Mic
- 2005-06-25
The pollution is not that bad, if you think it is bad, then go to the North of China where the steel factories are... I was there(in Dongguan) last week for a vacation. It is a nice little modern city, but there are a few downfalls to it.
First, the so called "high" salaries are about 6000 yuan, which really isn't that high.(as the first guy mentioned) The city is basically a suburb of Shenzhen and Guangzhou, so the rich Chinese live there, but you still have your average peasants doing the basic labor.
The main problem is not the pollution, but the construction. It seems that 50% of the city is under construction. So by the year 2008, Dongguan will be a great city, but now, it is under construction.
It is in the South of China, but it actually wasn't as hot as I expected, but it is very wet with alot of rain. Also being in the South, there are misquitoes, and a large amount of the classic brown German coachroach species.
It seemed difficult to travel around the city because of lack of transport. The bus system is poor. So you basically have to ride a moto-taxi or a taxi. Which taxi meters start at 7 yuan, and go up quickly per kilometer.
Few foreigners there(which might be good), and both Chinese and Foreigners don't know where anything is, like your basic cybercafe(internet). I did notice that there was an high amount Brasilians, and it is because they have a big joint-venture with the shoe factories there.
The internet there is awful, so you better get ADSL in your apartment. I was not able to access many pages of information(such as Ebay and hotmail) that I can usually access in the metropolises (Beijing and Shanghai).
The thing I did like was the streets are generally very clean. I had not problem walking, it was not overcrowded, no one was bumbing into me, and I was not in any danger of being run over by the "blind" bicyclist....
It also had a nice SouthEast Asian flavour which is very relaxed pace, compared to the metropolises, but it still has many modern places, such as for shopping....(Wal-Mart)
I've mentioned this before, but it's worth mentioning again. If you're tempted to respond to any postings for jobs in Dongguan, such as the one that just appeared for a "high paying job," think it through carefully. The above company for example thinks that 5000 - 6000 qualifies as high paying. Not. Especially not in Dongguan where the cost of living is quite high compared to comparably sized cities in China. More importantly though is that Dongguan is the most polluted place I've ever seen. That is, the air quality is very, very bad. You'll be lucky to ever see the sun there. In the morning you can check out the black cars and see a fine layer of white pollutants that have collected overnight. Yep, you're breathing that stuff into your lungs if you go there.
Avoid it if you value your health and your pocketbook.