How Do I Get In China?

Hopefully, if things go as planned, I'll be going to China within the next two months. There's a likely chance that the trip will be cancelled, but I'm not worried about that right now. My biggest concern is how to get a visa. U.S. citizens must have a passport and a visa to travel to China. They have to get the visa from the Chinese Embassy offices or Consulate offices. I only know of the Consulate office in Chicago, but I don't want to make a trip there just to get a travel visa. The Chinese Embassy websites aren't giving very much information on where are all the places that let you get a visa. China's a relatively safe place to go to right? Why do I need a visa to go to China? I understand that I need a visa to go to Ghana, but I don't get China. Anyways, I still need to figure out how to get the visa, then I need to find a good deal. My friend's going to look at some travel sites in Chinese, so we can probably save a lot of money that way.