Smokers, rejoice, you can smoke just about “everywhere” in China, with the exception of a few public spaces, malls, museums, parks, foreign owned stores/chains, historically sensitive areas, etc.
For those that smoke:
Don’t be an Arse. There are millions of places you can smoke, so don’t pretend you can’t read/understand Chinese ( I think the anti-smoking logo is quite easy to recognize ) and just lights it up anywhere you please. If you are one of those guys that I saw lighting up in the middle of the Starbucks in the Oriental Plaza, I’ll do just what I did, embarrass the heck out of you by asking the waitress to bring a cup of water and dunk your cigs into it. If you are that guy? Be glad that I only yelled at the top of my lungs that you can’t smoke in here. And I didn’t ask her to splash the water on you. Foreigners like you make us expats look bad.
For those that don’t smoke:
I am afraid that you are a bit out of luck. You probably have to stick to the foreign owned places or places catering to foreigners to escape from the smog. Starbucks, Macdonalds, and KFC are probably the only easy to find sanctuaries in China at the moment. You can always duck into a mall if it gets really bad. Clubbers be ware – most clubs/bars/pubs in China allow smoking. Most 4 stars + Chinese owned hotels have nonsmoking floors. As for the budget conscious motels and hostels, you throw the dice and pray that one of the staff speaks English.
Be Warned: Complaining loudly (about smoking) in English in Chinese restaurants (most common) or any other Chinese owned places that don’t cater to the foreigners/tourists is pointless if not foolhardy. You have to understand, their mainstream clientèle is the Chinese public, and since a lot of Chinese people smoke, that’s not going to change any time soon. Whining about it won’t do you any good, just leave and find another place to eat.
