[Kelent]

China is a huge country, and people are often drawn to the first tier cities for the obvious reason that there's a perceived (or actual) better quality of life, standard of living, and access to healthcare. The country has thousands of years of history and cities with over a million people are considered "small"; it can be daunting to think of where to go outside of cities that are first tier or maybe top of the second tier if you know specifically what it is you'd like to see or need to go for a business trip.


I've never seen a thread like this that compares cities in China (nor really first-2nd tier cities in general) so thought I'd make one. If one does exist, feel free to link back to it. I think that while naturally people are drawn to first-tier cities, second and even third-tier cities can offer a lot of great experiences.

As someone with an interest in China, I'd like to know from other forum members if they've lived outside of the first tier cities where they went/lived and what their experience was like. If you've been elsewhere in the region and can compare, that would be nice to hear about.

[Aquarius]

(10-16-2018 12:12 AM)Kelent Wrote:  

China is a huge country, and people are often drawn to the first tier cities for the obvious reason that there's a perceived (or actual) better quality of life, standard of living, and access to healthcare. The country has thousands of years of history and cities with over a million people are considered "small"; it can be daunting to think of where to go outside of cities that are first tier or maybe top of the second tier if you know specifically what it is you'd like to see or need to go for a business trip.


I've never seen a thread like this that compares cities in China (nor really first-2nd tier cities in general) so thought I'd make one. If one does exist, feel free to link back to it. I think that while naturally people are drawn to first-tier cities, second and even third-tier cities can offer a lot of great experiences.

As someone with an interest in China, I'd like to know from other forum members if they've lived outside of the first tier cities where they went/lived and what their experience was like. If you've been elsewhere in the region and can compare, that would be nice to hear about.

I've lived for 3 weeks in Chongqing 5 years ago, and I'm from a first tier city in Mainland China.

Chongqing definitely felt less developed and less cosmopolitan than the city I'm from. During the day, whites, especially white guys, get stared at during the day as a curiosity. Many local girls would run up to white guys and ask for them to take a selfie. Both phenomena are almost unheard of in the city I'm from.

The expat scene in these second and third tier cities are small and not very good, consisting of mostly English teachers, followed by airline pilots and then expat managers at factories and companies. On average you'll be seeing a couple of other white people at most, usually a white guy with a local girlfriend, a day at most in the center.

I never tried Chongqing nightlife so I don't know. I've heard the main nightlife area is in Hongyadong near Jiefangbei, and is where most of the expats congregate. If you live in Chongqing, you'd want to live at Jiefangbei. But the city itself is extremely unnavigable without English, and daygame would be impossible due to how rare English is for the average girls on the streets. However, if you speak good enough Mandarin to daygame, you'll probably be in for a treat, although provincial Chinese girls might get a little bit scared getting approached by a white guy.

If you like Asian girls, this is one of the better cities in Mainland China for quality. Lots of sexy outfits, but the majority of girls there will have a peasant, provincial look to them. If you want cosmopolitan Mainland Chinese girls who speak English, then Shanghai would be your best bet, by far, followed by Beijing.

There's a datasheet/thread on Chengdu on this forum. Chongqing is similar but a bit more provincial, industrial, and a good bit smaller expat scene.

[Kelent]

(10-16-2018 02:50 PM)Aquarius Wrote:  

(10-16-2018 12:12 AM)Kelent Wrote:  

China is a huge country, and people are often drawn to the first tier cities for the obvious reason that there's a perceived (or actual) better quality of life, standard of living, and access to healthcare. The country has thousands of years of history and cities with over a million people are considered "small"; it can be daunting to think of where to go outside of cities that are first tier or maybe top of the second tier if you know specifically what it is you'd like to see or need to go for a business trip.


I've never seen a thread like this that compares cities in China (nor really first-2nd tier cities in general) so thought I'd make one. If one does exist, feel free to link back to it. I think that while naturally people are drawn to first-tier cities, second and even third-tier cities can offer a lot of great experiences.

As someone with an interest in China, I'd like to know from other forum members if they've lived outside of the first tier cities where they went/lived and what their experience was like. If you've been elsewhere in the region and can compare, that would be nice to hear about.

I've lived for 3 weeks in Chongqing 5 years ago, and I'm from a first tier city in Mainland China.

Chongqing definitely felt less developed and less cosmopolitan than the city I'm from. During the day, whites, especially white guys, get stared at during the day as a curiosity. Many local girls would run up to white guys and ask for them to take a selfie. Both phenomena are almost unheard of in the city I'm from.

The expat scene in these second and third tier cities are small and not very good, consisting of mostly English teachers, followed by airline pilots and then expat managers at factories and companies. On average you'll be seeing a couple of other white people at most, usually a white guy with a local girlfriend, a day at most in the center.

I never tried Chongqing nightlife so I don't know. I've heard the main nightlife area is in Hongyadong near Jiefangbei, and is where most of the expats congregate. If you live in Chongqing, you'd want to live at Jiefangbei. But the city itself is extremely unnavigable without English, and daygame would be impossible due to how rare English is for the average girls on the streets. However, if you speak good enough Mandarin to daygame, you'll probably be in for a treat, although provincial Chinese girls might get a little bit scared getting approached by a white guy.

If you like Asian girls, this is one of the better cities in Mainland China for quality. Lots of sexy outfits, but the majority of girls there will have a peasant, provincial look to them. If you want cosmopolitan Mainland Chinese girls who speak English, then Shanghai would be your best bet, by far, followed by Beijing.

There's a datasheet/thread on Chengdu on this forum. Chongqing is similar but a bit more provincial, industrial, and a good bit smaller expat scene.

Thanks for your response!

How would you say 2nd tier cities are in comparison to quality of life between each other, or between say 2nd tier cities and Shanghai/Beijing? I've often heard that in 1st tier cities while you have a lot of amenities the pay for doing something like say English teaching or any non-business related work is low (could be wrong) compared to other areas in China as well as to other English teaching destinations. Does the quality of life make up for the pay?

How much Mandarin would someone need to be considered conversational enough to daygame? I'd assume a good thousand hours of study or persistent practice? You also mentioned how Jiefangbei (and Chongqing in general?) was 'unnavigable without English'- how do you mean?

[Aquarius]

Quote:

Thanks for your response!

How would you say 2nd tier cities are in comparison to quality of life between each other, or between say 2nd tier cities and Shanghai/Beijing? I've often heard that in 1st tier cities while you have a lot of amenities the pay for doing something like say English teaching or any non-business related work is low (could be wrong) compared to other areas in China as well as to other English teaching destinations. Does the quality of life make up for the pay?

How much Mandarin would someone need to be considered conversational enough to daygame? I'd assume a good thousand hours of study or persistent practice? You also mentioned how Jiefangbei (and Chongqing in general?) was 'unnavigable without English'- how do you mean?

Jiefangbei is the most developed and central area of Chongqing. This area is already hard to navigate without English alone, and the rest of Chongqing would be even harder. This is the likeliest area to meet other expats, or English speaking local girls who are open to expat guys.

Besides Jiefangbei, I'd say the runner up in Chongqing is the part of Jiangbei District near where the Hyatt Regency is.

Very few locals speak English, with only an exception of a handful of white collar workers and those who work in establishments like 5 star hotels and high end foreign restaurants. Of course, the expat-oriented bars in Hongyadong would see more English speaking girls. Street signs are almost all written in Chinese only, although the metro has decent English translations.

I'm a native, first language speaker of Mandarin, so I don't know how many hours you need to study, but I'd say that if you want to enjoy interior China at any level, speak enough Mandarin to be able to order food at restaurants, ask for directions, and read street signs on your own, which can be done in a few months if your persistent enough. Preferably, you want to be conversational enough to daygame and to start conversations with locals (or argue back when they start an argument with you). This probably will include at least 1 year of persistent practice.

[atlant]

Chengdu's the best in China period, but I wouldn't even try without Mandarin.

[66Scorpio]

There's the saying "nice place to visit, but I wouldn't want to live there." Some cities fall in that category, some are the complete opposite and some are both or neither.

The city that stands out to me is Xiamen. Nice weather, good air quality, sizeable expat community, and a decent number of post secondary institutions.

Qingdao is another city to look at.

[scengja]

I have traveled all over China countless of times and speak Mandarin as well.

Just like with everything in China things are changing FAST in a lot of the so called second tier cities. Obviously in places like Shenzhen and Guangzhou you have very large expat populations, an abundance of western style eateries etc, keep in mind that these places attract people from all over China.

I personally like Chengdu (pretty girls, great food, a more enjoyable pace of life compared to a lot of other cities). Hangzhou is also cool with an interesting tech scene and a high standard of living among most locals (Can mention Nanjing here as well, not too bad). Coastal cities like Xiamen and Qingdao are pleasant compared to a lot of Chinese cities, they are also improving very fast.

There are some other big cities that I have visited that I did not get any real feel for, for example: Chongqing, Zhengzhou, Tianjin, Xi An and Wuhan. For me these were just big Chinese cities with no real charm.

If you were to stay long-term in China you kinda need to learn Mandarin. Sure, the English levels are improving fast but can still be shockingly low. The only place I would recommend if you want to stay a few months with zero Mandarin is Shanghai, which can still be frustrating enough with English only.

[Cyclone]

Chengdu and Chongqing are probably the top 2 cities for women based on what I've heard. If I was in mainland just for the girls, I'd easily fly there immediately - supposedly they got big tits and I've met girls that would fuck dudes in the bathrooms and shit, and show off to each other about how many foreign guys they've fucked. Qingdao I would also second - it's one of the more romantic cities and China and during my short time there met 2 girls that I would have seriously married.

If you've got a big wallet I'd seriously consider Hong Kong as well. Has a great atmosphere, comfortable, and the girls' personalities are amazing especially if you do a lot of cold approach pickup.
.

[asiaslayer]

Chengdu is already chock full o' foreigner last time I visited. I didn't see much of a difference between the city and a tier 1 like Beijing or Shanghai. It's a popular destination among young foreign students, backpacker scum and other riff raff. You won't really stand out there or be a novelty nowadays. Lots of chicks were jaded from foreigners or just didn't care.

@Cyclone those sound like old rehashed stories from pre 2012.

[phluff127]

I second chengdu being the best city in China. It has the reputation amongst Chinese people as having the prettiest women and best food. The food has been honored with a UNESCO award. It also has twice the bars as shanghai does and is half the size.

[zamfir112]

Ive been in smaller 2nd and 3rd tier cities, the english spoken is zero, so if you cannot speak mandarin you have no chance, chinese girls are also not so sexual even in clubs so gettting them with just body language or google translate will not work in those smaller cities
Best place for chinese girls is Hong Kong, most people speak english and its way easier

[scengja]

(10-17-2018 08:43 AM)zamfir112 Wrote:  

Ive been in smaller 2nd and 3rd tier cities, the english spoken is zero, so if you cannot speak mandarin you have no chance, chinese girls are also not so sexual even in clubs so gettting them with just body language or google translate will not work in those smaller cities
Best place for chinese girls is Hong Kong, most people speak english and its way easier

Hong Kong girls (actually most of Guangdong) is a step down in terms of looks compared to most other parts of China. Getting with an 8 or above on a Friday night in Lan Kwai Fong is near impossible, lots of competition from guys who have their shit together (banker salaries, fit, dress well etc.). It might seem like girls in Hong Kong are more open to ONS but actually if you stay in the city during a longer period of time you will notice the same girls over and over when you go out. Most good looking hot HK-girls tend to be in relationships or study abroad.

Also second what was said by asiaslayer in regards to Chengdu, it is not like just showing up and being white will be enough 2018, it is not like some second tier Philippine city.

[Aquarius]

For tier 2/3 cities, I second Qingdao, Xiamen, and Hangzhou being the nicest ones, and I'd also add Ningbo to this mix. Ningbo is however tiny and I would consider it to be a developed 3rd tier city than a tier 2.

Among the interior cities, Chengdu is definitely the most developed and cosmopolitan. Kunming has nice weather.

Shenzhen is not worth it. You pay Shanghai prices and you get a second tier city in return. I really don't get the hype of that city. If you are in the PRD area and can't or don't want to live in HK, I'd go with Guangzhou, which at least is cheaper than Shenzhen while being the same size, and arguably has the strongest Cantonese cultural influence in the region after HK. Shenzhen girls are probably slightly hotter but we're really splitting hairs here: Cantonese girls (majority of Guangzhou) are not hot, but Shenzhen has masses of peasant girls from Hunan and Guizhou.

[atlant]

asiaslayer Wrote:

Chengdu is already chock full o' foreigner last time I visited. I didn't see much of a difference between the city and a tier 1 like Beijing or Shanghai. It's a popular destination among young foreign students, backpacker scum and other riff raff. You won't really stand out there or be a novelty nowadays. Lots of chicks were jaded from foreigners or just didn't care.

@Cyclone those sound like old rehashed stories from pre 2012.

Sounds like you're not doing much "slaying" these days if the sight of a foreigner puts you into panic mode this quick.

Don't be riff raff and you'll stand out. If that's asking too much, I hear that the moon still hasn't been ruined by those pesky foreigners.

[scengja]

Perhaps this has been discussed in other China-threads but it would be interesting to hear from other forum members if anyone managed to do well in places with very very few foreigners? I have been to a lot of 3rd tier cities where the rockstar treatment is real, meaning everyone staring at you, guys wanting to drink with you, girls pushing each other into you by "accident" when you go out or giggle and ask if they can take a photo with you. Interestingly this almost never translates into lays, it is almost as if you are TOO foreign or strange for them or something. Perhaps it is also the stigma attached, no one wants to be the village girl sleeping with the few foreigners travelling through.

[asiaslayer]

OP asked about life and experiences outside 1st tier cities. I'm just giving him the reality of the situation these days; some tier 2s are rapidly becoming like tier 1s as globalization increases and people try to flee their situations back home. It isn't anything special. Of course the country is still vast and untapped in a lot of places, I'm sure there are still many hidden gems.

Btw, it appears you're based out of Taiwan but take frequent trips to the mainland. That wouldn't have anything to do with some perceived notion that it's easier than Taiwan due to less competition for you, would it? lol

[Kelent]

(10-17-2018 08:43 AM)zamfir112 Wrote:  

Ive been in smaller 2nd and 3rd tier cities, the english spoken is zero, so if you cannot speak mandarin you have no chance, chinese girls are also not so sexual even in clubs so gettting them with just body language or google translate will not work in those smaller cities
Best place for chinese girls is Hong Kong, most people speak english and its way easier

Assuming I would be able to find good work in Hong Kong, how is the work-life balance available to club there? Would working in Korea and going to Hong Kong for partyingand R&R be possible?

(10-17-2018 10:15 AM)Aquarius Wrote:  

For tier 2/3 cities, I second Qingdao, Xiamen, and Hangzhou being the nicest ones, and I'd also add Ningbo to this mix. Ningbo is however tiny and I would consider it to be a developed 3rd tier city than a tier 2.

Among the interior cities, Chengdu is definitely the most developed and cosmopolitan. Kunming has nice weather.

Shenzhen is not worth it. You pay Shanghai prices and you get a second tier city in return. I really don't get the hype of that city. If you are in the PRD area and can't or don't want to live in HK, I'd go with Guangzhou, which at least is cheaper than Shenzhen while being the same size, and arguably has the strongest Cantonese cultural influence in the region after HK. Shenzhen girls are probably slightly hotter but we're really splitting hairs here: Cantonese girls (majority of Guangzhou) are not hot, but Shenzhen has masses of peasant girls from Hunan and Guizhou.

I've heard a lot about Chengdu, but haven't heard anything about the other 2nd tier cities you mentioned to make a judgement call so I'll take your word for it. With regard to Shenzhen, are there not other smaller cities that act like satellites to Shenzhen? Close enough to say get to via metro?

[Aquarius]

(10-17-2018 05:50 PM)asiaslayer Wrote:  

OP asked about life and experiences outside 1st tier cities. I'm just giving him the reality of the situation these days; some tier 2s are rapidly becoming like tier 1s as globalization increases and people try to flee their situations back home. It isn't anything special. Of course the country is still vast and untapped in a lot of places, I'm sure there are still many hidden gems.

Btw, it appears you're based out of Taiwan but take frequent trips to the mainland. That wouldn't have anything to do with some perceived notion that it's easier than Taiwan due to less competition for you, would it? lol

Because China is such a large country, if Chengdu is becoming too cosmopolitan and you still want Sichuan girls, there's still Chongqing which for all intents and purposes is Sichuan's second city after Chengdu. If Chongqing somehow managed to become westernized in the future, there's so many third and fourth tier cities in Sichuan Province alone that have at least 500K in the urban area.

Examples: Mianyang, Nanchong, Dazhou, Suining, Bazhong etc. and I'm missing quite a few more, all of which have at least 500K in the urban area, some of them over 1 million. This is Sichuan Province alone, accounting for less than 10% of China's population.

Also, the more cosmopolitan the city is, the better the game opportunities are. Sure many of the girls might be jaded, but the number of foreigner groupies and English levels become higher, so you'll have a bigger pool to work with. And more girls will start to have fashion sense that Westerners are more used to. Chinese girls, while they dress sexy, their fashion sense and general grooming can sometimes appear strange to Western guys.

As long as you like Asian girls, you really can't moan about China; there's something for everyone. There's Hong Kong for those who want to game exclusively in English and wants a white girl every now and then. There's Taipei for those who want more "westernized", wealthier, and better looking Chinese girls or those who do not want to experience the chaotic Mainland Chinese culture and the govt policies of the CCP.

There's Shanghai for those who want a cosmopolitan and somewhat familiar environment while being in the middle of Mainland China with all of its pros and cons. There's Beijing for those who want a less Westernized/expat-friendly version of Shanghai with the same level of wealth and everyday amenities. Finally there's countless tier 3/4 cities for those who really want to go hardcore.

[Polero]

As an example of third tier city in China I'll tell you guys my experience:

Two years ago I spent four days in Guilin, Guangxi province. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Guilin
This city has around 4 million people (Small/very small for Chinese standards), it's located in south western China, about 3 or 4 hours by fast train from Shenzhen.
The city has nothing really special, other than being near to Yangshuo. In those four days I met no girl whatsoever that could hold a conversation in English, not one. Online game and night game (Very little going on). I guess an an experience it can be interesting but for girls, going to such places without Mandarin, it's suicidal. Sure, there will be some girls who speak the language but you will need a serious amount of time to find them and be ready for lots of rejections based on not being able to communicate.

I've also spent a few days in Tianjin, this is a larger city near Beijing. Around 10 million people. It was still challenging to find English speakers.Considering Chinese girls are not very sexual (for the most part) and the need to speak the language, I recommend sticking with the biggest cities in the country + Hong Kong or going somewhere else in Asia. I personally like Taiwan.

[Dafeiji]

(10-18-2018 12:19 AM)Aquarius Wrote:  

Because China is such a large country, if Chengdu is becoming too cosmopolitan and you still want Sichuan girls, there's still Chongqing which for all intents and purposes is Sichuan's second city after Chengdu. If Chongqing somehow managed to become westernized in the future, there's so many third and fourth tier cities in Sichuan Province alone that have at least 500K in the urban area.

Examples: Mianyang, Nanchong, Dazhou, Suining, Bazhong etc. and I'm missing quite a few more, all of which have at least 500K in the urban area, some of them over 1 million. This is Sichuan Province alone, accounting for less than 10% of China's population.

Also, the more cosmopolitan the city is, the better the game opportunities are. Sure many of the girls might be jaded, but the number of foreigner groupies and English levels become higher, so you'll have a bigger pool to work with. And more girls will start to have fashion sense that Westerners are more used to. Chinese girls, while they dress sexy, their fashion sense and general grooming can sometimes appear strange to Western guys.

As long as you like Asian girls, you really can't moan about China; there's something for everyone. There's Hong Kong for those who want to game exclusively in English and wants a white girl every now and then. There's Taipei for those who want more "westernized", wealthier, and better looking Chinese girls or those who do not want to experience the chaotic Mainland Chinese culture and the govt policies of the CCP.

There's Shanghai for those who want a cosmopolitan and somewhat familiar environment while being in the middle of Mainland China with all of its pros and cons. There's Beijing for those who want a less Westernized/expat-friendly version of Shanghai with the same level of wealth and everyday amenities. Finally there's countless tier 3/4 cities for those who really want to go hardcore.

Excellent post, and sums up most of the expat-friendly areas of China pretty well. I will also echo what other posters have said, which is that in most 2nd and 3rd tier cities, your Mandarin needs to be on serious lockdown to get consistently good results, and if you're just there for short-term stays, be prepared to be frustrated. I am Chinese-American, and while I am just about fluent, I still lack a bit of the cultural knowledge needed to really be good at pulling SNLs in these kinds of cities. It's possible, as I have a few Chinese friends who do very well for themselves, but it also depends where you are.

I went out in Wuhan (large 2nd-tier, not as foreigner friendly) a few weeks ago, and although the nightlife scene was popping big-time, girls weren't very receptive to opening in English, due to either not knowing it at all, or seeing my Chinese face and getting lazy and switching into Mandarin immediately. This compared to Chengdu (large 2nd-tier, much more foreigner-friendly), where I had much more success opening in English, before switching into Mandarin on my terms (allowing me to control the interaction a lot better). But if you can't hold much of a conversation in Mandarin, I would still advise that you stick to the first-tier, if not just Beijing and Shanghai (or HK/Taiwan) as Aquarius said, as there is plenty there to keep you occupied no matter what you're looking for.

[Cyclone]

(10-18-2018 12:09 AM)Kelent Wrote:  

(10-17-2018 08:43 AM)zamfir112 Wrote:  

Ive been in smaller 2nd and 3rd tier cities, the english spoken is zero, so if you cannot speak mandarin you have no chance, chinese girls are also not so sexual even in clubs so gettting them with just body language or google translate will not work in those smaller cities
Best place for chinese girls is Hong Kong, most people speak english and its way easier

Assuming I would be able to find good work in Hong Kong, how is the work-life balance available to club there? Would working in Korea and going to Hong Kong for partyingand R&R be possible?

(10-17-2018 10:15 AM)Aquarius Wrote:  

For tier 2/3 cities, I second Qingdao, Xiamen, and Hangzhou being the nicest ones, and I'd also add Ningbo to this mix. Ningbo is however tiny and I would consider it to be a developed 3rd tier city than a tier 2.

Shenzhen is not worth it. You pay Shanghai prices and you get a second tier city in return. I really don't get the hype of that city.

I've heard a lot about Chengdu, but haven't heard anything about the other 2nd tier cities you mentioned to make a judgement call so I'll take your word for it. With regard to Shenzhen, are there not other smaller cities that act like satellites to Shenzhen? Close enough to say get to via metro?

a) if you do get a job in HK, make sure it's at least 4000 USD/mo, and no, living in Korea and flying to HK frequently is simply not something people do. R&R and Hong Kong should not be in the same sentence.
b) I believe VacancierPerminant is in Hanzhou, and he says the girls are dismal compared to Shenzhen. So they must really suck. He often flies down here.
c) OP, you will probably not want to dip out into the "satellite cities" of SZ. Everyone wants to be in downtown SZ, it's a more colorful scene and countryside girls are fugly. Not sure what you're fascination is with bumblefuck towns in southern China, you might want to give us a bit of background on yourself first.
.

[worldtraveler3]

(10-18-2018 04:59 AM)Cyclone Wrote:  

(10-18-2018 12:09 AM)Kelent Wrote:  

(10-17-2018 08:43 AM)zamfir112 Wrote:  

Ive been in smaller 2nd and 3rd tier cities, the english spoken is zero, so if you cannot speak mandarin you have no chance, chinese girls are also not so sexual even in clubs so gettting them with just body language or google translate will not work in those smaller cities
Best place for chinese girls is Hong Kong, most people speak english and its way easier

Assuming I would be able to find good work in Hong Kong, how is the work-life balance available to club there? Would working in Korea and going to Hong Kong for partyingand R&R be possible?

(10-17-2018 10:15 AM)Aquarius Wrote:  

For tier 2/3 cities, I second Qingdao, Xiamen, and Hangzhou being the nicest ones, and I'd also add Ningbo to this mix. Ningbo is however tiny and I would consider it to be a developed 3rd tier city than a tier 2.

Shenzhen is not worth it. You pay Shanghai prices and you get a second tier city in return. I really don't get the hype of that city.

I've heard a lot about Chengdu, but haven't heard anything about the other 2nd tier cities you mentioned to make a judgement call so I'll take your word for it. With regard to Shenzhen, are there not other smaller cities that act like satellites to Shenzhen? Close enough to say get to via metro?

a) if you do get a job in HK, make sure it's at least 4000 USD/mo, and no, living in Korea and flying to HK frequently is simply not something people do. R&R and Hong Kong should not be in the same sentence.
b) I believe VacancierPerminant is in Hanzhou, and he says the girls are dismal compared to Shenzhen. So they must really suck. He often flies down here.
c) OP, you will probably not want to dip out into the "satellite cities" of SZ. Everyone wants to be in downtown SZ, it's a more colorful scene and countryside girls are fugly. Not sure what you're fascination is with bumblefuck towns in southern China, you might want to give us a bit of background on yourself first.
.

4000 is just about ok for Hk. A 1 bed apart on Hong Kong island will cost around 2000.

[Kelent]

(10-18-2018 04:59 AM)Cyclone Wrote:  

(10-18-2018 12:09 AM)Kelent Wrote:  

(10-17-2018 08:43 AM)zamfir112 Wrote:  

Ive been in smaller 2nd and 3rd tier cities, the english spoken is zero, so if you cannot speak mandarin you have no chance, chinese girls are also not so sexual even in clubs so gettting them with just body language or google translate will not work in those smaller cities
Best place for chinese girls is Hong Kong, most people speak english and its way easier

Assuming I would be able to find good work in Hong Kong, how is the work-life balance available to club there? Would working in Korea and going to Hong Kong for partyingand R&R be possible?

(10-17-2018 10:15 AM)Aquarius Wrote:  

For tier 2/3 cities, I second Qingdao, Xiamen, and Hangzhou being the nicest ones, and I'd also add Ningbo to this mix. Ningbo is however tiny and I would consider it to be a developed 3rd tier city than a tier 2.

Shenzhen is not worth it. You pay Shanghai prices and you get a second tier city in return. I really don't get the hype of that city.

I've heard a lot about Chengdu, but haven't heard anything about the other 2nd tier cities you mentioned to make a judgement call so I'll take your word for it. With regard to Shenzhen, are there not other smaller cities that act like satellites to Shenzhen? Close enough to say get to via metro?

a) if you do get a job in HK, make sure it's at least 4000 USD/mo, and no, living in Korea and flying to HK frequently is simply not something people do. R&R and Hong Kong should not be in the same sentence.
b) I believe VacancierPerminant is in Hanzhou, and he says the girls are dismal compared to Shenzhen. So they must really suck. He often flies down here.
c) OP, you will probably not want to dip out into the "satellite cities" of SZ. Everyone wants to be in downtown SZ, it's a more colorful scene and countryside girls are fugly. Not sure what you're fascination is with bumblefuck towns in southern China, you might want to give us a bit of background on yourself first.
.

A) Will do, and understood. I figure were I to go to Korea Seoul would have more than enough nightlife.
B) Gotcha
C) So, my main thing is that I'm not sure how far my salary would go (whether I somehow get work in finance or bite the bullet and teach English or something), and generally in the US and Eastern Europe where I have lived, staying out in the less developed areas of cities while a dip in quality of life doesn't leave you fully disconnected from the action. I assume this does not hold true in SZ.

[Dart]

(10-18-2018 12:48 AM)Polero Wrote:  

Two years ago I spent four days in Guilin, Guangxi province.

I spent two months in Guilin last year. I didn't get laid, but that's only because I'm a newbie with weak game. However, I dated two girls who really fell for me and wanted to be my girlfriends.

I can speak a little Mandarin, and that was a major reason that those girls liked me so much. A white man who can speak Mandarin has countless dating opportunities, both casual and serious, in China.

(10-18-2018 12:48 AM)Polero Wrote:  

Considering Chinese girls are not very sexual (for the most part)

In Oriental countries, there is a significant difference between appearance and reality. Casual sex is common, but everyone is very discreet about it. Many women lead double lives, and their naïve husbands or boyfriends have no idea.

[Cyclone]

(10-18-2018 08:55 AM)worldtraveler3 Wrote:  

4000 is just about ok for Hk. A 1 bed apart on Hong Kong island will cost around 2000.

Yes, if you insist on staying in downtown of HK Island of all places

(10-18-2018 10:21 AM)Kelent Wrote:  

A) Will do, and understood. I figure were I to go to Korea Seoul would have more than enough nightlife.
B) Gotcha
C) So, my main thing is that I'm not sure how far my salary would go (whether I somehow get work in finance or bite the bullet and teach English or something), and generally in the US and Eastern Europe where I have lived, staying out in the less developed areas of cities while a dip in quality of life doesn't leave you fully disconnected from the action. I assume this does not hold true in SZ.

Yeah, the only problem with Seoul is the lack of English on the streets compared to HK. Otherwise I actually met a lot of cool people on the foreigner strip in Seoul
SZ is an expansive city with lots of rich districts scattered across the still-generally-poor city. Which means all the rich parts are mixed in with the poor parts that cost the same as 2nd-tier cities. The only absolute factor that is higher "downtown" is the rent. If we must compare to HK, you'll want a gig that pays around 2500 USD/mo, maybe less if it's a job you love / don't care to save money
.