Need tunnel to access blog from China

[PaperQueen]

Seriously. The subject line isn’t just for effect.

I’m returning to Beijing in a few weeks, and would like to continue blogging from there. Last spring, I was able to reach Blogspot and my work email the first night, but the next morning, both were completely cut off. No email...couldn’t get to my own website...nuthin.’

Since then, I’ve moved my blog to another one of my websites, this one advertising that I’m also a journalist (not a plus in that neck of the woods). Ideally, I’d like to keep posting to the blog from Beijing, but have a feeling I’ll need to tunnel my way there from China.

Anyone have a good solution? Have you tried something that really works? The only references I find in a search here pops up threads that are a couple of years old. Admittedly, I might not know the correct terms to search, since this is virgin territory for me....

Thanks!

 

[angelwatt]

China goes a bit overboard with their internet blocking. A search term to help you out would be 'proxy.' I don't know if using a proxy will help getting around their blocks, but would be a good place to start.

 

[briansolomon]

I have a friend moving to China and he wants to blog about it while he is there. I'd be interested in what needs to be done, too!

OP, Does skype work there?

 

[bluefin]

personal vpn service

I've been living in China for a few years now and have found a personal VPN service to be the most reliable and worthwhile method to use.

Or, you could use a free proxy server through your browser, but I have found those to be slow and can limit your browsing experience.

Two of the most reliable VPN services I have found are: StrongVPN and Witopia personalVPN.

Both consistently supply high bandwidth speeds and are very reliable...

Cheers

 

[bluefin]

I have a friend moving to China and he wants to blog about it while he is there. I'd be interested in what needs to be done, too!

OP, Does skype work there?

Yes, Skype works no problem. Make sure to download Skype outside mainland China first, or download it over a VPN service linked to outside mainland China, because the Skype edition that can be downloaded within China (known as Skype-Tom) is known to be bugged in order to allow surveillance and censorship.

 

[briansolomon]

Thanks, Bluefin and Paperqueen. We hadn't thought about censorship problems at all yet.

 

[PaperQueen]

OP, Does skype work there?

Thankfully, yes, it works like a charm. Used it every night to check in with my family (who were a nervous wreck about me traveling alone in China for two weeks).

Depending on where you’ll be...might also look into simply buying a SIM chip for a cell phone. While in Hong Kong, I picked one up at the 7/11 in the HK airport (yes, you read that right). Popped it into a quadband Razr I purchased here on eBay, then voila! Could make international calls home for dirt cheap.

Haven’t tried that in Beijing yet, but hear that it works in throughout much of China. Best place to bone up on that is a travel forum I love called FlyerTalk. Here are links to a couple of threads about using cell phones in various cities there:

http://www.flyertalk.com/forum/travel-technology/811045-china-cell-phone-recommendation.html

http://www.flyertalk.com/forum/travel-technology/805225-idd-sim-cards-etc-hong-kong-beijing.html

Happy traveling!

I've been living in China for a few years now and have found a personal VPN service to be the most reliable and worthwhile method to use.

Two of the most reliable VPN services I have found are: StrongVPN and Witopia personalVPN.

Yet again, wondering how I managed to breathe before finding this forum.

Thanks for the great info, bluefin. You may have just saved my blog (was a bit nervous about going dark for a week or more, having built traffic up to a lovely respectable level).

 

[aarond12]

China

While you're at it, why not send us your blog address?

I go to HK all the time. What a great city! And you're right -- there are 7/11s EVERYWHERE!

Enjoy your time in China. You may not want to come back... Your family has nothing to be worried about. China is a very safe country.

-Aaron-

 

[PaperQueen]

While you're at it, why not send us your blog address?

Heeheehee...shoulda thought of that.....

http://alwaysupward.com/blog

Enjoy your time in China. You may not want to come back... Your family has nothing to be worried about. China is a very safe country.

Agreed, on all counts. I fell deeply in love with the place last time, and have been holding my breath I’d be invited back (am speaking at the Hong Kong Gifts and Premiums Show...largest consumer goods show in the world). Was smart enough to add more days this time, since I barely scraped the surface in Beijing.

 

[Nathaniell]

I'm a blogger to!

Ya, .blogspot blog was blocked as well. Wordpress isn't blocked but it's so slow it' wasn't worth using. Here's the link to a site that compares 12vpn and strongvpn. I use the lite version of 12vpn. It's fine for blogging but a bit slow for Youtube.

Unblock Facebook in China

Here's my blog link too if anyone's interested. I'm in Fujian.

http://nathaniell.wordpress.com/