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Note: We travelled in this region from Feb thru Apr 2000.
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| Beijing |
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Surprisingly few cybercafes in Beijing. Best deals we came across were out near Beijing University (just outside the main gate on Haidian Lu). Rates ranged at the two depending on the time of day from Y4-8/hr. More convenient is Internet Cafe in The Station shopping plaza near Qianmen Gate (on the corner of Qianmen Dongdajie) - friendly folks who speak some english and a good connection. Y20/hr.
The main post office near the Jianguomen metro station has only one machine and charges by the minute (3min = Y1). The Jinghua and Sea Star hotels provide access at Y20/hr. The former has 3 or 4 machines and the latter just one (and it's very slow).
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| Gansu - Dunhuang |
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China Telecom at the post office on the main traffic circle charges Y6/hr. The two travellers' cafes on Mingshan Lu - Shirley's and Charlie Johng's - each have one machine. Y20/hr. Connections are slow.
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| Gansu - Lanzhou |
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The Hong Jing Internet Sports Club at China Post is a great find. They have 30 good machines and a decent connection on offer for Y3/hr plus there's free tea. It's upstairs in China Post next to Lanzhou Univ (near the Legend Hotel).
Lanzhou Online Internet Bar - on Donggang Xi Lu near the Legend Hotel - was charging Y5/hr when we first arrived in town. When we returned ten days later the price had jumped to Y8/hr. They have 30 or so machines. Connection speed fluctuates but is generally good. Open 24 hours.
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| Gansu - Xiahe |
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Although two places (both on the north side of the main drag) advertise Internet, only one actually has it. Labuleng Intranet Club charges Y9 for each half hour (Y9/hr for non-Tibetan locals, Y2/hr for Tibetans). It's quite slow and they close early (6:00 when we were there).
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| Hong Kong |
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Coffee is expensive but Internet is not. A bunch of cafes in HK offer free Internet for customers. Because it's free, your time is often limited because of a queue. Pacific Coffee Company - www.pacificcoffee.com - has 8 or so outlets in Central, Admiralty, Wanchai, Tsim Sha Tsui etc.
Other freebies include Friends at Kimberly (Miramar Centre, 1 Kimberly Rd, Tsim Sha Tsui), Shadowman Cyber Cafe (Karlock Bldg, 7 Lock Rd, Tsim Sha Tsui), Coco Coffee (44 Lockhart Rd, Wanchai), Kublai's (1 Capital Pl, 18 Luard Rd, Wanchai), Comix Cafe (Hang Lung Centre, Causeway Bay), and e-cafe (Fashion Island, Paterson St, Causway Bay).
If you'd rather forego the drink (or eats) and pay for your time, options include Coffee n' Books (Peninsula Centre, 67 Mody Rd, Tsim Sha Tsui - HK$10 for 30mins), e-club (China Merchants Bldg, Sheung Wan), Brown (18 Sing Woo Rd, Happy Valley), California Coffee Co (D'Aguilar St), and i.cafe (Cityplaza Taikoo Shing).
For a more up to date list, try: BC Magazine.
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| Qinghai - Xining |
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Apparently China Telecom (8 Tongren Lu) offers access for Y10/hr but we didn't check it out.
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| Shanghai |
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There a re abunch here - check the listings in the free magazine "that's Shanghai" - www.thatsshanghai.com. Private places are Y10/hr and up. Shanghai Library is Y6/hr and open from 9-6 (can't use floppies here). We managed to weasel our way into the computer lab at Jiatong Univ where they charge Y4/hr. Open M-F 8a-10p, Sat 9a-10p, Sun 2p-10p. Could be faster.
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| Sichuan - Chengdu |
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Quite a range here. A truly great offering can be found at Digit Internet Bar. For just Y4/hr you get an ADSL connection on fast machines. Upstairs it's Y2/hr for a slower connection. Each floor has about two dozen machines and they're open 24 hours. Digit is on Taiping Nan Xin Jie which runs along the west side of Sichuan Univ. Bus #35 will get you there from near the Traffic Hotel - the neighborhood is called Jiuyanqiao.
At the Traffic Hotel itself, they charge Y10/hr and nearby at Mr. Chen's Cafe it's Y12/hr. Across the river Wang Lukou charges Y8/hr and Bean's Cafe next door also has Internet.
Other places we heard about include Sam's Bacpacker Guesthouse and Highfly Cafe. Also, apparently, down Renmin Nanlu (south of the river) there is a place or two charging just Y3/hr.
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| Sichuan - Songpan |
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We were surprised to come across Internet in Songpan. Internet Bar on the wets side of Zhong Jie charges Y15/hr (Y10/hr for locals).
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| Yunnan - Dali |
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Plenty of options here but expensive at Y16-24 an hour (or 3 jiao a minute which is equivalent to Y18/hr). Connections are slow as dial-up is via Xiaguan to Kunming. At Mr. China's Son Cafe, proprietor He Liuyi puts forth a solution to this, You can compose your email offline and then pay only for the time you're connected. Also, you can get 30 minutes free if you buy his book - an autobiography.
Other options in Dali include Tim's Internet at Cafe de Jack, the MCA Coffeeshop, Jim's Peace Cafe, Yunnan Cafe (which has an excellent selection of English language books for sale) and many of the guesthouses.
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| Yunnan - Kunming |
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China Telecom - corner of Dongfeng Donglu and Beijing Lu - has a dozen or so machines. Y10 per hour (Y20 deposit) but we didn't try it.
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| Yunnan - Lijiang |
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Connections are slow everywhere in Lijiang. In the old town, on Xinyi Jie, Vision Gallery has two machines (Y18/hr or Y.3/min). Across the way, MCA has three machines and charges the same. Further down (past the First Bend Inn), Sun Room Cafe has one machine and also charges Y18/Y.3. Neat the Old Market Square, Sakura charges Y15/hr but told us it was too slow to use. Square Inn charges Y15 for up to an hour but they were having software problems when we were there. Jenny, at Prague Cafe, was also planning to offer Internet.
In the new city, Realee-Net - corner of Xin Dajie across from the Xinhua Bookstore - has a dozen or so machines at Y18/hr (Y4/hr offline). China Telecom, upstairs in the main post office on Xin Dajie, charges Y18/hr.
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| "Like all great travelers, I have seen more than I remember; and I remember more than I have seen." | |
| -- Benjamin Disraeli |
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