4 ms·

Is there any reason why Beijing is better than other large Chinese cities? I heard it was expensive and polluted. As for teaching English, do you have first-han

by ced 18y ago

Is there any reason why Beijing is better than other large Chinese cities? I heard it was expensive and polluted. As for teaching English, do you have first-hand experience backing the (very high) 60$/hr figure? And what kind of visa will you get?

garply 18y ago
If you're seeking tech employees, Beijing is probably the easiest place to find them. It's China's tech hub - the best universities are there. Google and MS, for example, locate their headquarters right next to Tsinghua University (China's MIT). It's not expensive compared to Shanghai, but it is more expensive than some of the lesser known big cities like Chongqing or Wuhan. The pollution is bad in Beijing. That's the only real downside, from my perspective. Shanghai is certainly cleaner. I'm not sure about the other big cities, but I'd bet they're something like BJ in terms of pollution. I do have first-hand experience on the teaching money, but I also advertised to my students that I have a degree from a prestigious American university, so my sample data might be skewed. Tourist visa for as long as possible (fewer hassles), but eventually I'll need to switch to a business visa.
- fortes 18y ago
  At least back in 2006, Beijing was more polluted than most other Chinese cities (a notable exception be Lanzhou, which is ridiculous). This is in part due to the huge population, but also due to the geography (there are mountains nearby that trap a lot of pollutants, like LA -- and the Gobi desert is close enough to blow a lot of stuff in as well). I lived pretty well there on about $700 / month (going out and with a 2 bedroom apartment).
  - wallflower 18y ago
    "The best way to understand Beijing's size is to visualize what Manhattan might be like without the Hudson and East Rivers. Beijing just keeps going. Manhattan is almost 23 square miles. Beijing is more than 150!... Given the size, you can probably imagine the traffic. It's like Los Angeles without interstates, at rush hour, in the rain. It's impossible to get anywhere quickly. I was warned before my trip that traffic would be worse than anything I'd ever seen, and it was. One evening, it took our crew nearly two hours to go about eight miles... Had the Olympics been held last August, the air quality in Beijing would have been in violation of the World Health Organization standard every single day..." http://sports.espn.go.com/oly/news/story?id=3453777 http://sports.espn.go.com/oly/news/story?id=3453777
poutine 18y ago
Beijing is not just polluted, it's absurdly polluted. Think taking on a pack a day habit and that's nearly the long term impact on your health. Not good. $60/hr seems quite optimistic to me. I have never taught english but the teachers in China I know typically make between $1-$2k USD per month depending on where they are and their experience. Also, teaching english here is something that most introverted geeks couldn't handle. You'd often be called to teach quite young children. Think standing up and leading a class of kids in silly songs and dancing and you get the picture. I've been in classrooms visiting friends while they do this and I could never do their job. Additionally what you need to keep in mind about China is that as a foreigner you're going to pay more than the locals just because you're a rich foreigner. How much more is going to depend on you, but you do prepare a premium. Doing basic things in China takes a lot of time, for instance paying your rent at the bank could take you 2hrs. Sometimes you'll try to do a routine thing and you'll just fail. That's China, people have a lot of spare time and they don't optimize for a fast moving convenience lifestyle like in the US.

by ced 18y ago

garply 18y ago

If you're seeking tech employees, Beijing is probably the easiest place to find them. It's China's tech hub - the best universities are there. Google and MS, for example, locate their headquarters right next to Tsinghua University (China's MIT). It's not expensive compared to Shanghai, but it is more expensive than some of the lesser known big cities like Chongqing or Wuhan. The pollution is bad in Beijing. That's the only real downside, from my perspective. Shanghai is certainly cleaner. I'm not sure about the other big cities, but I'd bet they're something like BJ in terms of pollution. I do have first-hand experience on the teaching money, but I also advertised to my students that I have a degree from a prestigious American university, so my sample data might be skewed. Tourist visa for as long as possible (fewer hassles), but eventually I'll need to switch to a business visa.

fortes 18y ago
At least back in 2006, Beijing was more polluted than most other Chinese cities (a notable exception be Lanzhou, which is ridiculous). This is in part due to the huge population, but also due to the geography (there are mountains nearby that trap a lot of pollutants, like LA -- and the Gobi desert is close enough to blow a lot of stuff in as well). I lived pretty well there on about $700 / month (going out and with a 2 bedroom apartment).
- wallflower 18y ago
  "The best way to understand Beijing's size is to visualize what Manhattan might be like without the Hudson and East Rivers. Beijing just keeps going. Manhattan is almost 23 square miles. Beijing is more than 150!... Given the size, you can probably imagine the traffic. It's like Los Angeles without interstates, at rush hour, in the rain. It's impossible to get anywhere quickly. I was warned before my trip that traffic would be worse than anything I'd ever seen, and it was. One evening, it took our crew nearly two hours to go about eight miles... Had the Olympics been held last August, the air quality in Beijing would have been in violation of the World Health Organization standard every single day..." http://sports.espn.go.com/oly/news/story?id=3453777 http://sports.espn.go.com/oly/news/story?id=3453777

poutine 18y ago

Beijing is not just polluted, it's absurdly polluted. Think taking on a pack a day habit and that's nearly the long term impact on your health. Not good. $60/hr seems quite optimistic to me. I have never taught english but the teachers in China I know typically make between $1-$2k USD per month depending on where they are and their experience. Also, teaching english here is something that most introverted geeks couldn't handle. You'd often be called to teach quite young children. Think standing up and leading a class of kids in silly songs and dancing and you get the picture. I've been in classrooms visiting friends while they do this and I could never do their job. Additionally what you need to keep in mind about China is that as a foreigner you're going to pay more than the locals just because you're a rich foreigner. How much more is going to depend on you, but you do prepare a premium. Doing basic things in China takes a lot of time, for instance paying your rent at the bank could take you 2hrs. Sometimes you'll try to do a routine thing and you'll just fail. That's China, people have a lot of spare time and they don't optimize for a fast moving convenience lifestyle like in the US.