Mixed Messages....?

[marc cuneo]

I have been planning for some time to permanatly relocate to China. I do have a degree and I have taught English in other foreign countries, so, a 1 year stint teaching English to begin with, while I get adjusted and up to speed with my Mandarin studies, is already available to me. This offer is in the city of Nanjing.

Since I eventually plan to move back into the private sector, and hopefully obtain an X-Visa while working for a foreign company with presence, I am concerned about not being based and initialy experienced in either of the cities of Bejing or Shanghai. I have been told many different things about this path from, "that's a perfect city to start from" to "unless you are in Bejing first, you can only get so far with job searching and permanant relocation".

Can anyone share with me wether or not there is any advantage to living in the more urban and international cities of Shanghai or Bejing; or, if the overcrowding and polution make secondary cities like Nanjing more attractive, even though there is slightly less advantage in living there, as pertaining to my goals?

[badr]

I think it all depends on your goals. If improving your Mandarin is priority number one, then head over to Nanjing or any other city but stay away from Beijing/Shanghai as you might not be able to get away from the English speaking crowd.

[phbriggs]

Nanjing is more developed and may provide more opportunites than you think. More recently there has been a lot of foreign investment going into Nanjing and know the city has many multinational factories/offices. Likewise with Suzhou (located to the south east).

Also Nanjing has a fairly active expat club which used the Hilton Hotel (near the eastern gate) as a base. If you plan to continue a career in Nanjing, it may be worth getting involves with the expat group for purposes of networking and allowing you to keep your ear to the ground as far as jobs go.

You didn't mention what sort of career you would like to pursue. This will also determine what city is more preferential.

Also Nanjing is only a few hours by train from Shanghai (and a few more by road). It does have opportunities as it is possibly in the middle of the development hub of central eastern China.

As a first stop, I personally would not rule out Nanjing.