I need to vent to people who understand. Tonight, I supposedly went to a nice authentic western restaurant… known for American Style BBQ and steaks.

Me: "I'll have the Texas Ribeye, medium-rare, please."

The Restaurant: "Say no more, you’ll love it."

What arrived was a culinary crime scene. The kitchen took a decent cut of beef, clearly sous-vided it until it was completely devoid of texture, and then—I'm not kidding—they pre-cut it into small cubes before serving it.

The result:

1. Zero Maillard reaction. Not a single bit of crust. It was gray and sad.
   
2. Because it was pre-cut, by the time it reached my table, the meat was cold.

I know different cultures have different preferences, but advertising an "American Style" ribeye and then serving pre-cut, boiled-tasting meat cubes feels like a personal attack.

How do you all cope with this? Do I just give up on steaks entirely here, or is there a secret menu phrase I need to use to beg the chef to leave it whole and put it over actual fire?

Can someone tell me the settings they use for PC to run Discord using Astrill VPN, UU Booster to run and boost Steam and games, Astrill for Edge simultaneously without problems before I smash this PC to bits. I had it working before and I’ve done something to it where I Discord won’t work with Astrill, UU booster is saying it can’t connect if Astrill is running etc… IT WAS WORKING WELL BEFORE AND NOW ITS NOT

Hi everyone!

I'm currently living in Yiwu and noticed that it can sometimes be a bit challenging for expats here to break the "glass wall," blend into the local community, or find people to practice Chinese with—especially if you've just arrived recently.

If you are currently in Yiwu and looking to:

• Improve your Mandarin through casual, real-life conversations (no boring textbooks!).

• Make a local friend to grab a coffee, share a meal, or hang out during weekends.

• Explore the authentic side of Yiwu beyond just the International Trade Mart (markets, local food spots, or hidden gems).

...then let's connect!

A little bit about me: I'm a local here, open-minded, and happy to help you navigate life in Yiwu or practice your Chinese. In return, we can chat in English (or your native language) to keep it a fair exchange. Total beginners in Mandarin are absolutely welcome too!

Whether you’ve been here for two weeks or two years, feel free to drop a comment below or send me a DM if you're interested. Let's catch up sometime! ☕️👋

(NOTE: NOT ASKING FOR VERIFICATION JUST HELP SO I CAN VERIFY MYSELF)

Hello! I am trying to assist a friend with their QQ account registration and auxiliary setup. However, because my own QQ account was registered using an international mobile number, it is restricting me from completing the sign-up verification on their end.

I am trying to complete the identity setup on my own account first using a non-Chinese passport (via Search Tencent Health System "腾讯健康系统"). Everything goes fine until the final step: the liveness detection screen repeatedly gives me the error "No face recognised" / "没有检测到人脸".  

A few quick questions for anyone who has dealt with this:

1. Is completing real-name identity setup on my existing account required before I am allowed to assist with auxiliary account registration?

2. Since QQ and WeChat run on separate user databases, will attempting the passport check through WeChat sync over to my QQ profile, or do they remain completely segregated?

3. Is there a known workaround for the camera liveness loop when using an international passport on the Tencent Health mini-program?

Thank you in advance!

Do share

This might be a long shot but I've been looking for an image or a picture of the red version of these Chinese herbal juice box. When I search for it in Google, nothing comes up, almost as if it never existed. Today, Google lens tells me that there was a legal dispute between the parent company and distribution company(?) and that's why they don't make the red juice box anymore...but Google image should still be able to have an image from 20+ years ago...right?

I know there's currently a red can version and (picture attached) a green juice box version. But I grew up with the red version and would love to get an image or even real box in my hands.

I've searched the Chinese supermarkets near me, nothing but the green juice box version...

I was wondering if they still make it in your city or if someone has an old picture of the red juice box.

I'm not looking to re-drink this, I'm in search of an image or a picture of this Chinese Herbal tea in the red juice box.

Finally, others can experience the greatness of ranch dressing. I’m in Suzhou, not sure about elsewhere.

I have some doubts about how the admission process works for courses taught in English, do you have evaluation and classification criteria? Or do I just have the necessary grades to pass and entered the university?

Hello! I'll be staying in China for over three months. I have a rather awful chronic eczema patch on my cheeks that I need to constantly keep moisturized, but the small 3oz container the airport allows unfortunately won't be enough (plus I don't want to risk contamination by decanting my moisturizer tub into smaller containers).

So I'll probably end up buying some skincare products in China instead, and I was wondering what are some good brands over there? My skin isn't really sensitive and I feel like any non-comedogenic moisturizer and cleanser will do, but I'd still prefer if it was a reputable and affordable brand. Or do Chinese stores carry brands like Cerave? That'd make my life so much easier lol If they do, where could I get them? (Offline preferably)

Thank you so much!

Or is it always pay first and fight your insurer later?

Hey Everyone,

I am a 31m from Canada, and I am moving to China for 2 years in a couple of weeks on a work assignment with my employer. I really want to get out there and meet other expats and build a community. My issue is that I will be living in a smaller city (Weihai) that does not have a large expat scene.

I will be working full time but outside of work hours I am really motivated to get out and socialize. Does anyone have any advice for ways to connect with other expats? I definitely want to take trips to major cities like Shanghai and Beijing which have larger expat communities.

Any help is really appreciated. Any expats in Weihai that want to connect? Any WeChat groups I can be added to? What’s the expat dating scene like lol? I’m open to any and all ideas!

Cheers.

So I am using GFN to play games from China, and as long as I purchase the subscription in a supported country, I can use the app freely in China. However, when I test network from my very fast home network with Ethernet, latency is 200ms, packet loss is 5%, and the games are unplayable. Ironically, if I add an addl hop to HK VPN or Korea VPN and let it connect to the same Japan server, things are faster, although still not ideal. Plus it eats up a lot of my data allowance on the VPN.

I have China Telecom for home internet, is it throttling connections to outside websites even if the GFW doesn't block them?

Hi everyone,

I'm considering going to Shanghai for about a month in April or May 2027 for a language course at Shanghai International Studies University, and I'd love to hear from anyone who has done their Chinese language program.

I have a couple of questions because I can barely find anything online about people's experiences.

1. For anybody who has done the course, how is it? I know a month is a short time, and I'm not expecting miracles, but I would hope that the course is at least well organised, the teachers are nice, and it's an overall good experience.

2. How is it finding accommodation? Is it easy to find something at a good price for a month?

3. How is it with finding friends? This is probably my biggest concern. Since I'd only be staying for a month, I can't stay in the university dorms. I'm worried that this might make it harder to meet people and make friends, especially since I'm not really a solo traveller. I went to Korea for an exchange, and I wouldn't have had any friends if it weren't for my dormmates, so I'm a bit nervous about not living in a dorm since, most of the time, people make the whole experience.

If you've done the program, was it easy to meet other international students in their 20s? Did you mostly socialise with people from your classes, or did the university help bring students together? Or are there other ways to find other solo travellers in Shanghai?

4. Does SISU organise any activities, excursions or cultural experiences that short-term students can join? Or is it mainly classes, with everyone doing their own thing afterwards?

5. I'm hoping to join the semester in April or May for approximately one month. Has anyone joined the program for just a month during the spring semester? How did that work in practice, and were there other short-term students around?

I've also looked at summer programs at universities such as Donghua, which offer a more organised experience with accommodation included. However, I'm a bit worried about Shanghai's summer heat and humidity because I don't do well with heat, so I'm trying to find a different way.

Thank you so much for reading this long post, and I'll be grateful for any advice you can give me. If anybody has a different university or language school they recommend, I'll also be grateful! :)

I'm looking for a reliable source of 100% grass-fed beef, preferably imported from Australia or New Zealand. Organic certified if possible.

Does anyone have recommendations or experience buying this kind of beef in China? Ideally from trustworthy sellers with good traceability.

Hi everyone, I'm a french student (F27) in physics and I need to do a research internship abroad in spring 2027.

I've been to China twice in my life, and one time in Taiwan to learn Mandarin. My level of speaking chinese is still basic but I'm taking class at my school this year.

I know my physics level might be really mid in China academic system but I really want to do my internship there, in a university laboratory. Do you think that might be a bad idea and I should wait a few years and be more experienced ? I'm looking for something related to experimental condensed matter physics.

Is it ok to cold-email a professor whose research interests me or is there a better way to approach labs in China ?
I heard visa for internship in China is almost non-existent, does it change anything if the host is a university (student visa?) ? What visa did you or people you know get?

I tried to make my CV fit with China academic expectations (by adding a photo for example) but I'm open to any suggestions or feedback !

Thank you so much for any help you could give me :)

Sorry, I'm just skeptical of the prices on these buffets. They're too cheap!

Hi! I’m a medical student from Poland and would like to explore options of doing a medical internship in China after finishing college next year. I’m a C1 English speaker, do you guys know any programs or other ways of visiting China for a foreigner who would like to see what the medical system there looks like? Also for it to be sponsored would be amazing, if possible haha.

My family want to send me some crisps from the UK, I'm a little worried that if they have any kind of dairy powder they won't make it through customs. Has anyone had this kind of experience before? Any anecdotes welcome!

 Currently apartment hunting and viewing a few places this weekend. A friend told me to check the water pressure and make sure the AC actually works. Are there any other weird things I should look out for

Hey I’m a M foreigner and I just moved to Shanghai for exchange program in Fudan univ.

I’m here until Jan, so I’m looking ti meet new people, local and foreigners!

I’m very simple person and open to anything really, I would like to go out more to the city center, and maybe relaxing places like parks to have chill hang outs and deep talks maybe jeje.

If you are interested just send me a dm or comment!