Job Discussion Forums

[KnockoutNed]

Sounds terrible to me. Is this common? Saw pictures and it looks pretty small but they claim its 'big enough for me'. Has 2 small beds

[tomstone]

This is a perk in a contract? Some hotels rated at 4-stars are absolute dumps (not necessarily in Asia). That caveat notwithstanding, shared accommodation? Yuck.

[LanGuTou]

A shared kitchen is only a problem if you intend to prepare your own food. Otherwise there are always cheap restaurants and dining halls around Chinese universities and schools. Another alternative is ask them to supply a microwave or buy one yourself. They are cheap in China.

Can't say much about your room as you don't supply enough information to make a judgement. Do you know its size in square metres? Does it have a bedroom, living room and bathroom? Try getting the name of a FT already there and ask them if they are comfortable!

[tomstone]

Correct, I should have expounded somewhat; I was imagining a "rooming house" situation. I've been burned too many times by places being called "hotels"; once in the US it turned out to be the Y.

[Moon Over Parma]

[KarenB]

This is the situation we were in our first two years in China. Except I wouldn't consider it "3 star." The single FTs got what was essentially a hotel room -- two twin beds with a night stand in the middle. A small table and 2 chairs. A mini closet. A bathroom.

As a family, we got the "suite" -- which consisted of 2 bedrooms, a tiny living room, and a bathroom.

No kitchen. A shared kitchen downstairs.

The problem with this was that the staff had access 24/7 -- they would rap on the door and just use their key to walk in -- we all got caught in states of undress.

Also, the shared kitchen doesn't really work if you seriously cook. You're wanting to use the kitchen at the same time as someone else. Or the other FT is a slob and leaves dirty dishes in the sink. Or the school allows other people other than the FTs come in and use it. And there may be a place to store your own food there, but it's subject to other people helping themselves. So, you might have to lug all your food items up and down the stairs anytime you wanna cook.

What we did was all the FTs chipped in together and hired a cook for our evening meal. This worked out nicely -- we all ate together and it was a nice social time,but it might be a bit much for some folks. For lunch we went out on the street to the noodle joints or cheap restaurants. You can also eat in the dining halls, but the tables need not to get wiped down, so you're dealing with a greasy table top and someone else's chicken bones. Plus, if you show up past 11:45 for lunch, all the food is gone.

I do want to caution that not ALL unis have lots of eateries just outside them. My current one, for instance. Very inconvenient if you don't care for cooking or don't have a lot of time to do so, or don't have a kitchen.

One thing we did is buy a rice cooker and had it up in our place. It's amazing what you can cook in a rice cooker -- even popcorn!! You can make chili, stews, soups, stir fry veggies, etc.

[Jayray]

If your neighbors are "guests" rather than long-term residents or other foreign teachers, pass on the job. I've stayed in a couple of such hotels for a couple of weeks at a time. It can be a bit creepy and irritating, especially when the faces change frequently.

'nuff said.