Travel

There were lots of convenient transport links in Jinan where we were studying. I could get a frequent bus from the campus to the city centre for the equivalent of 10p each way. The buses with air-conditioning were double the price. Buses were decent but the Chinese have no issue with squashing lots of people on which can be overwhelming if you're not used to getting busy buses.
Taxis are also readily available, no need to book although you can. Very much the same as England, except the price is a fraction of English prices. The 2 and a half hour journey from Beijing train station to the Great Wall cost us the equivalent of £30 (per taxi).
The taxi drivers in Beijing did try to scam us as they saw we knew little mandarin, but just use your common sense to get out of those situations.
 Illegal 'black taxis' also seem to be everywhere. They're basically a normal person's car (no taxi license or sign). We got one of these once as the security guards called this taxi for us however I wouldn't recommend getting an illegal taxi just because it is quite risky.
I found it interesting that taxi drivers in Jinan had bars around the driver for their protection, I did not see this in Beijing.
Trains are also reasonable, it cost me the equivalent of £14 for a return bullet train to Qufu to see Confucius Temple. It would have been a 2 hour each way car journey but was just 30 minutes on this high speed train that must be booked in advance. You get a specific seat number, the trains were very clean with plenty of space.
Rickshaws are also everywhere and fun to get. They may try to rip you off, they should be cheap than a taxi.