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Anyone Ever Live In China?


Jotari
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The president's democrat but the senate and house are republican, which really blocks a lot of things Obama actually wanted to get done if democrats truly were in power

how did american politics get brought up in a china thread anyway

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Hylian Air Force brought it up, not me. :P

Well, I've been hearing that Democrats were preventing Republicans from doing some things THEY wanted, and with Obama in office, I figured Democrats were in power here.

But yeah, back on topic. Distance, and I suppose culture are other reasons I would never go to China. Not that there's anything wrong with having a different culture, but I wouldn't understand eastern cultures well if you paid me. I also don't know a word of Chinese...

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I didn't mean THAT strict, geez. xP I mean just enough to where crime rates are going down without affecting people's freedoms and all too much. I bet you anything the US has the worst crime rate of any country.

And lolwut, how can you say the Republicans are in power when we've had a Democratic president for the last eight years? I don't see Trump/Cruz easily beating Hillary/Sanders either.

Hahaha. The US is far from having the worst crime rate of any country. Pretty much anywhere in East Africa or South and Central America are guaranteed to be worse in any given year.

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I'm not going to comment on Chinese politics beyond my understanding they're "not great". Still, it seems like an interesting country worth visiting. The fact that it's different from western cultures and has its own history makes it rather appealing. I can imagine there's a fair difference between regions, much like with other countries.

Cost's an issue though, so it'll have to remain on my "to-do" list.

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I'm not going to comment on Chinese politics beyond my understanding they're "not great". Still, it seems like an interesting country worth visiting. The fact that it's different from western cultures and has its own history makes it rather appealing. I can imagine there's a fair difference between regions, much like with other countries.

Cost's an issue though, so it'll have to remain on my "to-do" list.

yeah Western China looks like a totally different country from Eastern China, Places where the Ughyr minority live, and even northern and southern China seem quite different. Places like Harbin seem to have a cool Russian influence. Definitely seems like an interesting place to visit and even live for a bit.

Sorry for the slight off topicness.

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Hey Jotari, funny I should get this topic in my inbox. I haven't been a regular Serenes Forest user in a good six years plus, but I'm an American living in China right now, in Hunan province. Don't believe any of the bad stuff people are saying here. Life in China has its disadvantages, certainly, but they're just repeating overblown fear-mongering nonsense they heard in the media, from old people, or from borderline shut-in coworkers.

Take it easy. Suzhou is a very nice place, full of rich people. It's a big tourist destination, should be a fun place to spend some time. Air pollution ain't a scratch on Shanghai, and certainly can't compare to Hangzhou. Make as many friends as you can in the beginning, they'll be useful. Enjoy nights out on the town, enjoy the abundant street food, enjoy the water villages in the countryside, and soak in what you can of the diversity of people who come to that destination city from all over China. Save up money for when you head back from the US, or else spend it on something stupid like an extended international vacation or a car. Either way, you shouldn't have regrets. In the meantime, take your time finding yourself the nicest apartment you can, and buy a motorcycle or electric scooter. You'll get to know the city a lot more intimately that way and it'll pay for itself ten times over.

You need a really thick skin and solid bullshit filter to thrive as a non-Chinese-looking expat in China. The average guy on the street may say he highly esteems "foreigners”, but it doesn't matter how fluent your Chinese is, you'll be the mark for every con or scam and you won't get any kind of customer service or polite treatment unless you assertively demand it. SJW-type whining about discrimination and fairness won't get you anything here. The same principle applies to your employer, especially if you're working for a Chinese company. Do your job well, but don't expect favors from anyone and don't do extra work for free. If you were able to get the company to shell out for a legitimate work visa, you have a very highly valued skill and with it some intrinsic leverage, use that to your advantage. Nothing pains me more than seeing naive people getting conned by their employers. But the refreshing thing about China is that if you demand respect and actually deserve it, you will get it, no need for empty self-promotion or backstabbing. Modesty (after a fashion) is still considered a virtue here.

One last note: Learn Chinese! Don't let anybody convince you it's too hard. Serious and committed studying for a solid hour or two every day can get you to the HSK 4 level (equivalent to IELTS 5 or CEFR level B2) in a year. I know people who've done it even while working full time. And that might be conversational, but it's really only the beginning. Study, study, study. The more standard Chinese you can speak, the better your life in China will be. Chinese people will laugh at you extensively, but they respect people who learn their language. Most non-Chinese never bother, or never make more than a halfhearted effort. Just be sure to get started learning the characters right from the beginning, spoken Chinese is only ten percent as useful as it would otherwise be if you're illiterate.

Anyway, this is a subject I could go on about for a long time, but I probably ought to cut it short. If you have any questions at all about being an expat in China, shoot me a PM. And especially if you ever happen by Changsha, we can get a beer and some spicy crayfish.

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