Korean Job Discussion Forums

[edgellskiuk]

Tiger beer,

I get into hong kong maybe every 2 weeks, but that is because I have an office there that I have to visit. I only talk to a few expats and most of them seem to enjoy life here. I must admit I only know one teacher in my town and never really had a deep conversation with him about life.

The cantonese people always seem friendly (sometimes too friendly) in my interactions with them. Having said that, my chinese colleagues report that they have problems with guangdong people, but they also have problems with shanghai and beijing people. In the market they will try and charge me more etc but I normally have someone with me that gets me local price.

The language is something I cannot really comment on as I only know a few words of cantonese, but get by with my very limited putonghua and hand signals in general situations and use local friends when more help needed.

My thought on guangzhou is the same is was for Seoul. Some people will like it and some will hate it. I fall in the middle I like it 70% of the time, but 30% time want to get as far away from the place as possible. I could not see me living here for the rest of my life, but for a few years it has been a fun adventure.

[dean_burrito]

Quite right. 10,000 is around 14,000. I was converting 12,000 when I came up with that number from another possible opportunity.
Anyways thanks for the information and opinions everyone.
But I guess I have another question now. Is it relatively easy to travel to Hong Kong and Macau? Must you get any special visas or can you just wake up Saturday morning and decide today I'll leave the country? That is one of the selling points for me, access to other places.
Another selling point for me is learning Chinese.
So Tiger Beer, why do you consider Cantonese a down point? I also wonder how different it is from Mandarin. Do speakers understand each other?
I heard Cantonese cuisine is amongst the best so that is a good selling point there too as I'm sure they eat some strange to me things in China.
And Tom Waits, yes the beer is something I'd have to put into the equation as well. I came to Korea from the Czech Republic. If you've ever drank Gamrinus on pleasant spring day you can imagine my disappointment upon arriving in Korea.
Racetraitor, that is an ironic story about the skinhead. As much as I hate censorship, tyranny, and scamsters part of me is intrigued to witness all this first hand. Curiosity killed the cat I know but at least that cat got out fo the house and had some fun.
And thanks edgellskiuk, I just may pm you if I have some specific questions.
I'm just feeling things out right now. I'm also considering Japan and staying in Korea. I'll just have to wait for now and see what offers come in.

[chris_J2]

I know Canadian friends that taught in China for a year or 3, in the Guangzhou area, & they initially settled in Guangzhou city, but soon moved out to Clifford Estates, way out in the (relative) countryside, to get away from the serious air pollution. This was just before the new airport opened. I flew into Guangzhou from Shanghai, & it was like LA used to be. The air was so thick with smoke & suspended particles, you could cut it with a knife. Like smoking a pack of cigarettes every day, I'd imagine.

[Tiger Beer]

[losing_touch]

[Xuanzang]

GZ is the counterfeit capital of the world. The best copies of luxury goods comes out of that region. Pollution will be horrible. Coupled with the humidity - argh.

[chris_J2]

The flip side to the high summer humidity in Guangzhou, is shorts & Tshirts weather in midwinter. My Canadian friends loved that. Typhoons are more frequent than in Korea, too.

Kunming, Dalian, Nanjing & Chengdu, all get good reviews from people I've spoken with. Qingdao too, perhaps?

[Tiger Beer]

[chris_J2]

I've been to Kunming too, several times, & really liked it... as a tourist. But people I've spoken with who worked there as teachers for a year, said that the business practices are fairly unscrupulous / cut-throat, & leave a lot to be desired. Sounds just like some Korean Hagwon directors!

I've been to Nanjing & Chengdu also, & both were okay, & better than the bigger smoggy cities like Shanghai. Also knew an Aussie who worked in Yangzhong (often confused with the tourist town of Yangzhou), on an island in the Yangzi River, about 60 miles west of Shangahi. That setup looked good to me, & here's his website:

http://www.trekearth.com/viewphotos.php?l=7&p=267065

http://www.freewebs.com/briggs_updates/yangzhongcity.htm

Here are some more snapshots from around China:

http://www.trekearth.com/map.php?ctr=China&member=ChrisJ

[The Great Wall of Whiner]

[travelingfool]

Not to be a nattering nabob of negativity, but I have read that with the global economic downturn anti foreigner sentiment has been rising in China, especially in Guandong area with all of its manufacturing.

Having said that and having worked in both China and SK, I would say overall China is more comfortable to live in. By that I mean you don't get nearly as many death stares. I also had several Chinese women friends and not once did anyone call them whores for walking with a white person, which happened almost daily in Korea. Now as far as technology, transportation, health care, etc, Korea is a good 30 years ahead of China.

[Kuros]

Just remember that Guangdong is suffering more than anywhere else in China right now. All the light industry jobs are disappearing, as global capital freezes, exports slow, and Taiwanese investment flees to less regulated climes.

I can't offer any more details on Guangzhou because I've never lived there. I've lived in Shanghai and Beijing, and found both more enjoyable than Daegu, Korea (which I also enjoyed).

[Tiger Beer]

[haopengyou]

I will add my 2 cents here...I lived in China for 10 years and visited GZ quite a few times. It is a great place to visit. You can get by with putonghua - don't really need cantonese for daily living. I discovered that when before I could speak Chinese, when I visited GZ most people snubbed me. Once I learned how to speak Mandarin I have found people much more friendly. That said, I am not familiar with the bar scene.

One point to consider when comparing salaries - I have never heard of a Chinese school that will not charge you tax. I know that in SK the first 2 years are tax free. If you are really concerned about $$ you might want to look at the whole picture - find out what the tax rate is. The last time I paid tax in China - about 6 years ago - it was 8% but I have heard rumors that now it is 15% or more if you make more than 10K rmb.

GZ can be a very expensive place to live or it can be very reasonable. It is up to your taste, your ability to bargain and how resourceful you are. I have heard of medium size apartments renting for 1,500 rmb in the outer parts of the city, but still not in the "sticks". These might be difficult for a "big nose" to get though.

A number of schools in the larger cities are offering 10K for salary for native english speakers. Some include a free apartment, some don't. Some cover airfare some don't. Many of the ads I looked at did not include any kind of insurance - moral of this story= compare the whole financial picture before you decide which one is better for $$ if that is important to you.

One final thought - I have interviewed in over 20 language schools over the years. Most bosses didn't know anything (or care) about teaching. Some did. The impression I have, and the fear that is keeping me out of China for the next couple of years, is that they seem to think the recession is not going to affect them. I am afraid they are going to have to lay off teachers in the coming year - I don't think 80% of the schools are savy enough to pay attention to that.

If you do want to go to China and take one of these 10K jobs, go for it. I would not be too anxious to try to negotiate anything more the first year. If you teach there a year and do a good job, get positive responses from the teachers, students and other administrators then you have bargaining leverage. Right now you are only a white face with a big nose - an unknown.

[beercanman]

"I know that in SK the first 2 years are tax free"

Huh?