China
China is the most populated country in the world. Hitchhiking is not common at all and hardly anyone speaks English. People seem to understand the thumb though. Still, often your drivers will try to drop you at a bus or train station though. Your best bet is to signify that you want to get out as soon as they are leaving the highway.
People's driving style is not too safe. Expect people to honk, drive while holding a phone, overtaking while going uphill, or combinations of these. Buckle up if you can.
Contents
Expressways
"Highway" doesn't mean the same as in occidental countries but express ways are great for going long distances. As of 2007 a lot of expressways are still under construction, and most traffic consists of trucks that don't go too fast. When you can, try to hitch with normal cars. There are quite a few cops on the expressway, but it doesn't seem to be a problem to walk along them.
Language
Hardly anyone speaks English. Get yourself a phrasebook (beforehand) and a pocket dictionary (18 yuan in China).
Maps
There are not so many online or offline maps in English. Do buy a map though, even if it's in Chinese, maps of provinces are cheap (10 yuan) and very useful, you can point to it and people might sometimes understand what you mean. You can buy a map of China with names in English and Chinese, but because of the scale it's not very useful while hitching.
Sometimes the indication used for roads aren't very accurate, so you might be thinking you'll be on a nice highway for a while, when it suddenly becomes a 1 lane road going through villages. This is also goes while hitching, on a highway, sometimes a sign might be indicated for a big city, but if you pursuit this, you can find yourself on a dirt road in no time.
Regions
Cities
Shanghai, Beijing, Hong Kong, Xi'an, Chongqing, Kunming, Guiyang digi:world/East-Asia/China
