Going to China for a year - Any advice? or stories :D

[Royce_aus]

Hey guys, I just accepted a job teaching english in china. It's gonna be hard work (and little pay) but I'm looking forward to it but I am a very laid back/accepting guy so I thought it might be smart to ask around and see what advice or experience some smart people could share.

I'm going to Shijiazhuang and although it is supposed to be a bit polluted I'm not too worried about anything (except for the dress code - shirt and TIE!?).

I'm mainly wondering what kind of things i would wish i had once i'm over there that i could bring with me from home (Australia) I would also love to hear any stories of your experience of life in China (good or bad)

[breakthestatic00]

Hey whats up? First I want to say congratulations!
I'm actually teaching english overseas now too, I'm in Busan, South Korea. Your making a good (yet very intimidating) choice in teaching overseas. You'll learn alot about yourself and the world.

go to Dave's ESL Cafe and ask this question in the China forum, there are tons of people there that would be willing to help you out, and I would consider it the best resource available for you at this point since I don't know much about what China has and doesn't have (you may already know of this site)

E-mail me if you want to ask any questions about life overseas, the transition, etc etc., or if you want to hear about my experience: bpk11@yahoo.com


and dont worry about the shirt and tie, I have to do the same thing. Do worry about the pollution though!

[LifeFirst]

Well I was born in China and grew up there so I know what it's like.


I don't know what the image of China is in Australia, or how they show China on TV but I'm sure it's completely different than what you're used to.


I mean, to be blunt the place is a mess, if you're going to Beijing or Shanghai those places are some of the most messed up places I've ever been to in my Life. For a while you will feel as if there is total chaos and there is absolutely no order anywhere. For as long as I've been in China, that's how it was and I'm pretty much used to it. But of course, it depends on where you are and the type of people you're around, social class makes a huge difference.


Also, please don't try to criticize or look down on the Chinese if you see something that is out of the ordinary. There are more one way to do things, just to tell you.


Also, if you're planning to buy a bike or something, get like 20 locks, or else your bike might get stolen within a month. There are actually professional bike robbers in China...believe it or not....it's an actual profession, people actually get paid to steal bikes.


Also, if some homeless guy comes up to you for money, must be careful. Some of those guys are pretending to be homeless, it's their profession.

[Royce_aus]

Thanks for the replies guys

breakthestatic - Yup i've been to daves esl and just got my account activated (just about to put a post up) I am interested in your time in korea as I was offered work in korea but China took preference for me (although i would really like to see korea too) Is it really as harsh as some of the stories that are out there? I'm thinking that maybe the internet just has the bad ones since people are more inclined to complain then they are to complement. How has your experience been?

lifefirst - thanks for the headsup, I don't hold any expectations of China besides the fact that it's a different country with a different culture and language. I'm looking forward to seeing how people go about their lives over there. I'm really interested in lifestyle and I'm very open minded so I hope to adjust and learn to do things in new ways while i'm there. When in rome

Q- lifefirst - I'm vegetarian but not a strict one so i eat fish and if it's a special occasion i can revert to omnivore without stress but how is the quality of the fruit and vegetables over there?