China; A General Overview

Madeleine Knight
Nov 15, 2016
6 min read

This post is less specific than usual but briefly covers many topics I plan to write much more in depth about in the next few weeks, such as pollution, getting a job and social media blockage.

Fashion

I have found bigger fashion sections in shopping malls here in China than in any other country so far. With similar prices to the Western World in many of the name brand shops, get yourself to a local market where the prices drop dramatically. For women, everything tends to be with a high neck-line but skirts/shorts can be VERY short. For men, there doesn't seem to be much of a difference to most places, just jeans and a tshirt will do.

Friendliness

I have read a lot that the Chinese people in general are unwelcoming... I could not have found this wonderful country any different! The people I have been in contact with - in banks, shops, restaurants, on the street, street food stalls, Couch Surfing hosts etc - have been so understanding of my lack of Chinese, with a lot of smiling and laughing as we both don't quite get it right.

Being foreign in an Eastern world

You will get a lot of attention. Mainly from locals who want you to use their services, but also just walking down the street you will be looked at, a lot. Especially if you are blonde or ginger, and female. I have found a few times that people ask for photos of with me, which I find perfectly ok personally, and kind of entertaining. This also opens doors to feeling comfortable with taking portraits of the local people, too, which is something I have been really interested in as a photographer.

Social Media Blockage

It's realtively common knowledge that Facebook is banned in China. I did not realise however that so is Instagram, Youtube, Spotify and Google. Yes. Google is also banned. This is something I didn't prepare for and when it came to needing to know information fast I was at a complete loss - Yahoo and Bing just don't compare. HOWEVER you can download free VPN apps on your phone and laptop (as long as you have the latest software updates) which give you the opportunity to access everything you used back in your home country when connected to Wifi.

Food

The food is cheap and quick and pretty similar at every restaurant/street food place you go to; steamed rice, fried rice, noodle soup, soup, dumplings. Also the spice is insane compared to the UK; I asked for 'a little spice' one time and I couldn't eat what was brought out because my face was numb after one bite (note: I am bad with spice, so you may find this not to be such a problem for you). BUT there is very little dairy here, so - for someone who is lactose intolerant - there is a good chance you can eat at least 95% of the menu, instead of the usual 5% in Europe, America or Australia, which is very refreshing! It can also be cheaper to eat out, compared to buying vegetables or meat in the supermarkets (20RMB for 2 avocados, compared to 22RMB for a large bowl of noodle soup and a fried rice dish at the restaurant across the road, for example).

Water

Water is, much like the food, very cheap, so don't bother drinking from the taps as you can never be too sure if it's clean or not. A 1.5L bottle of water is around 3RMB throughout China, unless you're in a particularly tourist-y spot, then they'll pump up the price to 6 or 7 RMB, because they can.

Sleeping

So I'm used to a standard mattress throughout my travels, from Europe to South America, North America to Australia... Otherwise I have been camping - such as in Africa. But in China, it seems the mattress is around the same thickness and comfort as a foam camping sleeping mat; from the long distance train from Guangzhou to Kunming, to our Couch Surfing hosts spare room. Also, ear plugs are a must. I can generally fall asleep anywhere, but to stay asleep can be difficult with so much city/plumbing/locals noise.

Toilets

Say goodbye to the comfort of your Western Style Toilet Throne! Here, they use squat toilets. Which seem rather hygienic to be honest; no touching of toilet seat lids, or toilet seats, or flush buttons... Just you, some leg muscle work outs, and a hole in the floor (which sometimes does smell pretty terrible, but that's standard for public toilets worldwide it seems!).

Safety

Although - as previously mentioned - you are likely to get a lot of attention here if you are a foreigner, I have never felt so safe before! Not even in my home country of England do I feel as safe as I do in China. Obviously it's best to still be careful in areas you don't know, or when alone and at night etc, but generally I don't feel threatened in any way and will be found happily wandering the streets of the shopping district to the streets where locals bring their produce from the farms! Which is an incredibly nice feeling.

Finding Work

I will write a much more extensive post on this subject, but for now here is what I have learnt;

1. Work is easy to come by as a teacher whether you have a TEFL certificate or not.

2. There are plenty of other jobs than just teaching (acting, modelling, voice overs etc).

3. You get paid a lot more for part time vs full time work (200/250RMB per hour vs 60/80RMB).

4. Chinese bosses tend to be rather vague, ask a lot of questions, seriously.

5. Generally your work visa is tied to your company, so if you quit say goodbye to your Z Visa!

Animal Welfare

If you've ever heard of Pizza; The Worlds Saddest Polar Bear, then you can guess what the rest of Chinas general view of animal welfare is. If you haven't heard about him; He is a 3 year old Polar Bear, kept in a tiny florist blue enclosure, in a shopping mall, with no fresh air or sunlight, or snow, or anything.... Welcome to China. There is also the Yulin Festival where they kill and eat a hell of a lot of dogs... But, to be fair, there are many Chinese people who protest against both of these situations, and once animals are in the right hands they are looked after like royalty. It's just unfortunate that a large majority of animals are very much thought of as second class citizens. Just, don't go to a zoo here, ok?

Spitting

This is something I absolutely hate. It is so commonplace in China though, everyone spits, everywhere, all the time, making that horrible throat noise before hand. Ew. It makes me cringe thinking about it. Luckily you aren't permitted to spit on public transport, thank god.

Domestic Violence

Domestic violence is strife in China. You wouldn't assume so as - from the outside - many Chinese women have a lot more freedom than in other Asian and Middle-Eastern countries, but never assume you know what goes on behind closed doors. And, if you happen to see an altercation on the street - such as a woman being slapped or grabbed or anything at all - do not get involved as you will become the enemy. You are the foreigner. You don't know what is going on. Suddenly you are the one being slapped and grabbed by a crowd of people.

Pollution

So China is crazily big on the pollution thing. Although some cities such as Shanghai and Beijing have restricted motorbikes/scooters to help lower the pollution levels, from what I have seen and experienced there is nowhere in the world quite as bad as this (Maybe some part of India, but still). It effects you too, if you're not used to it, it can make you feel dizzy and light headed, give you a chesty cough and generally you shouldn't stay outside for too long - but also, inside you're breathing the same air, so what difference does that actually make, I'm not sure.

If there's anything on here you think I may have missed, or that you had a different experience with while in China, please let me know by heading over to the 'Contact' page!