Internet

Most of academic buildings on campus offer Wi-Fi service (Public Wi-Fi connection: Wireless PKU).

Your internet account (login name) is your student ID number and the initial password is your date of birth (format: YYYYMMDD). Please change your password after you first login.

To get access to the internet, first visit the website http://its.pku.edu.cn/ first and login with PKU internet account.

Unfortunately Global Village does not provide WI-FI service. An ethernet cable can be used. If prefer using Wi-Fi, you can buy a router from the campus supermarket.

To get internet access via your mobile phone, you can download the IPGW client application. It is a PKU Internet connection tool. Once you have entered your login name and password, it will automatically connect your 'phone to the PKU server.

Meals

There are many eating options available on campus. PKU roughly has more than ten different dining halls and cafeterias, such as Xueyi学一, Xuewu学五, Nongyuan农园, Yannan燕南, Jiayuan家园, Songlin松林 etc. The location of each dining hall is clearly marked on the university map.

Building 5: He Yuan Restaurant 和园

Building 4, 2nd floor: Convenience and fruit shops

Building 9: Café

You can also find many food options in nearby areas. You could go to Changchunyuan Food Street , near the Southwest gate; Wudaokou, 15 minutes walk from the East gate, or Zhongguancun, 10-15 minutes walk from the Southeast gate.

If there is a particular food you want to try in Beijing, you can also download a useful app called 大众点评 (Dazhong Dianping). It is similar to Yelp. You can enter your location and the app will help you find nearby restaurants, as well as reviews of each one.

Communication

There will be a telephone in your dorm. If someone would like to call you, tell them to dial 011-86-10-627-XXXXX (your dorm telephone number) or call your mobile 'phone on 011-86-(your number).

If you want to make an international call, you will need to buy an IP card from the campus supermarket, or use Skype to call your friends and families. Please do not make international calls using the local line in your dorm room, as the rates can be expensive.

SIM cards are sold in the convenience store on campus. There are three mobile networks in China: China Mobile (中国移动), China Unicom (中国联通) and China Telecom (中国电信) For 3G mobile data service, China Unicom is strongly recommended for WCMDA smartphones, and China Telecom is strongly recommended for CDMA2000 smartphones.Different networks offer different package deals. For detailed information, speak to the retailers.

Transportation

Beijing is a huge city and getting around on foot is impossible. There are a number of ways to get around in Beijing. To avoid paying cash every time, it is recommended that you buy a transportation card (一卡通), which can be purchased at most large subway stations. You will need to pay a 20RMB deposit and a minimum top-up amount to purchase a card.

The most convenient and safest means of transport in Beijing is the subway. There are subway stations all over the city, including at most major attractions. The cost of the journey depends on how far you travel, with most journeys costing around 4-5RMB. From PKU you can take Line 4 from East Gate of Peking University Station (北大东门站).From the Wudaokou area, you can take Line 13 from Wudaokou Station (五道口站).Please pay close attention to the operation time of the last train when you are out in the evening.

There are bus stops at all the gates of Peking University, and most bus journeys only cost 1-2RMB. Buses can be convenient, but most bus stops have no English translations.

Taxis are relatively expensive compared to other public transport. Most subway lines and bus routes stop service at around 10 or 11 o'clock in the evening, so if you are coming back after 11:00 PM, you will probably need to take a taxi.

The starting price of a taxi is 13RMB. If you travel more than 3km, you will have to pay an additional 2.3RMB per kilometre. The rate goes up to 3RMB per kilometre after 15km. Night-time rates are generally higher. If you take a taxi from the airport, you will also have to pay the airport expressway toll.

Always carry the address of the Global Village and the place to which you are going in Chinese and Pinyin (so you can pronounce it properly) and show it to the taxi driver before you get in. Make sure you ask for a receipt from the driver when you get out. It is the only way to get in touch with the driver if you leave something behind in the taxi.

Banking

International students can exchange money and open a saving/checking account in local banks. If you wish to open an account or exchange currency, you will need to show your passport to bank staff. Students can also deposit some foreign currencies (Pound Sterling,Hong Kong Dollar, American Dollar, Euro, Japanese Yen, Canadian Dollar and Australian Dollar) directly into the saving/checking account.

Industrial and Commercial Bank of China ( 中国工商银行), near the Post Office

Agricultural Bank of China ( 中国农业银行) , near the Wumei Market

Bank of China (中国银行) , right outside the Southwest Gate

Bank of Beijing ( 北京银行) , opposite Southwest Gate (across the street)

China Construction Bank ( 中国建设银行) , a few minutes walk east of the South Gate

Shopping

Day-to-day items can be found in the Wumei Market (物美), located in the basement of Building 45A.

For those living in the Global Village, the closest convenience store is located on the second floor of Building No. 4. If you want to shop in a bigger supermarket, you can go to Lotus or Chaoshifa in the Wudaokou area, or Carrefour in Zhongguancun Street.

Medical Care

International students must purchase medical and accident insurance for the duration of their study at PKU. Be sure to keep all receipts of any treatment received for insurance purposes.

The school clinic (in the northeast part of the campus) is open from 07:45-11:45 AM and 02:00-05:30PM. Students can use Student ID to obtain basic treatment.

Sport Facilities

Located on B1 floor of Computer Center