Tips for living at BLCU

[Brian US]

I know there are other posts about campus/dorm life, but I thought it might be helpful to condense all helpful tips. This does not include basic info/prices off BLCU's website or other posts. I basically wanted to know information that you only find out exploring the campus.

I myself, am a newbie to BLCU and have only been here for a month. Yet, with the help of my Japanese roommate I have found a few "tricks."

The photo shop next to the friendship store will give you 16 passport pictures for around 40 yuan, so perfect for admissions.

Some (all?) dorms will deliver a large jug of water to your room for 14 yuan. In dorm 17 you pay a 50 yuan deposit at the dorm store and take the receipt to the front desk. When done early enough, the water will be delivered within the day.

To get a cafeteria card you must have your student ID and 100 yuan. Go down the back alley next to the Muslim restaurant to find the office. 30 yuan will be a deposit and 70 yuan will be on your card. According to my roommate, the first floor east cafeteria was only for Chinese students. It is now open to all, but it seems most of the International students eat in the west cafeteria.

The food is roughly the same on both sides, but it seems most of the dishes are prepared only once before serving. This means if you arrive towards the end of the meal a lot of the food will be gone/cold. This seems especially true during lunch (I get out of class at 12:30pm as a beginner) in the Chinese cafeteria as many come at 11:00 am. For dinner I always go to the east side as the prices seem cheaper for some of the same food. I still don't understand why a meat dish is only 2.50 compared to 6.00 yuan on the west side.

The school gym offered a special deal for the year at 800 yuan. I did not know it was a limited offer and a day after the offer expired I was quoted at 1,000 yuan for the gym. If I just wanted to use the pool for the year it was 1,600. I did have a friend who was quoted at 900 yuan and made a fuss about the 800 yuan offer until they gave in. Look for deals at the beginning of the semester and feel free to haggle.

There is a temporary/permanent prohibition of some alcohol in dorm 17. Rumors of national day or rowdy foreigners are to blame. I found the dorm store has hidden some beers and will sell if carefully asked.

The library reading rooms always have seats taken, but only half the people are there. If you want to reserve a seat you can drop off a cheap notebook and book in the morning to save for after class.

An unconfirmed tip from a friend is that many birds spend the night in the trees along the road to building 1. She warned not to startle them late at night to avoid a rain of bird droppings.

I know many of these tips may seem obvious or have already been mentioned. Feel free to provide your own to an audience that may not speak any Chinese or are fresh off the plane.

*Update on gym and cafeteria

I just signed up at Zhangbei Fitness center north of campus for 500 kuai a year. It is smaller and not as nice as BLCU, but cheaper and less crowded. Not sure if BLCU's gym does this, but they told me I can be reimbursed up to 60 days if I go home. You may also resell the membership once.

In the cafeteria always ask for "ban fen儿” for all dishes. It will be half price but pretty much still 75% of "yi fen儿." Sometimes I think they just give you one scoop anyways, so you might as well get the food for half price.

Edited January 26, 2010 at 02:13 AM by Brian US

[Altea]

Hi BrianUS: I know you are already back home. But thank you for these little gems!

Any other ones that might come to mind, I hope you and others will remember to jot them down.

Altea

[Lu]

About half the library seats already being taken: If a person has reserved a seat by putting a book there, but is not sitting in it, another student is free to come and use the seat until the student who reserved it comes back. You just put your books on top of it and study away.

(At least this was the case some years ago when I was there.)

[Josu-]

another tips...if you want to print something, go to the little place next to the volleyball court, cheaper than in the tea house of the library and the places of the market of the ximen

to take passport pictures go to the shop inside the "market" that is near the ximen (just walk out the ximen and then go left)

as for using other student has reserved the place, there is no problem...just when you leave remember to put his books in the place again

[crisgee]

If you're really hungry and you like sandwiches, you can get a pretty sweet deal at The Sauce Cafe. After 5pm all their sandwiches are discounted. You can get a 12 inch sub for 18 RMB. They usually cut this in half so you'll end up with two humongous sandwiches for 9 RMB each.

The Sauce Cafe is located on the 2nd floor west side of the cafeteria building. It's right in front of the Japanese restaurant.