I’m an educated English teacher. I started teaching English in China last year.

What you read here are facts, not based on any kind of opinion.

1. Chinese people spit in public on a daily basis. What you hear is the sound of throwing up, not simply spitting.

2. Smoking in bathrooms, elevators, hallways and anywhere else smokers wish, is very common. Most Chinese men smoke.

3. Most Chinese people shout at each other so loudly, that I expect to witness a murder in seconds. If you are not used to see people barking at each other, you will see it in China every day.

4. Most Chinese just cut you off in line. As a foreigner, you are invisible, when it comes to taking turns, waiting for anything.

5. Life in China is for the Chinese. It is their country and they show it without considering anything any foreigner says or does.

6. When it comes to complaining about a Chinese person, you WILL lose, even if you are 100% right.

7. If you go against a Chinese person, she will immediately consider revenge and she will show you that even the law will not help you in anyway.

8. I live in a big city in China, which they call ‘international’. I see only 1% of population can understand or speak English. Other Chinese say the ones who don’t speak English are shy. Whatever the reason might be, the other 99% don’t even understand the subject.

9. I have been to many pharmacies in China. I have never heard any pharmacist speaking a word of English. Medicine bottles, boxes and package labels are only in Chinese language. Even when I write the medicine names in English and they use the computers, they still don’t know anything in English. Hospitals? Good luck with that!

10. The taste of food is not the only thing you might not like, here. I have 2 students who are food inspectors. They told me they put so much gluten, beans, corn, etc in food to make it cheaper.

11. I live in the richest neighborhood in the city. Whenever I call for food delivery, they say my home is very far (which is in the same district as those restaurants!), or they just say they can’t speak English.

12. You will not receive most packages in China, shipped from other countries. Whether it disappears at the customs, post office or on the way to your home, you be the judge.

13. There are so many scams in China, it takes forever to list them here. Read about all kinds of Chinese scams online.

14. I have never met any Chinese person who likes foreigners from any country. The ones that say they like you, will be curious the same way they like baby animals at the zoo.

15. The single Chinese women I have talked to so far, openly ask for a ‘husband’ who owns a home, a car and lots of cash. And they don’t really mind the age difference. I wonder why! They won’t even complain about getting a free visa and a free plane ticket to your country!

16. Internet connection in China is like the phone line connection in the 90’s. You will need a VPN and downloading a movie, will take you 24-48 hrs on average!

17. Many Chinese items in China are a lot more expensive than the west! There are A lot of Chinese items that are only for export and are not available in China! Many Chinese ebayers only ship items overseas!

18. At the time of writing, foreigners are not allowed to buy foreign currency in China. Foreigners are not allowed to have over $3000 USD on them, while leaving China. You are only allowed to transfer a small amount of money overseas, from China and you should take paperwork from your employer, proving to the bank that it is your legal income.

19. If you decide to rent an apartment or a house in China, you should pay 2 months deposit + 1 month rent in advance. The average rent for a studio or 1 bedroom apartment in a big city in China is about $600 USD/month, at the time of writing. 2 bedroom easily goes up to $1000/month. Even if your employer tells you that they will pay for your rent, you still have to pay the 2 months deposit upfront. Some schools offer free housing in the school, that will cost you nothing. You will only have to pay for your bills like power, water, gas, internet, etc. Make sure everything is written in detail in your job contract.

20. With all the above info, if saving $500 USD a month while teaching in China is worth It, well, you might want to take that chance. I have applied for teaching jobs in other countries since the first month I came to China. I will gladly leave China tomorrow, if I get a job offer from any other country, today!