China
China, officially the People’s Republic of China, is a sovereign state located in East Asia. It is the world’s most populous country, with a population of over 1.35 billion. China’s seat of government is in the capital city of Beijing. It exercises jurisdiction over 22 provinces, five autonomous regions, four direct-controlled municipalities (Beijing, Tianjin, Shanghai and Chongqing), and two mostly self-governing special administrative regions (Hong Kong and Macau).
Covering approximately 9.6 million square kilometers, China is the world’s second-largest country by land area.
China is one of the most ancient civilisations in the world. The country’s long and proud cultural heritage is reflected in its 41 UNESCO World Heritage Sites.
Currency
Mainland:
- Currency: Renminbi/Yuan = 10 Jiao = 100 Fen
- Currency Coins: 1 Yuan, 5 Jiao
- Currency Notes: 1 Jiao, 5 Jiao, 1 Yuan, 5 Yuan, 10 Yuan, 20 Yuan, 50 Yuan, 100 Yuan
Hong Kong:
- Currency: 1 Hong Kong Dollar = 100 cents
- Currency coins: HK$0.10, HK$0.20, HK$0.50, HK$1, HK$2, HK$5, HK$10
- Currency notes: HK$10, HK$20, HK$50, HK$100, HK$500, HK$1,000
Macau:
- Currency: 1 Pataca (MOP$) = 10 ho (avos) = 100 sin
- Currency Coins: 10 avos, 20 avos, 50 avos, MOP$1, MOP$2, MOP$5, MOP$10
- Currency notes: MOP$10, MOP$20, MOP$50, MOP$100, MOP$500, MOP$1,000
- Please note the MOP$ is pegged to the Hong Kong Dollar at 1 HK$ = MOP$1.03
Recommended banks:
- China: Bank of China, Agricultural Bank of China, China Construction Bank, Bank of Communications
- Honk Kong: Citibank, HSBC, Standard Chartered, Bank of China
- Macau: Bank of China, Standard Chartered Bank, The Macau Chinese Bank
Useful links
Climate
China is a vast land spanning many degrees of latitude with complicated terrain, climate varies radically. China has a variety of temperature and rainfall zones, including continental monsoon areas. In winter most areas become cold and dry, in summer hot and rainy.
China has five temerature zones and they vary a great deal. Influenced by latitude and monsoon activities, in winter, an isotherm of zero degrees traverses the Huaihe River-Qinling Mountain-southeast Qinghai-Tibet Plateau. Areas north of the isotherm have temperatures below zero degrees and south of it, above zero. Mohe in Heilongjiang can hit an average of 30 degrees centigrade below zero, while the temperature of Sanya in Hainan Province is above 20 degrees. In summer, most of areas are above 20 degrees centigrade despite the high Qinghai-Tibet Plateau and other mountains such as Tianshan. Among these hot places, Turpan Basin in Xinjiang is the center for intense heat at 32 centigrade on average.
Languages and Culture
The official language of mainland China is Mandarin with hundreds of dialects spoken throughout the country. Since being handed over to China in 1997 English, Mandarin and Cantonese are the official languages of Hong Kong. In Macau the official languages are Cantonese and Portuguese. Macau still retains its own dialect of Portuguese called Macanese Portuguese. This and other languages such as Mandarin and English are also widely spoken among the residence of Macau.
Recommended Language Schools
Cultural Awareness
Chinese culture is one of the world’s oldest cultures. The area in which the culture is dominant covers a large geographical region in eastern asia with customs and traditions varying greatly between provinces, cities, and even towns. Important components of Chinese culture includes ceramics, architecture, music, literature, martial arts, cuisine, visual arts and religion. There will be instances where you may find the locals expectations on what you should and shouldn’t do quite diverse.
For more information:
Recommended Culture Awareness Courses
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