Guangzhou is suffering the same curses as Beijing, Shanghai and Shenzhen... Excessive competition lowering wages in a very expensive city, GWs that are only going to be there for the token 'China stamp' on their CV, a lot of dodgy schools are present and you've got the business ethics of the Cantonese which tend to be very questionable even by Chinese standards. It is just one of those safe bet large developed cities that douchebag FTs go for, probably because they are aren't aware that other locations exist.

To top it all off, you've got the added bonus of the excessive presence of the third-world and its less desirable activities (sorry to bring racial stereotypes into this). But when you have so many foreigners on not so legitimate visas, what do you expect? Alongside the stories of attempted gang rapes, those Nigerian guys robbing taxi drivers in nearby Foshan, the Africans starting riots, mainly Columbian and Russian prostitutes alongside African drug dealers hassling you to purchase their product/services every second time that you go to a club... Not to mention that due to the illegal immigration issues, every time you go to a middle-eastern restaurant or wholesale clothing market, you might as well be expecting a passport check.

Also, the Canton fair can be a nightmare, impossible to get a taxi or cheap hotel, the heavy traffic jams, the police stop and check so many people etc. That event taking place twice a year is a pain in the arse, especially if you aren't based so centrally and have to get the long distance buses to the suburbs.

However, if you find a decent job in one of the more rural areas of GZ; preferably a slightly civilised one, Xinhua in Huadu is ok, a lot of guys rate Panyu too (someone said Zengcheng, but that's too rural imo). You might have a good experience in such places as your money can stretch further there and you are kind of kept away from the BS of central GZ. Then again, some of the rural areas can be depressing (Shiling in Huadu is just exploited-migrant-worker-from-Hunan central) and you probably aren't going to get the worthwhile jobs in those places by teaching English, you need to be an engineer or factory boss or something. The guys that seemed to be having the best time appeared to be those on business visas doing part-time work at multiple places, but as China tightens up its visa laws, I really wouldn't recommend going down that path.

GZ has its attractions, but I would suggest FTs also other locations in Guangdong province, as there are several large and fairly developed cities whose ESL market is not so saturated, so to speak. I liked the look of Shunde in Foshan (has amazing food and martial arts heritage), but I turned down the job offer there for something even better, so I can't comment too much. Also, don't forget Zhuhai, Shantou, Zhanjiang etc.