living and working in china
Discussion
Never lived but done plenty of work.
Very aggressive business wise.
Work hard play hard culture.
Plenty of senior women in business that can be proper ball breakers
Companies will get their pound of flesh from you!
It is a great place and a fantastic experience to have the opportunity to work there. Would suggest getting some cultural crash courses, learn about giving and making face, and other etequite tips.
Shanghai women will hunt you down fiercely but I am told it can be great fun!
Food is interesting, it's not like your local takeaway at the end of the road!
Very aggressive business wise.
Work hard play hard culture.
Plenty of senior women in business that can be proper ball breakers
Companies will get their pound of flesh from you!
It is a great place and a fantastic experience to have the opportunity to work there. Would suggest getting some cultural crash courses, learn about giving and making face, and other etequite tips.
Shanghai women will hunt you down fiercely but I am told it can be great fun!
Food is interesting, it's not like your local takeaway at the end of the road!
Edited by GlenMH on Friday 4th March 06:04
The employer should be able to sort the visa without any problems.
Income tax is complicated from memory, surely your employer will provide tax advice?
From memory it works on a sliding scale up to 45% however from what I see in the local press the tax system is quite fluid. Getting money in and out is complicated too. I know there is a ceiling on the amount of RMB I can transact daily.
You'd certainly need tax and financial advice from someone who knows what they are doing if you are a high earner.
Income tax is complicated from memory, surely your employer will provide tax advice?
From memory it works on a sliding scale up to 45% however from what I see in the local press the tax system is quite fluid. Getting money in and out is complicated too. I know there is a ceiling on the amount of RMB I can transact daily.
You'd certainly need tax and financial advice from someone who knows what they are doing if you are a high earner.
I lived and worked in Shanghai for one year in 2008. Food was an issue for me as I am very picky on meats and fish and things, but you’ll quickly establish a number of restaurants where they have it little more ‘western style’. There are also some western style supermarkets in the big cities where you can get your familiar foods from, but they are expensive. Import tax on non-home market produce is very high.
If you are not picky with food and can eat anything then china is a great place for different tastes (so I’m told). You’ll also find food cost pretty cheap if you eat the local foods.
The heat affected me in the middle of summer, especially in a big city where the buildings block the wind that cools you down. But after a while you sort of get used to it. I was working at the F1 circuit where they had air-con in the buildings and in the cars, so mostly I was fine.
Apartment costs vary a lot depending on whereabouts in a city you are (as with many places). The place I got worked out to be about £400 per month and this was quite close to the city centre of Shanghai, well about 8min metro ride to People’s Square (the centre). Had a great view of PuDong business area also.
Crime is very low although the petty stuff like pickpocket is quite common, so just beware of this. Violent crime is very rare. But DO also beware the traffic and cyclists. The Chinese do not seem to put ‘planning ahead’ as one of their priorities when on the road. Their road culture is more of a ‘just do it and then think about it afterwards’ type of affair. There is also a lot of road position competition between drivers which again sees a lot of weird manoeuvres on the roads. Not to mention the wide disregard for many of the road rules that often are broken by the vast majority including the police.
But when you get used to all this craziness you realise as long as you are on your guard it becomes ‘normality’ and things seem to ‘work’.
Work VISAs are usually sorted out at the employing company’s end. They will ask you for all the relevant information and as long as your passport is not about to expire there should be no hidden ‘extras’.
You will find the majority of people very friendly and do learn a little Chinese language if you can. It will help a LOT if you plan to be there more than a few weeks. It’s a language that simply needs practice practice practice. I gave up trying to learn the characters, but the good thing with a city like Shanghai is that many signs are backed up in English any way. But the use of spoken language to be able to get in a taxi and tell the driver where to go etc. is an essential part of getting around. Also asking simple directions etc.
Somebody mentioned the women and the general view they have of westerners. Basically westerners are seen as ‘money pots’ a lot of the time. This attracts a certain type of woman who will approach you with little regards to formalities and proposition you with many wonderful requests. Can be a bit of fun, but again beware.
When I used to walk alone down the main shopping street in Shanghai I would get approached at least 5 or 6 times within about 1 hour. All of them wanting me to go to a café or restaurant for a ‘chat’. Some even went the direct route and asked to go straight to my hotel or apartment! (I never did oblige by the way!).
All in all it’s a great place to live for a short term. Not sure if I could live there on a longer term basis but having been back in the UK for a few years I do miss the place. I guess most of this would depend on your job, the apartment, disposable income etc.
If you are not picky with food and can eat anything then china is a great place for different tastes (so I’m told). You’ll also find food cost pretty cheap if you eat the local foods.
The heat affected me in the middle of summer, especially in a big city where the buildings block the wind that cools you down. But after a while you sort of get used to it. I was working at the F1 circuit where they had air-con in the buildings and in the cars, so mostly I was fine.
Apartment costs vary a lot depending on whereabouts in a city you are (as with many places). The place I got worked out to be about £400 per month and this was quite close to the city centre of Shanghai, well about 8min metro ride to People’s Square (the centre). Had a great view of PuDong business area also.
Crime is very low although the petty stuff like pickpocket is quite common, so just beware of this. Violent crime is very rare. But DO also beware the traffic and cyclists. The Chinese do not seem to put ‘planning ahead’ as one of their priorities when on the road. Their road culture is more of a ‘just do it and then think about it afterwards’ type of affair. There is also a lot of road position competition between drivers which again sees a lot of weird manoeuvres on the roads. Not to mention the wide disregard for many of the road rules that often are broken by the vast majority including the police.
But when you get used to all this craziness you realise as long as you are on your guard it becomes ‘normality’ and things seem to ‘work’.
Work VISAs are usually sorted out at the employing company’s end. They will ask you for all the relevant information and as long as your passport is not about to expire there should be no hidden ‘extras’.
You will find the majority of people very friendly and do learn a little Chinese language if you can. It will help a LOT if you plan to be there more than a few weeks. It’s a language that simply needs practice practice practice. I gave up trying to learn the characters, but the good thing with a city like Shanghai is that many signs are backed up in English any way. But the use of spoken language to be able to get in a taxi and tell the driver where to go etc. is an essential part of getting around. Also asking simple directions etc.
Somebody mentioned the women and the general view they have of westerners. Basically westerners are seen as ‘money pots’ a lot of the time. This attracts a certain type of woman who will approach you with little regards to formalities and proposition you with many wonderful requests. Can be a bit of fun, but again beware.
When I used to walk alone down the main shopping street in Shanghai I would get approached at least 5 or 6 times within about 1 hour. All of them wanting me to go to a café or restaurant for a ‘chat’. Some even went the direct route and asked to go straight to my hotel or apartment! (I never did oblige by the way!).
All in all it’s a great place to live for a short term. Not sure if I could live there on a longer term basis but having been back in the UK for a few years I do miss the place. I guess most of this would depend on your job, the apartment, disposable income etc.
AJI said:
When I used to walk alone down the main shopping street in Shanghai I would get approached at least 5 or 6 times within about 1 hour. All of them wanting me to go to a café or restaurant for a ‘chat’. Some even went the direct route and asked to go straight to my hotel or apartment! (I never did oblige by the way!).
Gayer. 
Bing o said:
AJI said:
When I used to walk alone down the main shopping street in Shanghai I would get approached at least 5 or 6 times within about 1 hour. All of them wanting me to go to a café or restaurant for a ‘chat’. Some even went the direct route and asked to go straight to my hotel or apartment! (I never did oblige by the way!).
Gayer. 
he will never survive in Asia .... also only 5 or 6 times in an hour?!?!?!
Edited by XJSJohn on Wednesday 8th June 06:47
haha mock away 
When you already have a chinese Lao Po its not the done thing to sneak away with the 'dirty' locals haha......well ok I re-phrase.....its not the done thing for myself and my morals to do that!
(knowing though, that many westerners do it frequently....mainly the old grey men walking around with 20 something chinese girls.....this made me cringe on more than one occasion!).
When you already have a chinese Lao Po its not the done thing to sneak away with the 'dirty' locals haha......well ok I re-phrase.....its not the done thing for myself and my morals to do that!
(knowing though, that many westerners do it frequently....mainly the old grey men walking around with 20 something chinese girls.....this made me cringe on more than one occasion!).
AJI said:
haha mock away
When you already have a chinese Lao Po its not the done thing to sneak away with the 'dirty' locals haha......well ok I re-phrase.....its not the done thing for myself and my morals to do that!
(knowing though, that many westerners do it frequently....mainly the old grey men walking around with 20 something chinese girls.....this made me cringe on more than one occasion!).
Its basically the norm for locals to have at least one or two mistresses as well, whilst the wife looks after the child!When you already have a chinese Lao Po its not the done thing to sneak away with the 'dirty' locals haha......well ok I re-phrase.....its not the done thing for myself and my morals to do that!
(knowing though, that many westerners do it frequently....mainly the old grey men walking around with 20 something chinese girls.....this made me cringe on more than one occasion!).
Shanghai women are especially fierce though!
Hunky Dory said:
AJI said:
many westerners do it frequently....mainly the old grey men walking around with 20 something chinese girls.....
I think he's calling some of you lot old and grey - are you going to stand for that ?! 
Just spent a week in taiwan with work and the company I work for does loads of business in china and asia. If you keep the customer happy they'll repay you by taking you to the best seafood resteraunt in town. This will be serving what looks like road kill, they'll then try and poison you with beer and white wine thats about 63% proof following several hundred rounds of gambay (bottoms up)to celebrate your success/arrival or departure you'll be very broken. Next day a new team of people form the customer who are not hungover is sent in to meet with you, we find this happens as they try and grind us down into submission.....
boy said:
[quote=XJSJohn]Shanghai women will hunt you down fiercely but I am told it can be great fun[quote]
That is for definite (having spent 6 months working there
) and, as XJSJohn said, the eating can be challenging but I just loved it.
Shanghai is also the safest city I have ever visited though there are an awful lot of women out late at night (2-3am) with young (2yo) kids begging for money.
That is for definite (having spent 6 months working there
) and, as XJSJohn said, the eating can be challenging but I just loved it.Shanghai is also the safest city I have ever visited though there are an awful lot of women out late at night (2-3am) with young (2yo) kids begging for money.
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