Introductions

Welcome, CaTigeReptile (can we call you CTR or something shorter to type than your full name? No worries, we're big on nicknames here and sooner or later something will stick - that's how you know you've been accepted  ) and welcome, fullricebowl. Always great to have more females at the bar.

Thank you! And of course! Everyone on the interweb calls me CTR! I should probably stop posting in the intro thread now, though!

Welcome CTR, great moniker. I favour all posters who have animals in their names 

Everyone on the interweb calls me CTR! I should probably stop posting in the intro thread now, though!

Good thinking!  Start your own thread.  Heck, name it after yourself.  Chatterboxes are encouraged (you know, so long as there's some excuse for content).

hello everybody.  my name is Brian.  I am a somewhat recent (2009) graduate from the good old University of Texas at Arlington.  I am wanting to move to China to teach English and study Mandarin.

I've been doing a lot of research about different aspects, positives and negatives, etc.  I hope to live in maybe a second or third-tier city, as I'd like to travel around a bit too.

anyway, this site has been a great resource so far and I look forward to finding more out about everything and everyone!

oh yeah, this is my blog about my research so far, feel free to give any input or correct any factual mistakes.  http://nihao-brian.blogspot.com/

   Brian

G'day Brian and welcome.   You will find so many folk here who are willing and able to help you.

Hi there Inkpen and welcome to the Saloon Read your blog Now, you said in it that Nanchang held some fascination for you...having lived in that city for a year, my main question is why??? It's not pretty, it's noisy and...well...I personally think there are way better cities to scope out. What qualities or aspects in a Chinese city are you looking for? Indoor heating, mountains to trek in, lots of ancient Chinese cultural stuff, great music, a complete boon town where learnin Mandarin will be essential for basic survival and cheese will be non-existent....China has it all...

Welcome to the Saloon, Inkpen. You have indeed joined the best (IMHO) resource for expat living in China. Ask all the questions you like and we'll do our best to help you; meanwhile, you will become a resource for us and others who follow. Aaaaand...we get another member to enrich our community of Saloonies. Welcome to the tribe. 

Welcome inkpen. The only thing (other than Stil) you need to worry about is picking up the bar tab. If you notice, half our smilys are booze related. I'm not saying we're a bunch of alcoholic degenerates,    oh wait, yes I am    

Welcome Inkpen. great bunch of loonies individuals here with an awesome collective knowledge of China. Enjoy

hmmm...I was thinking Nanchang because it was relatively small and I could immerse myself talking to locals and practice Mandarin, but the more I read I see that Nanchang people might speak Gan.  so...I was thinking Chongqing now, a bit bigger but that would allow for more travel opportunities.  however I see another dialect is spoken there.

anybody from Chongqing that could tell me whether or not it would be a good place to study Mandarin informally/conversationally with locals instead of taking classes?  anybody have any teaching experience there??

basically I am looking for is a decent climate and people that speak somewhat standard Mandarin so I can practice and learn.

but the suspense is killing me; I can't wait to finally arrive in Zhongguo!!

Chongqing isn't just a bit bigger, it is huge, really really huge. They speak Sichuanese there but practically everyone in China speaks some dialect or another. If you're really worried about standard Mandarin the only real place to be is the Northeast. That said, I spent my first 5 years in Kunming where everyone speaks dialect and while I picked up a slight Kunming accent it didn't really make a huge difference in the grand scheme of things.

The thing about places where dialect is spoken is that usually people will speak to you in Mandarin and to each other in the local dialect. The Mandarin they use when they speak to you will be accented, but it should be understandable unless you're in the countryside where people might speak no Mandarin at all. 

The Northeast is the place to be if your focus is on picking up your mandarin and practicing it with locals and just in normal everyday life in its purese form.

Well, Inkpen, also take climate into consideration. Chongqing is one of the furnaces, meaning that during the summer time birds are prone to burst into flames if they fly out of the shade

Welcome Inkpen. great bunch of loonies individuals here with an awesome collective knowledge of China. Enjoy

Did someone say loonies?

Welcome Inkpen!

Take your pick.  You can be so far out in the boondocks than you'll be the only foreigner in a town of a few hundred thousand (or even a couple million) or you can be in places that have huge expat zones.  You can teach anything from kindergarten up through university, or you can work at a language mill with adults (mostly).

Important things to remember.

1.  Practice eating M&M's with chopsticks for a month before coming over.  Some places won't have forks, plus you'll impress your new friends.
2.  If someone offers "white wine", tell them you really enjoy it and want to drink a lot of it right now.
3.  If you are in the desert, don't step outside without water.  If you are in China, don't leave home without a pack of tissue.
4.  Wednesday is "Get naked at work day" in all Chinese language studies.  Strip down at the beginning of class and encourage your students to do the same.
5.  Follow odd advice from Lunatics, but be a little wary of even advice.

Welcome aboard, Inkpen!   One other tip: consider what climate you want to live in.  I have vowed never to live anywhere hotter than Suzhou; the sticky summer makes me bitch and moan.  Others, especially Aussies and Afrikaaners, bitch about the damp winter.