Job Discussion Forums

[murman]

Hi,

My wife and I are thinking about teaching just outside Chengdu (half an hour away). Does anyone know anything Chengdu? Would we meet many foreigners there, or would we be almost completely alone? Are the natives friendly? How does it rank amongst China's worst polluted cities?
Is it noisy?

Happy new year!

Thanks for any replies.

[Roger]

Your questions are a wee bit too subjective; you will get contadictory replies. I personally like Chengdu - it's lively and lovely, bustling but it also has quiet neighbourhoods. When I last was there it had many expats and international tourists hanging out in cafes (coffee and tea). Among China's cities, it's one of the better ones, yet not too big nor too small.
Pollution is bad anywhere. Summer gets pretty hot and stifling. but there ae worse places than Chengdu.
Outisde Chengdu, it's probably a bit lacklustre and backward, but many love small towns across SIchuan.

[whitjohn]

murman, I am bothered by your question/statement about being completely alone...are the natives friendly...If you come to China wanting to hang out with other foreigners...why come?
I live in Kunming, love the Chinese people, have NO foreigner friends (although good professional relationship with the other teachers in my school) and am never lonely. I smile at the people who live next to me in my apartment and my neighborhood. They welcome me, treat me as a friend and my students have adopted me as I have them.
China is full of warm loving people who will open their hearts and homes to you if you are the sort of people who appreciate them.

[joe]

30 minutes from Chengdu... you wouldn't happen to be talking about Shuangliu would you? I worked in Shuangliu before if you want some info on this area.

The city of Chengdu is very nice, I absolutely love it. Out of the cities in China I've spent time in (Chengdu, Xi'an, Shenzhen, and Beijing) I like Chengdu the best.

[arioch36]

Whitjohn,

Don't know what a whitjohn is, but I really appreciated your reply. While administration is administration everywhere, I have truly enjoyed getting to know the people.

You'll only be alone in China if you want to be.

[whitjohn]

Thanks arioch,
Each day is filled with the friendly people who surround me. I can honestly say that I have an excellent relationship with my neighbors and people who have shops in my neighborhood.
I will spend spring holiday with friends and students and expect to have a wonderful time meeting their families and seeing their home towns.
Lovely people in general!...except for the ones that steal bicycles...Haaaha

[metalgeek]

I live about 3 hours south-east of chengdu and go there fairly often.
There's a sizable expat comunity there, and I find the english level of the natives to be better than were I am. (but thats not to hard;)
Theres several large universities there, so lots of studnets, which menas lots of them speaking english (or they can)
It's a fairly clean city, cleaner than chongqing. has some good restraunts, and a large variety of food. It has some theaters, large dpeartment stores and such.
If you anted to, you could run an entirly expat based life there, or you could spend the entire time with the locals. Good place all around, and I would recommend teaching there.

[whchocolate]

What about the pay? How much can a teacher anticipate to earn in beautiful Chengdu? Yes, I understand this question shadows most decisions, especially a teacher with student loans. But just as Gordon Gecko said in the movie Wall Street, "Greed is gooooooooood." Hee! Hee!

[joe]

Pay is fairly good in Chengdu, and the cost of living is exceptionally low for a city of its standard compared to the rest of China.

[murman]

Hi,

Thanks for all your replies. The wages are 3,000 - 3,500 a month. The school pays for meals, accomodation and flights.

[Roger]

This salary is quite low, though above the national minimum. Since you failed to mention the number of contact hours per week I assume it's for 12 to 16 periods a week; I hpe it's a public school, preferably a college, not a primary or middle school!!!
If the workload is higher, or if you work for a private tutorial centre, expect 1.5 times the pay you mentioned as a minimum salary for up to 22 hours a week.
You wrote "flights" paid for; what do you mean by 'flights'? Do you have to helicopter from your dwelling place to the school ground, or do they pay for a round trip? If the latter, that's good - don't take it for granted though as many schools pocket that money at the end of your one-year term!
Ask them to prorate it!

[batman]

Chengdu is the best city in china ive been to...i worked there for 6 months 2 years ago. great food, great shopping, cheap stuff, lots to do. visit a restaurant called da bai sha (big white shark), its all you can eat & drink for 40 kwai. i had to be carried out a few times!

[Per Scott]

I've been in or around Chengdu for a year and a half and agree with previous posts; I'd only add that traffic can be heavy and the weather
can be dreary because of the frequent haze or fog that reduces the sunlight. If you're only visiting on weekends, these things won't matter, though.

A good, clean hostel, cheaper than the others and in a good area, is the Chengdu Dreams one. If you'll be coming often, you can buy a fold-up bike and bring it with you on the bus, and some buses let you take regular bikes. Chengdu is flat and bikes make it fun to get around quickly.
(Good Japanese and American collapsible bikes are available but rather expensive.)

Another good point about Chengdu is the number of lawyers who speak English and the excellent support the Chinese agencies (Foreign Affairs Office and Dept. of Ed.) provide, not to mention the consulates, who can give you advice if you need it. The medical facilities here are better than in the sticks, too.