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emmett grogan
Joined: 14 Nov 2007 Posts: 45
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Posted: Wed Dec 19, 2012 10:43 am Post subject: Zhengzhou |
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Anyone got any constructive info on living in this city? |
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johntpartee
Joined: 02 Mar 2010 Posts: 3258
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Posted: Wed Dec 19, 2012 11:32 am Post subject: |
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Good sized (7 million), Carrefour's (French chain sorta like Wal-mart), Metro (membership warehouse with Western food). It's okay, good as any, better'n some. Avoid Henan Business College. |
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DirtGuy
Joined: 28 Dec 2004 Posts: 529
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Posted: Wed Dec 19, 2012 2:50 pm Post subject: |
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Search for rioux. I believe he is either in the city or just outside of it.
DG |
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rioux
Joined: 26 Apr 2012 Posts: 880
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Posted: Thu Dec 20, 2012 4:26 am Post subject: |
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I am about an hour and twenty minutes from Zhengzhou. I only go there about once a month or so to go to church, do some grocery shopping and get a pizza.
I suppose the Metro there is ok. I was expecting it to have more than it does.
I'm sorry but I don't know much about Zhengzhou.
http://forums.eslcafe.com/job/viewtopic.php?t=96562&highlight=upbeat |
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DanDoesESL
Joined: 08 Oct 2012 Posts: 13
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Posted: Thu Dec 20, 2012 7:53 pm Post subject: |
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I've done a bit of research, moving in there after the Spring Festival. Major train hub so traveling is easy, and they are working on constructing a subway system |
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Hoffma25
Joined: 12 Dec 2012 Posts: 1
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Posted: Sat Dec 22, 2012 12:40 pm Post subject: |
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I am currently in Zhengzhou. I adjusted well after a few weeks and am enjoying the city. You will be stared at and an object of interest here. Not really a problem for me. The restaurants are good, the people are nice, and the cost of living is low. There are a few good malls and shopping areas (Wan da mall, 360, er qi). There's a Walmart in Wan da. There are a few bars where expats congregate. A few notable supermarkets (such as the metro), but I generally just make due with the local food. Pizza hut, KFC, and Mcdonalds are all over if you so desire. It isn't the cleanest place I've ever been, but I like it. Good location to travel from. You can also take weekend trips to a few cool places (ex. Luoyang, Xi an, Kaifeng, Xinyang). Overall it's a nice city, but it is a Chinese city. Not as western as some other places. If you're after that, you'll like it. If you have any more specific questions let me know. |
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twilothunder
Joined: 09 Dec 2011 Posts: 442
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Posted: Sat Dec 22, 2012 3:38 pm Post subject: |
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Not the nicest city, the people are pretty scary sometimes.
Not the worst city in China to be stuck in either. Some cultural stuff worth looking at. Reasonably big. Important railway crossroads. Provincial capital etc. |
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maxand
Joined: 04 Jan 2012 Posts: 318
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Posted: Sat Dec 22, 2012 6:44 pm Post subject: |
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Hoffma25 wrote: |
the people are nice |
Are you a masochist? |
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rioux
Joined: 26 Apr 2012 Posts: 880
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Posted: Sat Dec 22, 2012 7:41 pm Post subject: |
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twilothunder wrote: |
Not the nicest city, the people are pretty scary sometimes.
Not the worst city in China to be stuck in either. Some cultural stuff worth looking at. Reasonably big. Important railway crossroads. Provincial capital etc. |
Admittedly, I rarely go there so I was wondering what you mean when you say they are "pretty scary sometimes".
Just curious.
Thanks |
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johntpartee
Joined: 02 Mar 2010 Posts: 3258
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Posted: Sat Dec 22, 2012 11:45 pm Post subject: |
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They are people. Some are nice, some are not; probably some are scary. |
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twilothunder
Joined: 09 Dec 2011 Posts: 442
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Posted: Sun Dec 23, 2012 7:21 am Post subject: |
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A lot of people in that central part of China (Henan, Hunan and to a lesser extent Hubei) are particularly uncouth... the Chinese themselves will tell you that.
People in these parts are fairly aggressive in the way they speak to you, loud, abrupt. They may not mean it to come across that way. Some say they are 'salt of the earth'/very good people. It just takes some getting used to the first few times you go to that part of China |
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DirtGuy
Joined: 28 Dec 2004 Posts: 529
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Posted: Thu Jan 03, 2013 1:35 pm Post subject: |
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"Salt of the earth" is a nice way to put it. I live near this city and I'm out in the sticks. Yes, they are loud, uncouth, hack and spit like crazy (totally disgusting), have no concept of driving manners, the kids take dumps wherever/whenever they feel like it, etc. They also seem to be quite friendly and interested in communicating with foreigners. They are uniformly surprised that I came all the way from the US and can use chopsticks. Pretty much everyone has been nice to me in the time I've been here and that is something I didn't expect.
BJ is the only other city with which I am familiar and people there ignore you and couldn't give a damn about where you're from.
It really depends on what works for you. If you don't mind dealing with some backward people at times, you'll do fine in ZZ. If cosmopolitan is your thing, avoid a place like this.
DirtGuy |
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tangal
Joined: 11 Nov 2012 Posts: 47 Location: Da Nang Beach
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Posted: Thu Jan 03, 2013 11:22 pm Post subject: |
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DirtGuy wrote: |
I live near this city and I'm out in the sticks. Yes, they are loud, uncouth, hack and spit like crazy (totally disgusting), have no concept of driving manners, the kids take dumps wherever/whenever they feel like it, etc. |
I've been living in ZZ since last August, and have taken taxis, regular busses, and the BRT many times, and have shopped in several malls and eaten in many restaurants, and have walked in several parks and ridden my bike many times in and around my neighborhood, and never once have I seen anyone resembling a loud, uncouth person crazily hacking and spitting in a disgusting way.
Sure, a few grown men and codgers hack and spit a bit, and I've seen a few kids peeing (and dogs pooping) in the streets, but not once have I seen a human child taking a dump in public. ZZ is a city, and as many here have stated a Chinese city, so it's dirty and crowded and under heavy redevelopment and traffic is congested in the usual hotspots, but it's a livable city that resembles most other cites of its size in China.
ZZ is a fairly easy city to get around in, no more than an hour by public bus to get to any part of the city. The city is filled with Chinese people from all walks of life, including many college students and hordes of retired senior citizens. They generally act and behave like most other Chinese people who live in the big cites do. Nothing out of the ordinary.
Bus and taxi drivers are the maddest behind the wheel, but I've only seen a few accidents. The majority of drivers here seem to go with the flow and traffic moves steadily and peaceably even in the worst traffic. People are generally polite and friendly (based on the Chinese standard of politeness), and while city life here may be disgusting by western standards to some, I'd say if anyone is thinking about moving here for a job it's a decent city to spend a year or two of your life in. |
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DirtGuy
Joined: 28 Dec 2004 Posts: 529
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Posted: Fri Jan 04, 2013 4:29 am Post subject: |
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tangal,
Thanks for the good info on ZZ. I'm just north of you in Anyang and may look to move next year. Glad to hear life is a little more "normal" by Western standards. You're welcome to come up here anytime and see a place that is still firmly planted in the past as far as people's actions are concerned. You do manage to get used to it all after a while.
DG |
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Banner41
Joined: 04 Jan 2011 Posts: 656 Location: Shanghai
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Posted: Fri Jan 04, 2013 6:14 am Post subject: |
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DirtGuy wrote: |
"Salt of the earth" is a nice way to put it. I live near this city and I'm out in the sticks. Yes, they are loud, uncouth, hack and spit like crazy (totally disgusting), have no concept of driving manners, the kids take dumps wherever/whenever they feel like it, etc. They also seem to be quite friendly and interested in communicating with foreigners. They are uniformly surprised that I came all the way from the US and can use chopsticks. Pretty much everyone has been nice to me in the time I've been here and that is something I didn't expect.
It really depends on what works for you. If you don't mind dealing with some backward people at times, you'll do fine in ZZ. If cosmopolitan is your thing, avoid a place like this.
DirtGuy |
Hahah....outside of the Tier 1 cities this looks like the carbon copy stamp on most cities in China. Nice! |
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