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| Small cities are pretty good…and cheap! | ||
| Sarah, May 9, 2004 Handan, Hebei Province PRC SO it works like this…you get to China and you realize you're in a small city, but there are 1.4 million people living in this small city! Coming from Canada, where a small city is more like 250 000 people, this can come as quite a shock! But when we got here I got some good advice, "Go shopping and spend some money!". That may sound weird, but small cities are very inexpensive to live in. Of course, we bring money with us to sustain until our first payday, but who would think that the little money we bring would ACTUALLY last until payday! Coming from a developed country into small town China means a new way of life. Yes, there is a KFC here…but that's about it from the outside world. This city is traditional, and only just coming into the 21st century. There are 2 large Modern department stores and the rest is in the street or small "mom and pop" stores along the street. People are friendly and they let foreigners bargain. We, foreigners, are still in a strict minority in this city. With 4 English schools (private) we have maybe only 45-50 Foreign teachers to speak of, and we never see each other! So I said that small cities are pretty good, and cheap…well it's true. It's a good place to start in China, so long as your school is a good one (but that's a risk no matter where you are!). Plus, you'll enjoy the money you make and even save some to boot! We plan on trying out a bigger city next time, but for our first time round, this was the perfect place. One last note- we're only a 1.5 hour train ride from the nearest McDonald's/Pizza Hut…but we've never made the train ride yet! You learn to enjoy the Chinese food and culture without missing McDonalds! But of course, you may end up at KFC! Haha |