China: What to expect?

[Mandaloopy]

Come mid August I'll have relocated from "Great" Yarmouth to Qingdao. Never been to the mainland before but am aware there are some China hands in the TD. Qingdao looks like a nice developed city, looking forward that after a couple of years in Mandalay- hello public transport! Food looks decent, as does the beer the city is famous for.

How does it compare to SE Asia in general?

[aging one]

Colder in winter. All Chinese.

[uncle junior]

You'll be hungry again an hour after you eat

[jabir]

Sounds like MK.

[raycarey]

What to expect?

i'm going to guess that you'll see loads of people doing things in the middle of the street that you'd normally expect them to do in the bathroom.

[HuangLao]

Historic Middle Kingdom.
Explore.

Humility will be your best companion.

[david44]

Awful weather dark pollution fair nushi

Great seafood beer and gambling ops

Depending on your journey to work you may wish to invest in a bike

Foreigners were'nt allowed to drive outside a few cities when I was there.

If you can devise a device to hold Starfux coffee out of the spat out chicken bones yer on a winner

In meantime enjoy Acle and Potter Heigham Bridge, I'll be sailing on the Orwell i early August if you fancy a scoop at Pinmill the Butt and Oyster is where I'd retire if terminally alcoholic and legless you can sail to the beer garden luxury !!

Mei Guanxi

[Thailandbound]

How does it compare to SE Asia in general?

A bit of a vague question, but if you have specific ones I'll be happy to answer. Four years now in China.

[Thailandbound]

Come mid August I'll have relocated from "Great" Yarmouth to Qingdao. Never been to the mainland before but am aware there are some China hands in the TD. Qingdao looks like a nice developed city, looking forward that after a couple of years in Mandalay- hello public transport! Food looks decent, as does the beer the city is famous for.

Enjoy! I hear Qingdao is pretty clean comparably to other places in China. It is on the coast so you'll get a breeze which will blow the air pollution away. Pretty touristy as well.

[Cujo]

Be prepared for the fact that out and about virtually no one speaks English.
Everything is done in a way unlike you'd expect.
It's fucking bizarre.

[Luigi]

HJ's in the barber's.
Neon window lit brothels in every little town.
A lot of grayness.
A lot of hands being waved in your face.
A lot of being laughed at.

[david44]

A lot of being laughed at.

Agree with all your other points,any manicure, hairdrsser/masseus is often a knocking shop

Being laughed at were you on tour as a Mandarin juggling jongleur , or improvising as a clown?

P.S. Yu may see Tai Chi and ladies aerobics and if lucky people walking backwards really .It really happens saw it mself most mornings around 0730 on way to Uni

[Latindancer]

Be prepared for the fact that out and about virtually no one speaks English.
Everything is done in a way unlike you'd expect.
It's fucking bizarre.

Indeed. Things can be quite contrary to what you'd logically expect.
Two examples from Taiwan :

.....You walk down the aisle in a movie theatre looking for your seat numbers but can't find them. Then you realise that the odd numbers are on one side of the aisle and even numbers are on the other.

......I walked into a barber, mimed the act of cutting with scissors and showed him how much I wanted him to cut off, saying "ee dien dien", meaning "a little bit".

But that is what he LEFT me with. REALLY short hair !
Oh well....it was a hot Summer.

[Hugh Cow]

China! What memories. A memory forever imprinted in my mind is of a wonderfully exotic meal with a company owner and his family at a private room in a top up market Restaurant..... The huge banquet of exotic foods placed in bowls on the table carousel...... The way the family dipped their saliva encrusted chop sticks in each bowl as they samples each delicacy, coughing gently over the food. The hypnotic sound of phlegm being cleared from the back of a dozen throats in between mouthfuls of food...... Oh those heady days so sadly missed.

[YourDaddy]

China! What memories. A memory forever imprinted in my mind is of a wonderfully exotic meal with a company owner and his family at a private room in a top up market Restaurant..... The huge banquet of exotic foods placed in bowls on the table carousel...... The way the family dipped their saliva encrusted chop sticks in each bowl as they samples each delicacy, coughing gently over the food. The hypnotic sound of phlegm being cleared from the back of a dozen throats in between mouthfuls of food...... Oh those heady days so sadly missed.

I hope he's got a good health insurance.

[Thailandbound]

Yu may see Tai Chi and ladies aerobics and if lucky people walking backwards really .It really happens saw it mself most mornings around 0730 on way to Uni

Ha! They don't just walk backward, they don't watch where they are walking. Chinese act entitled for some reason, so they expect you as a foreigner to move out of their way. The Chinese people are either looking down at their phones, or just not caring who is coming as they will expect you to wait for them or move out of their way. I see it happen with people are walking, biking and driving. Many of them will look anywhere, but forward when walking. So, they may bump into you unless you move for them. This is one thing I don't see as much of in other SEAsian countries. The number of times I've come close to smacking into a Chinese while walking or biking is too many to mention.

[Thailandbound]

Be prepared for the fact that out and about virtually no one speaks English.
Everything is done in a way unlike you'd expect.
It's fucking bizarre.

Yeah, definitely. Not that many people speak English in Shanghai, which is surprising, so I'd imagine it'd be way worse in a smaller place. Prepare yourself to learn at least basic words. There are many videos on youtube.

[Mandaloopy]

Actually will be starting some Italki lessons next week. Oddly enough, Great Yarmouth is thin on the ground on tutors. Housing options look great with the housing allowance given. I can't imagine the housing will be more grim than where I lived in Mandalay.

[HuangLao]

Yeah, definitely. Not that many people speak English in Shanghai, which is surprising, so I'd imagine it'd be way worse in a smaller place.

Imagining the newly place Chink in Winnipeg where no one speaks Chinese....

[Thailandbound]

Actually will be starting some Italki lessons next week.

Have you heard of Duolingo? It is also a really great site to learn some Chinese.

https://www.duolingo.com/course/zh-C...Chinese-Online

[Thailandbound]

Imagining the newly place Chink in Winnipeg where no one speaks Chinese....

They all go to Hongouver.

[david44]

Grate Expectorations

[baldrick]

ah - locate a japanese massage/health place

start with a hot and cold naked swim and massage by chin boys who will look at your cock

finish on the upper levels of the establishment with a woman blowing warm water on your ringpiece and a blowjob

[alwarner]

I just spent 2 years in China, I enjoyed it.

People are nice once you get to know them - pretty standoffish to start with. Colleagues will be a bit different I suppose. Mine went out of their way to help.

Food is a mixed bag, sometime it feels as though there aren't any knives in Chinese kitchens, just hammers.

Beer is cheap.

[Latindancer]

pretty standoffish to start with. Colleagues will be a bit different I suppose. Mine went out of their way to help.

Chinky people in Taiwan are like this...it must be a Confucian thing. You feel like an alien at first, but once you are part of a certain social group, it's ok. And getting to know women is much the same. Find a common interest and be part of their social group. But prepare to be scrutinised by everyone there. Your affair/relationship will be observed by everyone.