Where is the best place to study chinese?

[ouaouaron]

Hi everyone,

I want to go to mainland China to study Chinese for a whole academic year starting next Fall.

I am considering Beida, Tsinghua, Fudan, Foreign Language....

I'd like to hear your comments about the best schools, the best programs and the best cities to live in. I've been to Shanghai and Beijing, but only as a tourist...

I would really appreciate comments from students at these schools.

Thank you!

patrick~

[AlexBrit]

Dalian, Northeast China, Liaoning province.

Why get lost in the huge metros that are BJ, SH and GZ etc. Dalian is coastal, growing, not too big and not too small.

I loved my three years there.

Alex

[stephanhodges]

In addition to Universities, what other schools, private schools are there for language (Mandarin) training?

Also, it looks like Dalian is across the bay from Beijing on a map. Is there regular ferry service? If so, how long does it take, and about how much does it cost?

Thanks

Stephan

[kaifaqu crue]

There is no ferry service to Beijing from Dalian. There is ferry service to Yantai and Qingdao in Shandong Province. There is also a weekly boat to Korea (Incheon, I think). There used to be more, but they've been trimmed down in recent years. I took the ferry to Yantai once, but I forget how much it cost. It was overnight, arriving early the next morning.