Banks and exchange The Bank of China is on the north side of Gulou Jie (Mon-Fri 8am-noon & 2-4pm).

Bike rental You can rent a bike from a small shop outside the CITS office on Yingbin Lu (daily 8am-11pm). Pretty good bikes for ¥5 a day.

Bookshops The Xinhua Bookstore on the east side of Shudian Jie, not far from the intersection with Xi Dajie, has a limited selection of English books, but they do sell good maps.

Buses The long-distance bus stations are pretty seedy-looking, and big noses will attract a lot of attention. Both Anyang and Zhengzhou are within comfortable travelling times. The west station sells tickets to destinations west of the city such as Luoyang and Xi'an; the main station farther south serves all other destinations. You can buy tickets from the booking offices (daily 7am-6pm) or on the bus itself.

Post and telecommunications There's a large, efficient post office on Ziyou Lu (Mon-Fri 8am-noon & 2.30-6pm), with a 24-hour telecom office next door.

PSB The main police station is on Dazhifang Jie, but the section that deals with visas is at 16 Sihou Jie, where the staff are so laid-back they're almost hip; a visa extension can take ten minutes, and you may even get a free cup of tea into the bargain.

Shopping Kaifeng is a good place to pick up art materials, among the best buys in China. Apart from the shops on Song Jie, there's a good, cheap art shop on the corner of Sihou Jie, not far from the intersection with Shudian Jie. For souvenirs, try Song Jie.

Trains The train station is small and not too hard to figure out. You can buy tickets at the station booking office or at the advance booking office at 70 Sihou Jie (Mon-Fri 8.30am-12.30pm & 2.30-4.30pm).

Travel agents Staff in the CITS office on 14 Yingbin Lu (tel 5955130) can be reluctant to help - your reception seems to depend on how much or how little you're willing to spend. They offer one- and two-day tours, sell train tickets (¥40 surcharge) and have a free map in English that looks good but is pretty inaccurate.