weekend: take any three Uber rides between 12.01am Saturday and 11.59pm Sunday, get three rides for free next week. The same deal also applies for five rides during the same period.

Look here for an updated list of pizza, sides, and drink vendors, along with the afternoon’s entertainment round-up.

Admission is RMB 10; each vendor will choose their own pricing for pizzas, slices, drinks, and other goodies.

Bring your best pizza face!

This post first appeared on thebeijinger.com on October 16, 2015.

Photos: Mitchell Pe Masilun, Google Maps

A number of Sanlitun area bars and restaurants have been told to close this weekend, at least in Taikoo Li South and south Sanlitun’s Courtyard Four, the area just to the south of Gongti Beilu, multiple business owners confirmed to the Beijinger.

Restaurants in Taikoo Li South were instructed to temporarily cease operations from 3pm Saturday, August 22, until 2pm Sunday, August 23, multiple restaurant representatives in that complex told the Beijinger, speaking on condition of anonymity.

“In line with the work of commemorating the 70th anniversary of the Chinese People’s War of Resistance Against Japanese Aggression, and in accordance with arrangements and notices from related Beijing Municipal Governmnt departments, on August 22 and August 23, Sanlitun Taikoo Li South will come under martial law measures.

"According to the requirements of related Beijing Municipal Government departments, during that period, all stores must temporarily cease operations. The time period is: August 22, 2015 3pm to August 23, 2015 2pm," according to a letter from Swire Properties to tenants obtained by the Beijinger.

At least two Courtyard Four business owners have also confirmed they will close August 22-23, with one operator saying that establishment would close for the full weekend. Courtyard 4 is located diagonally across the street from Taikoo Li and contains businesses such as The Bookworm and The Rug.

More closures in the area are likely; venues located in 1949: The Hidden City have reported closing for Saturday.

Residents of the Jianguomenwai and Guanghua Lu areas will be required to keep their windows shut, and three major streets in eastern Beijing will be shut for most of the two days, orders to area residents obtained by the Beijinger show.

All street-facing Jianguo Lu, Xi Dawang Lu, and Guanghua Lu businesses have been ordered to close from the early afternoon of August 22 until the same time on August 23, and only on-duty parade-related personnel are permitted in the area, the order said. All street-facing windows must be closed and are forbidden to be opened, the order said. 

Along with these and the Sanlitun closures, the Forbidden City will stop receiving visitors from Saturday, August 22, through Thursday, September 3. Wangfujing will also be closed August 22-23, due to the parade rehearsal.

Best advice: if you plan on going anywhere on Saturday, call ahead.

Beijing municipal officials had previously announced that Tiananmen Square and the Wangfujing area will be closed to the public due to a rehearsal for the September 3 military parade. However, what this has to do with the purchase of Apple products and Nike shoes in Sanlitun, we’re not entirely sure. Stay with the Beijinger for updates.

Margaux Schreurs contributed the original report.

This post has been slightly modified from the original post that appeared on thebeijinger.com on August 19, 2015.

From September 3-5, China will celebrate War of Aggression Victory Day, marking the 70th anniversary of the end of what everyone else calls World War II. The country will have three days of holiday during that period. And with that holiday come a whole bunch of temporary restrictions.

Owners of motorbikes and scooters of any kind, and Taobao addicts, may wish to pay particular attention to the information below:

• Tiananmen Gate, the building, is already closed to the public, and will be until after the holiday.
• Beginning Monday, August 10, only gas-powered motorcycles and scooters registered with the police will be permitted to buy fuel.
• Beginning Monday, August 10, all electric bikes without proper license plates and registration will be seized.
• From August 17, identity, license, and registration will be conducted on drivers.
• From August 17, any automobile without proper entry permit for Beijing will be seized.
• From August 20, automobile use in the city will be restricted to on the odd-even license plate ending basis.
• From August 20, motorbikes and motor scooters with 京B license plates will not be permitted within the Fifth Ring Road.
• From August 20, delivery vehicles, including tricycles and vans, will not permitted between the hours of 6am and midnight. In other words, don’t plan on moving house or ordering anything that requires delivery between August 20 and September 3.
• On August 22 and 23, Tiananmen Square and the Wangfujing area will be closed to the public.
• On September 2 and 3, Tiananmen Square, Wangfujing, and Qianmen will be closed to the public.
• As we previously noted, Beijing’s two major airports, Beijing Capital International Airport (BCIA) and Nanyuan Airport, will be closed from 9.30am to 12.30pm on September 3.
• Primary schools in Beijing will not begin classes until September 7. For international schools, please check with your school for relevant scheduling information.
• High schools in Beijing will not begin classes until at least September 7. For international schools, please check with your school for relevant scheduling information.
• China’s stock markets will be closed September 3-6.

Enjoy the holiday! Or, take our advice and go to Japan.

This post first appeared on thebeijinger.com on August 6, 2015

Temple fairs are one way to get a taste of the Spring Festival in Beijing. If you do not want to spend the whole week stuck indoors watching reruns of Tom and Jerry on Cartoon Network temple fairs offer an alternative: traditional snacks, stalls, and entertainment. Below are a few of the best that Beijing has to offer.

Dongyue Temple Fair 东岳庙会
Dongyue Temple Fair is a more traditional temple fair generally attended by a lot of the local residents living nearby. It features traditional Chinese acrobatics shows and other traditional Chinese performance arts. There will also be stalls selling souvenirs, handicrafts, New Year decorations all in the spirit of the sheep, and snacks (maybe also sheep themed, who knows). Also, make sure to take a look at the temple’s wonderfully demented taoist figurines.
RMB 10, 9am-5pm (Feb 18-25)
141 Chaowai Dajie, Chaoyang District (6551 0151)
东岳庙，朝阳区朝外大街141号

Chaoyang Park Temple Fair 朝阳公园庙会
One of the more’ international’ of Beijing’s temple fairs, Chaoyang Park’s temple fair features a Spanish circus, street artists from the Netherlands, Russia, Greece, Peru, and Chile among others, and it will feature exciting promotional attractions in relation to China’s bid for the 2022 Olympics.
RMB 10, 7.30am-5pm (Feb 19-24)
1 Chaoyang Gongyuan Nanlu, Chaoyang District (6591 5258)
朝阳公园，朝阳区朝阳公园南路1号

Longtan Park Temple Fair 龙潭公园庙会
Longtan Park Temple Fair is a big and ram-packed with stalls of every kind. The park itself is also great as a day trip, walk around the entire lake if you have the time.
RMB 10, 8am-5pm (Feb 18-25)
8 Longtan Lu, Dongcheng District (6714 4310)
龙潭公园，东城区龙潭路8号

Ditan Park Temple Fair 地坛公园庙会
The Ditan Temple Fair is a classic (potentially one of the most popular) option. Featuring traditional snacks, handicrafts, games, and a lot of people.
RMB 10, 10am-5pm (Feb 18-25)
2 Andingmen Waidajie, Dongcheng District (8429 0142)
地坛公园，东城区安定门外大街2号

Happy Valley Temple Fair 北京欢乐谷新春庙会
Who doesn’t fancy the idea of a temple fair at an amusement park? If you are a both a rollercoaster maniac and fan of Chinese traditions, Happy Valley Temple Fair will be a must-see. More than 50 Chinese acrobatic shows will be performed throughout the day, and a parade featuring the Chinese zodiac animals and popular figures in Spring Festival folklore will roll through the park.
RMB 160, 9.30am-8.30pm (Feb 19-Mar 5)
Xiaowuji Beilu, Chaoyang District (6738 9898)
欢乐谷，朝阳区小武基北路

Old Summer Palace Imperial Temple Fair 圆明园皇家庙会
According to the Old Summer Palace website, this temple fair is a recreation of late 19th century fairs when the Qing emperors would meet members of the royal family, nobility, court officials, and foreign diplomats at the Old Summer Palace for a Spring Festival. Expect lots of traditional costumes and a parade fit for imperial times.
RMB10, Feb 19-24
28 Qinghua Xilu, Haidian District (6254 3673)
圆明园，海淀区清华西路28号

 This post first appeared on thebeijinger.com on February 5, 2015.