Country Information

Chinese cuisine has a very long history and is renowned all over the world. Cantonese (the style most Westerners are most familiar with) is just one regional style of Chinese cooking. There are eight major schools of Chinese cuisine, named after the places where they were conceived: Anhui, Fujian, Guangdong, Hunan, Jiangsu, Shandong, Sichuan and Zhejiang. China's cuisine breaks down into four major regional categories:

Northern cuisine
Beijing food has developed from the Shandong school of cuisine and tends to be very hearty.
Specialities:
• Peking duck (roasted and eaten in a thin pancake with cucumber and a sweet plum sauce).
• Mongolian hot pot (a Chinese version of fondue; it is eaten in a communal style and consists of simmering soup in a special large round pot into which is dipped a variety of uncooked meats and vegetables, which are cooked on the spot).
• Shuijiao (pasta-like dough wrapped round pork meat, chives and onions, similar in idea to Italian ravioli; these can be bought by the jin (pound) in street markets and small eating houses, and make a good snack).

Southern cuisine
Guangdong (Cantonese) food is the most exotic in China. The food markets in Guangzhou are a testimony to this, and the Western visitor is often shocked by the enormous variety of rare and exotic animals that are used in the cuisine, including snake, dog, turtle and wildcat.
Specialities:
• Dim sum served at lunch.
• Shrimp wonton noodle soup.

Eastern cuisine
Shanghai and Zhejiang cooking is rich and sweet, often pickled. Noted for seafood, richly braised meats, hot and sour soup and noodles.
Specialities:
• Xiao long bao (steamed dumplings filled with pork, crabmeat and flavourful broth).
• Shengjian Mantou (pan fried pork buns eaten dipped in vinegar).
• Hairy crabs.

Western cuisine
Sichuan and Hunan food is bold and spicy, with liberal use of the mouth-numbing Sichuan peppercorn.
Specialities:
• Kung po chicken.
• Dandan noodles.
• Mapodoufu (spicy beancurd).

National drinks:
• One of the best-known national drinks is Maotai, a fiery spirit distilled from rice wine.
• Local beers are of good quality, notably Tsingtao, which is similar to German lager.
• Wine drinking is rapidly growing in popularity amongst China's middle classes. Great Wall and Dynasty are the most prolific producers, but boutique wines from Grace Vineyard and Catai (owned by the Campari group) are more palatable.

Legal drinking age: Although China has no minimum legal drinking age, a ban on the sale of alcohol to under-18s was introduced in January 2006.

Tipping: Still not officially approved of, tipping is becoming more commonplace in China. It is usual in tourist hotels and restaurants, and with tour guides and drivers. A service charge is often added by restaurants in large hotels.

Shanghai and Beijing have world-class nightlife scenes, with an eclectic array of international restaurants, bars, cocktail lounges, live music venues and nightclubs heaving until the early hours. Outside the cosmopolitan cities, evening entertainment tends to be restricted to restaurants, karaoke parlours and gaming halls, where people gather to play cards, snooker and mahjong. Travellers to larger cities generally sample the culture with visits to Chinese opera, circus, ballet and theatre.

Karaoke (written OK+ on Chinese signs) is very popular countrywide, with some karaoke venues offering over 100 private rooms, dinner buffets and 24-hour service. Traditional local music and dancing is often found in areas where there are strong ethnic minority groups, notably in provinces including Yunnan, Guizhou, Guangxi and Sichuan.

There is generally no bargaining in most shops and department stores. However haggling is all part of the buying process in markets (of which there are many) for items such as jade, antique ceramics, local handicrafts, silk garments and other bric-a-brac. The majority of items touted as antique, are ersatz at best. All antiques over 100 years old are marked with a red wax seal by the authorities and require an export customs certificate. Beijing's fascinating Panjiayuan market opens every day, although it is best at weekends. Dongtai Lu in Shanghai hosts a popular street market for antiques and repro curios.

In Beijing, Shanghai and many other large cities, massive department stores sell everything from luxury fashion to high-tech electronics. Shopping is easier if accompanied by an interpreter, although in big cities and tourist towns English is often spoken by shop assistants. You can usually make yourself understood by pointing, otherwise someone nearby will generally speak a little English. The best shopping is in the major shopping streets like Shanghai's Nanjing Road or Beijing's Wanfujing. Other enclaves well worth a visit for local designer boutiques are Taikang Lu in Shanghai and Nanluoguxiang in Beijing.

You can also get handicrafts direct from shops at local factories, from shops specialising in the sale of handicrafts, and at arts and crafts department stores. Special purchases include jade jewellery, embroidery, calligraphy, paintings and carvings in wood, stone and bamboo. Shop personnel often pack and arrange shipping for bulky items. Keep receipts, as visitors may be asked to produce them at customs prior to departure. Hotel shops are more expensive than local shops.

Shopping hours: Mon-Sun 1000-2130, although times vary across the country.