ESL in Xiamen, Fujian province, what do you know?

[Hero Doug]

I'm just wondering if anyone knows what it's like for ESL teaching in Xiamen (Fujian province).

Do they have a lot of high end private schools there? (Such as Web for instance).

What's the salary like there?

For instance in the city I'm in it's not hard (for me) to get 10,000 a month for a 25 hour week.

Also, what about universities, they could also be a suitable place to work. Do they have a lot of universities in the city, or in the suburbs near the city (I can handle a 40 minute ride into town, but have no interest in living more than an hour outside the city).

I haven't been there yet (it'll probably my next trip) but would like to know from others who have been there what kind of foreign comforts there are (food mainly). A Metro usually does the job quite well.

Also, if you know anything about what it's like for Chinese workers who want to do foreign trade I'll take that info as well. Thanks.

One more thing actually. What was the Chinese like there? I know southerns have a bad reputation when it comes to speaking Mandarin; just wondering how the Xiamen'ers do when it comes to this?

Edit: yet one more thing. To those who have been there, what things did you like and dislike about the city.

Even things as subtle as it being windy and cold int he winter is really good info.

Edit again: like this from Wikpiedia, "Using car horns is also banned [in Xiamen]." It's so beautiful

Thanks.

Edited October 21, 2009 at 10:16 AM by Hero Doug