Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
• Avoid street vendors—it's sad to say this, but this crowd unfortunately strikes out big
time when it comes to food-handling practices and trustworthy raw produce.
If you're trying to quit smoking or detest the plume of someone's cigarette wafting into
your face as you eat, then Beijing will be sure to test you. Smoking is still a huge part of
everyday life here, cigarettes are incredibly cheap, and cigarette stores are prolific. Expens-
ive cigarettes and cigars are even highly favored as face-giving gifts. In addition to the gen-
eral evils of smoking, Chinese cigarettes are also typically of low-grade quality, and the
premium-grade “imported” cigarettes are often fake. Add a daily dose of pollution and you
really are risking your long-term health. For those who do want to quit, nicotine patches
and gum are available from some international pharmacies.
The government isn't ignorant of the problem. China has the highest number of smokers
in the world, totaling more than 300 million, and the Ministry of Health estimates that
approximately 1 million people die of smoking-related illnesses every year, together with
100,000 people from secondhand-smoke (SHS) related illnesses. According to the WHO
in China, “almost two-thirds of reproductive-aged women in China are routinely exposed
to secondhand tobacco smoke at home, and over half are routinely exposed in their work-
places.” Unfortunately, with the China National Tobacco Corporation responsible for a sig-
nificant proportion of the government's income, hopes for a radical change any time soon
are low.
Metropolitan Beijing does fare somewhat better than regional Chinese areas, and if
you're at a foreign-owned venue, such as a Starbucks or fine-dining restaurant in the CBD,
then it is unlikely anyone will light up. On the other hand, if you're in a local establish-
ment, it's unlikely staff members will ask anyone to put it out. The smoking laws in such
places still often mean nothing, and there is next to zero enforcement of them. People will
flagrantly smoke right next to a conspicuously displayed No Smoking sign, and seem to be
oblivious to the possibility that their smoke that is enshrouding you might be offensive.
Unfortunately, if you or someone in your family has any kind of mobility challenge, the
day-to-day issues you experience in your home environment are going to be magnified in
Beijing. Generally the culture here is that disabilities are embarrassing and something to be
pitied and hidden away. Even post-injury rehabilitation is a new and limited service here.
