I’m an European student heading to Shanghai for an internship where debit and credit cards are rarely accepted. Locals recommend using Alipay for payments, but I have heard mixed results about compatibility with European credit cards. Some claim credit cards don’t work at all with Alipay, while others say they have zero issues. It was suggested to get a Wise or Revolut card to use with Alipay. What are your thoughts on which option is more privacy friendly or if there are better alternatives.

I have also been advised to get a VPN for China. While I self-host a VPN, I planned to add Mullvad because of its obfuscation techniques. Except it was recommended to get LetsVPN or Astrill, they said because they work the best in China and that is what everyone uses. What are your thoughts on which VPN I should get? Also any other suggestion or advise for my internship in Shanghai are appreciated.

  • intern_chinaa@lemmy.dbzer0.comOP
    4·
    3 days ago

    Thank you for your advise. I have an old phone were I put all the Chinese apps on like Alipay and WeChat. But I will still bring my private phone but exclusively use it with a VPN.

      • utopiah@lemmy.ml
        3·
        2 days ago

        you might be used to that as a European

        FWIW really depends where in Europe, in France and Belgium at least the law radically changed where

        • you can’t smoke in a restaurant, bar, club (that’s been for a while now)
        • you can’t smoke in FRONT of a place (like you need to be far from the exit)
        • you can’t smoke even outdoor in a public place (e.g. train station by the tracks, beach in France)
        • advertisement is forbidden
        • cigarette packs have absolutely disgusting warnings (e.g. lung cancer, throat cancer) with graphic photos

        … so yes there are still some people who smoke but it’s a LOT less public, in Western Europe, than just a couple of years ago.

        To be clear some people still ignore those laws but if you compare to just a decade ago it’s radically less popular.

      • intern_chinaa@lemmy.dbzer0.comOPEnglish
        3·
        3 days ago

        Thanks, will do. I unfortunately despise smokers and where I live I luckily rarely see them anymore. So I am curious how it will be over there.

        • Jabril [none/use name]@hexbear.netEnglish
          4·
          2 days ago

          Yeah same, it’s easily the worst issue I have when in China. Technically people aren’t supposed to smoke indoors but many people don’t enforce the rules which is annoying. I’ve not noticed a smell in any rooms I stayed in but in the lobbies, halls, and especially bathrooms, you can often smell it. And outdoors every 5th person seems to be smoking

          The only other issue I really have had is on long train rides people will be watching videos loudly on their phones, which is also against the rules. Train staff will sometimes tell them to turn it down but not as frequently as it should be.