There are many countries around the world that block websites under the vague banner of "home security". I've been to some, and as a passing traveler, I guess I could say that I found it interesting that certain sites were blocked. It felt like I had finally experienced "censorship" and a lack of freedom. But as an expat living in China now, the experience is much different than as a traveler. Its really annoying!

I can't say what Chinese people think about it. To be honest, it seems like most people don't notice it. But for a westerner trying keep in contact with friends, family, and business outside of the country, there are some real challenges to overcome. If you're planning on moving here, you might want to do a bit of research on some sites that unblock other sites to get you ducks in a row before you come over it.

If you're completely immersed in Chinese culture, and speak and read Chinese, then you might not have a problem. There's pretty much a Chinese version of everything we have in the west. YouKu replaces YouTube, RenRen replaces Facebook, QQ replaces MSN and Gmail. There's also less of a need to keep in touch over long distances because people use phone texting much more than email and most people don't stray far from their hometown. But if you can't read Chinese, find the interface of most Chinese social networking sites disorganized and annoying, or have a lot of friends and family overseas or across the country, you'd probably be interested to see what some of these sites that unblock other sites have to offer.

There are a few different types of sites to unblock other sites that are accessible in China. In the beginning stages of The Great Firewall, proxy lists and simply anonymous browsing alterations to you browser could be used to bypass firewall restitution in China. However, as restrictions became stricter and more of these "tricks" began to fail, so did more sites to unblock other sites start popping up. Virtual private network providers and premium proxy services are among the most reliable and also most popular.

Though proxy sites are still popular, by far the most reliable type of site to unblock other sites is a virtual private network provider. By providing a secure path to a private network of servers outside of China, a VPN provider can change your IP address, and allow you access to any site blocked in China. Not only that, it can allow you access to sites that try to block you! Basically any firewall restriction can be unblock with the right kind of VPN in the right place!