Try

http://www.wikihow.com/Convert-a-Microsoft-Word-Document-to-PDF-Format

But you may need to upgrade your MS 97 first......

Office 97? Wow, I didn't realize anybody would still be using that. What operating system are you using? Windows 95?

If you need to convert files in the future it would be worth upgrading your copy of Office. I use Office 2010 and that lets you save directly into PDF format for Word and Excel. I assume other parts of Office will let you do that as well but I only use those two.

There's also a service online you can use.. upload, convert, download.

At Adobe's main site, I think...

Easiest way is to download freeware called cutepdf. Once installed it acts as a print device and allows you to "print" odd files that can be saved. Don't know if it works with office 97 thought  there are other freeware programs like this as well 

Try to download Soda PDF, install and you can convert PDF to Word and vice versa. I have been using it and it works pretty good. One of the best and crapless software for converting files.

Don't upgrade if you don't want to pay, it still works.

This is pertinent to china? Perhaps something to do with the government ban on new foreign tech?

i have used many pdf converters but taking a pdf and trying to convert it into a word file seems to be very problematic if the text sample has chinese and english characters on the same document, this has caused much grief and lots of extra typing since i have hung my hat in china.

Uh, have you tried just printing it as a pdf? Go through normal printing procedure, in the print window to select the printer, there's a pdf option. You can save it as pdf this way. 

This is not Google, grandad.

maybe you can try WPS

Install a free pdf printer, I use Bullzip.  Then print to this, it will create a pdf file.  Easy peasy.

Thanks！