To me, Suzhou is a great balance...there's some expat scene, fer sure, but there's also plenty of genuine Chinese culture going on here.
It's not too big (nerve-wracking) or too small (boring).

I'd imagine the women in your place have an appalling entitlement mentality.

Oh, one sees some of that these days, but this is really more identified with Shanghai women. Suzhou still has plenty of nice small-town girls.

And if I want someone to come in and work, I'll hire an ayi. ;-{D