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HSK prep, visas, Chinese culture, study and travel guides to plan your Chinese learning.
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visa
China Work Visa (Z Visa) Guide: Documents, Process and Work Permit
You got the offer - what now? The full Z visa process, documents and converting to a work permit after arrival.
visa
China Tourist Visa (L Visa) Application Guide: Documents, Fees and Timeline
From passport to flight bookings, step by step documents for the L visa, avoiding common refusal reasons.
idiom
The Spear and the Shield: Contradicting Yourself
The man selling both spears and shields - how his own words trapped him.
idiom
The Fox Borrows the Tiger Terror: Using Others Power
How a fox used the tiger terror to frighten all the beasts - the story behind the idiom.
famous
Yuan Longping: The Father of Hybrid Rice Who Fed China
A seed that changed the world - the humble, stubborn academic who lived in the rice paddies.
famous
Du Fu: The Poet Who Wrote a Nation Suffering
The saint of poetry, Du Fu - Li Bai equal, homeless yet heart-bound to the people.
culture
The Evolution of Chinese Characters: From Oracle Bones to Simplified Script
Pictographs, ideographs and phonetics - how characters grew from pictures into today squares.
culture
Dragon Culture: Why Chinese Call Themselves Descendants of the Dragon
From totem to auspicious omen - the thousand-year evolution of the dragon in Chinese culture.
history
Romance of the Three Kingdoms: From History to National Story
Peach Garden Oath, borrowing arrows with straw boats, the empty-city stratagem - China most familiar stories.
history
The Silk Road: How One Route Changed the World
Silk, tea, Buddhism and civilisational exchange - the thousand-year trade route across Eurasia.
visa
Extending Your China Visa and Calculating Stay: Do Not Overstay
How is the stay period counted? Where to extend? What does one overstay day cost?
visa
The APEC Business Travel Card: Visa-Free Access to 16 Economies
One card, visa-free entry to 16 economies - the business traveller secret weapon.