Ningbo, Jinan or Yangzhou?

[Shazmataz]

Hello, I've been offered a job with similar salaries in Ningbo, Jinan and Yangzhou. Does anyone know anything about these cities? (pollution levels, interesting things to see, climate)

 

Also, which would be the cheapest and most expensive of these 3 cities??

 

 

Thank youuuu ❤️

[889]

First choice by a mile would be Yangzhou. Smallish low density canal city with culture and history. So many great nearby places to explore on weekends. Yangzhou (and Suzhou) would always be my first picks for living in China.

 

Far down would be Ningbo. Now a large commercial centre, but interesting coastal location.

 

Forget Jinan. Just another large boring Chinese city.

[vellocet]

Ningbo is like a small Shanghai.  Shanghai prices, but nowhere near Shanghai quality. 

 

Its best characteristic is that it's 2 1/2 hours from Shanghai.  When I lived there I knew people who never spent their weekends in town.  5pm Friday afternoon they were out of there, not to return until midnight Sunday. 

[anonymoose]

Of the three, the only one I've been to is Jinan (not including a stop-over in Ningbo Airport). Jinan is not as bad as its reputation.

 

Having said that, I'd also definitely pick Yangzhou of the three. It has a good reputation as a scenic city, and probably more interesting than the large modern cities of Jinan and Ningbo.

[889]

For all of these places, anyplace in China actually, it's critical to know exactly where you'd be working and living. You could technically be in the city yet actually out in the middle of nowhere.

 

[abcdefg]

Yangzhou is known for its cuisine. Lots of good food originated there. Read up on Huaiyang Cuisine 淮揚菜 -- one of the four great traditions in Chinese cooking. The city has scenic historic older parts, small lakes, canals, parks, green space with trees and flowers. (Disclosure: I have visited twice several years apart, but never lived there. Would like to go again.) 

 

Jinan is famous for hot summers. It's one of the "Four Furnaces." Furthermore, Jinan often makes the list of the ten most polluted cities in the world. (I've been to Jinan twice; never found it attractive.) 

[889]

No dish epitomises 淮揚菜 more than 大煮干丝.

 

https://baike.baidu.com/item/大煮干丝

 

(There are times when being locked out of China really aches.)

[889]

Just to add a small history lesson:

 

Yangzhou is Jiang Zemin's hometown. So while 20 years ago the average Chinese city was being bulldozed to nothingness, a lot of money obviously poured into Yangzhou to preserve a lot if not all of its attractiveness.

[Shazmataz]

Thanks everyone. Yes I've eliminated Jinan and Ningbo.... now deciding between Yangzhou and Guiyang. They both seem beautiful 

[889]

Oh no! Ningbo's a much nicer place to be than Guiyang.

[anonymoose]

I personally love Guizhou province. Though I have been to Guiyang several times, I have not spent much time there, so can't claim to have any inside knowledge. Having said that, Guizhou is a fascinating province with many ethnic groups, probably only second to Yunnan in this respect. The scenery throughout much of Guizhou province is also amazing - not as famous as Guilin, but very similar.

 

As I mentioned in my previous post, I have not been to Yangzhou, so this in no way is meant to say Guizhou is better. But I certainly wouldn't write it off without doing some research first. If I were in your position, Guizhou would definitely be one of my top choices.

 

889 definitely makes a valid point though:

 

On 11/4/2020 at 6:55 PM, 889 said:

For all of these places, anyplace in China actually, it's critical to know exactly where you'd be working and living. You could technically be in the city yet actually out in the middle of nowhere.

 

You may nominally be in the best city in China, but if you are in a suburb with nothing around and no easy access to public transport, then that will definitely be a downer. I would much rather be in a decent location in Jinan than a shitty village 1 hour by bus from the centre of Yangzhou.

[Prole_]

A bit new here but I was looking at Guiyang as a place of residence and to study chinese there - I'm just curious why 889 doesn't much care for Guiyang