Onsite

Great, you got accepted to a SCC! Now, before attending, it's important to think about what you need to prepare and arrange more generally. And also, what you should bring during your flight/train ride. Both physically and digitally.

Packing List

Apart from a general travel-loadout, here are things that are more SCC-specific:

• Travel adapters - bring as much as you have (for China, US-plugs work best)
• Power strip - optional, but helpful
• HDMI-cables - to use monitors with own laptop
• USB-LAN-adapters
• LAN-cables
• LAN-switch
• Router - optionally with external VPN compatibility (GL.iNet has some good travel-size options)
• Toolkit - big and precision screwdriver, tweezers, cable clipper
• SSD - preferably standard SATA with a USB adapter (for ASC hardware), external NVMe can also work
• Stickers - to give out to fellow students

Another thing you want to bring: empty space!
Especially in SC and ISC conferences, you tend to get a loot of goodies. Would be a shame if you needed to throw some out for your suitcase to still be zipped shut.

Apps

US

You don't need a lot. The US mostly relies on the same apps as we do in Europe. You might want to consider Uber: A quick and easy way to get from A to B, or food from restaurants to you.

China

In general, Chinese use "mega-apps" which combine lots of utilities in one package. Though, it can be a good idea to have multiple options with different app-bundles. Not everything is available in a single app, and some have missing English translations.

Translator: Preferably one that works offline and also has voice input. For mainland China, download Simplified (简体) Mandarin/Chinese (中文), abbr. 简中. It's also a good idea to see which other foreign teams are at the competition and download their native language as well.

WeChat: Main method of communication in China. Combines instant messaging with news-feeds, social media, a wallet and much more. WeChat-Pay (Weixin) is one of the two main methods of payment. You can register with a foreign credit card. Use it, you won't get far with cash in China.

AliPay: Payment method number two, though pretty much directly compatible with WeChat-Pay. Also a mega-app, can be used for public transit, hotels and much more. Has builtin translation for its micro-apps, generally very comfortable to use. Requires a credit card for registration.

DiDi: Chinese Uber. Integrated in WeChat and AliPay as a micro-app. Very cheap for western standards.

Travel restrictions

Some countries have travel restrictions in place. As this can change very frequently, please always check the current jurisdiction.

Visa: Depending on your citizenship, you might need a visa for entry. Arrange these well in advance, it can take quite a while to get accepted. For visa-free travel (ESTA, China visa-free), it can be a requirement to have your passport be valid for at least 6 more month and/or have available visa-pages. Again, always check the current state.

Hardware: Bringing expensive hardware, especially GPUs, can fall under export restrictions. It might also be necessary to register them with the customs office (on both sides). When in doubt, contact customs and explain your situation.

General tips

Book flights and (if needed) hotels well in advance. Good connections are scarce, cheap ones even more. Especially for highly-trafficked conferences, book as soon as possible. "But the department/NHR will pay for it anyways" - probably, but we also want to attend more competitions and buy hardware, this needs budget

Get yourself a credit card. You need that to register for certain services. Credit cards also typically have a lower fee when paying/withdrawing in foreign currencies. If you don't use it afterwards, make sure to cancel it as soon as possible.

Depending on how adventurous you are, get health insurance. For premium credit cards, this is usually included.

You want mobile data on you trip. If your phone supports eSIM, there are a lot of good and cheap providers (Nomad, ByteSIM, ...). Keep in mind there are plans with and without phone numbers. Though not generally needed (China uses WeChat, US iMessage), being able to do normal phone calls is quite nice.

If you are comfortable bringing your main devices, that's fine. For more privacy, you can also bring a burner phone/laptop with you and keep your main device at home. Laptops can be borrowed with the RRZE (ask an NHR employee).

VPNs can also be quite useful. In China, they are technically illegal and can land you in prison, so use at your own discretion. The free eduVPN with your FAU-login is usually more than enough. Easy to set up, fast, effective. Also grants access to the FAU-internal resources.

Lastly, some general safety tips:

• Try to stay in groups
• Don't go out at night
• Be doubtful of strangers (especially if they approach you first)
• Stay in areas with CCTV

That's it, have fun on your trip and good luck for the competition!