Posted by
Chris on Tuesday, October 03, 2006 6:22:28 AM
I want to tell everyone who wants to start teaching English to go to Beijing. Don’t be stupid like I was. Don’t waist time. Don’t waste another minute. Lets be honest these are the facts
1.) Financially- after 2 months I was able to make more than 2,000$ a month after taxes.
How much does the average college graduate make after college?
2.) Usefulness of language Mandarin
Mandarin 1,051,000,000 native
3.) Price of Language classes
I currently pay my Chinese teacher 2.50$ an hour.
4.) Opportunity out side of Teaching English
China is now the 3rd largest economy in the world counting Hong Kong and is the still the fastest growing country in the world.
5.) History
China more than 5,000 years
6.) People
The people in china you can break them down into a few categories
Friendliness
The Chinese are generally friendly and have good stereotypes about westerners. When I first arrived in Beijing I sat down in a restaurant and within five minutes I was invited to a families table for food and drinks. I thought are they going to rip me off why do they want me to sit with them. After the meal they wouldn’t let me pay dime. I thought wow I got lucky I came to realize every restaurant was like that. You are never alone in Beijing you can only choose to be alone.
Language of choice
In general Chinese people will communicate in English only if they have to. I have been here a little over 4 months and speak English only while I am teaching. A lot of my Chinese friends refuse to speak English even though they speak quit well. They say “Your in china you must learn Chinese”.
I cant complain I love to learn. Here is some useful vocabulary when learning Chinese.
Zhi shi shenme - what is this
Ni jiao shenme mingzi – what is your name
Wo zai Beijing wo yin gai qu nar – What to I have to see while I’m in Beijing
Ni hao – Hello
Zai jian – good bye
Ni chi le ma- how’s it going literal translation did you eat yet
Bring a lonely planet mandarin phrase book when you come it will save you a lot of time and headaches.
Acceptance of other cultures..
In Beijing you can find every kind of food and culture imaginable. You can find Chinese food unlimited in variety. Hunan, Sichuan, and Xin Jiang are my personal favorites. While Hunan and sichaun tends to be on the spicy side Xin Jiang is heavy on the meat. But Beijing still has all the western favorites pizza, beer and restaurants galore in san li tun. My favorite place to eat pizza is Krows by Peking university. 5 yuan for a draft and I giant pizza for 4 people is about 10 bucks with the works. I also love Schillers it’s a German restaurant in san li tun where the food is Czech caliber.
That’s saying a lot czech food is great.
A good barometer of how accepting people are is interracial marriage and dating. I currently have a Chinese girl friend and I was amazed at the response by the people. I read stories in Korea about people getting spit at. In china however it’s completely different. The Chinese in general see this as a good thing. My girl friends Father said “well your baby will be smarter, better looking and have the ability to speak English and Chinese at L1 level.” Even if this is not true it’s a great insight on how the Chinese think. Essentially the best of both worlds concept. A concept we are still struggling to figure out in the west.
Your experience in another country is a direct reflection of your peer group. I have never been to a country I did not like. There are liars, cheaters and thieves everywhere. So choose your peers wisely.
Re: Are there a lot of other US/UK people working there?
Beijing is full of Expats from almost every country on the planet. I have good buddies already from Nigeria, America, England, Ireland, Canada, Denmark, Italy and Kenya to name a few. There is no reason that anyone should have trouble making friends in china.
I think its important to point out that in china teaching English is a gateway to become part of the action. You can use the free time and flexibility to your advantage. Learning mandarin and becoming chummy with students and employers will no doubt lead to a good future outside of English.
Re:What are rents like?
In Beijing like any other international city its all about location.
I am currently living in Fu Li Cheng. It is about a ten minute walk from the china world trade center. I pay about 250$ a month for a shared apartment. This is one of the best places in Beijing both for living and salary.
My friend lives of the subway station li shui qiao. This is about a 45 minute subway ride to guo mao. He lives in a brand new apartment his rent is 112$ a month for a two bedroom shared.
I will look for more examples I hope this was helpful
“If a window of opportunity appears, don't pull down the shade.”