How to breach the great firewall

Now that I've got a VPN service I'm back, instead of transferring my blog to a different site I decided this would cause less of a struggle in the long run until I can find a permanent place that wont be blocked at random by the great firewall.

If you want unfiltered access to the internet from China there are several options, the cheapest one being proxy, this is best accomplished by using TOR but if you haven't downloaded it before making your landing and cant access the site, you can download the windows bundle from here and the Mac bundle from here. If you're not in China yet I suggest downloading directly from the site.

If you will be in China for a year or more I suggest using a VPN (virtual private network) this will allow you to connect to a computer outside the firewall and browse the net using their connection. WiTopia seems to be a favorite for users in China and it also holds one of the cheapest prices. Your even able to set up your iPhone for unfiltered use if you go with the basic PPTP package or the expensive multi package. Its much faster than TOR and you are able to access everything, even You Tube videos and Hulu at a descent speed.

What if you're not sure you will need it, maybe the websites you use aren't blocked but you're not in China at the moment, how do you find out? Go to http://www.greatfirewallofchina.org/ and check.

UPDATE:

Thanks to Greg for pointing out that the test site is no longer being worked on I will accept any small lists of websites that people want checked. Leave the list in a comment that way others can see whats already been asked.

UPDATE 2:

TOR is blocked just about everywhere in China now. I recently switched to a proxy service called Freedur thanks to Chengduliving.