I am leaving on February 3rd to travel to China to visit Shanghai for 3 days, then Beijing for 4 days, then finally to stay 2 weeks in the Fuzhou/Xiamen area.

I already have my American Passport & Passport Card, as well as my Airline tickets. I will be traveling with a friend of many years who is originally from Fuzhou and his family have invited me to come and stay a few weeks with them to visit and see the country.

My questions are:

I have been trying and trying to call the number listed here for over a week now with no luck. Why is this number only manned for just 1 hour?

I read that they only accept Cash or Money Order? Why not Credit Cards? I think that is is a bit absurd in todays world.

If I drive to Houston from New Orleans, am I able to receive my China Visa that SAME DAY? I would prefer not to have to drive all the way there just to get my Passport stamped. If it cannot be done the same day, I can't afford to sit around Houston TX waiting for 4 days to get it. If I come there, can it then be mailed (next day postage) back to me ?

I have read in various areas that the China Application CAN and CANNOT be done through the mail. Which one is correct? If it cannot be done through the mail, why do I see companies offering paid services to handle it for you. How can they do it without the actual person being there, yet the actual person cannot do it themselves through the mail? This sounds a bit fishy to me.

I have tried to find the exact cost for the China Visa, but cannot seem to find the proper amount. I will be staying in China for 25 days so I would only need a 30 day Visitor Tourist Pass. How much would this cost?

Thank you for your time in answering my questions.