facebook, youtube, hulu, my own blog... i missed you

China's internet restrictions seem to be getting stricter. Here's an interesting article about how China started banning individuals from registering internet domain names last month. You now have to present a business license and a company chop (official company seal) to register a domain. Can you imagine?

Right now in China you can't access facebook, youtube, twitter, this blog, and many other websites. A few of my Chinese friends told me how they used to have facebook accounts and then one day they could no longer go to the site. I am also unable to view personal blogs and online videos. I've definitely felt disconnected, but finally I found out how to get around the restrictions. As opposed to when I was here before, there are some services out there that are easy to find and allow you to access blocked sites.

I'm no expert, but I'll try to explain what I did for those of you in the same situation. VPN (Virtual Private Networks) change your IP address so your computer appears to be located in the US or Europe. Here's a good list of VPN Service Providers. There are some that are free but I hear that they drop off often and are not secure so I am using a $15/month provider called Surfbouncer (www.surfbouncer.com). They rotate the servers every few weeks so it makes it that much more difficult to track. It took me about 5 hours to download and figure out how to get it to work but considering I don't know anything about this stuff it was pretty painless (except for the fees).

In the absence of Facebook and because I have yet to meet/make even one expat friend, I joined a local Beijing social networking site. So far I've yet to have someone add me who is worth befriending even in cyberspace and I'm glad I used a pseudonym (think famous bank robber). The only people who have added me are men from countries I don't know anything about (Moldova, anyone?) who happen to be in China and want to meet or people who just want me for my English skills. The other day I was in a dvd store and I overheard some girls speaking with a British accent and I was so close to just walking up and asking them to be my friend! Wow I sound like a stalker myself.That's what facebook is for.

-mk

Comments

[Josh Schairbaum]

So sorry you're living on the other side of the Great Chinese Firewall. If your VPN ever fails or you need to communicate urgently, I think I could get something setup as a backup for a one-time thing.

If you want to know more specifics, have your parents get a hold of me, I'll send you some information.

[Coach Outlet]

Oh I do hope to visit some day! What a great place to work!

[Air Jordan]

I couldn't tell if the streaker was a man or a woman because it had a bag on it's head.