Hey Dusty,

Definitely contact those schools yourself. Worst thing that happens is you'll be told "no thanks". Most likely they'll be happy to see you...or will know someone who will be.
But do go straight to the schools...as I wrote in your other thread, recruiters are bad news and usually unnecessary anyway.

For the small city/Shanghai thing, might actually be best to do it the other way around. After some time in a smaller city, Shanghai is going to seem wonderful and amazing. But once you've become accustomed to the comforts the Shanghai area has to offer, it's going to be reeeeeaaal hard to retreat back to a small city in the hinterlands.

I lived in Shanghai a good while, I'm still in the area, and I am convinced that this is THE area to be in in China. But I do cherish my experiences elsewhere and I'm glad I got them first.