Xuzhou

Hello everyone, need some advice. Anyone got any information on living/working here? And how it differs to Suzhou? We've been offered teaching jobs in both places and was wondering which would be better?

Cheers!

SUzhou. No question, at least not IMHO.

There are really 2 Jiangsu Provinces...North and South.
Xuzhou is North Jiangsu, Suzhou is South Jiangsu.

South Jiangsu is rich, educated, pretty developed, faster-paced, has lots of foreigners and foreign goodies, and based on high-tech industry and tourism.
North Jiangsu is poor, less educated, much less developed, bucolic, will take a 2-hour bus ride to buy cheese, and is based on smokestack industries and agriculture.

South Jiangsu is culturally tied with Shanghai and with northern Zhejiang province as far as Hangzhou (taken together possibly the richest and most advanced area in China).
North Jiangsu is culturally tied with Anhui province and eastern Hunan province (taken together perhaps the poorest, most backward, most staring-intesive area in eastern China).

Much depends on you and the kind of experience you want, of course, but personally I wouldn't take anything much north of Nanjing, the city where the 2 Jiangsus meet. The South is just too much more interesting, comfortable to live in, and full of opportunity.
My opinion...

Great advice and suggestions Raoul, thanks very much 

I used to work in Changzhou, in Jiangsu province. A lot of my students were from Xuzhou.  Before my ear could tell the difference, I would tell anyone claiming Xuzhou as their hometown: "Wow!  I've heard it is a beautiful city, I'd love to visit."  They would stare at me blankly for a few moments, then say "Oh, no no.  Not Suzhou.  Xuzhou."

If even residents have no idea why anyone would be saying something positive about their city, it is a pretty good sign that it isn't one of the more desirable teaching locations.

But, I will say that I had a friend in Xi'an who made BANK teaching in Xuzhou.  There aren't many foreigners, so he did a lot of private work for businesses and language schools.  But, despite the easy money, he left when his primary contract was up. 

Wow, very interesting. It seems I am heading to Xuzhou also. Thanks for the insight. I spent 8 months exploring Northern China, so I understand some of these comments. Hmmm.... well, I guess I will see what happens. It's only a year contract. I suppose if it is really horrible I can find someplace else after a year.