Originally posted by omarthefish
[B]$9500 is plenty including airfare. Here in Xi’an it has the buying power of about 8 times that. The lifestyle would be the equivalent of having a 75k/year job. I live an upper middle class lifestyle on about $5000/year. I support my GF and we live in a 3 bedroom apt. (1 bedroom and we both have our own private rooms/studies in addition to the living room)
In Bejing or Shanghai your $9500 could probably let you live the same way I do in Xi’an on my $5000.
I could hook you up with some really seriously good taijiquan in Xi’an but he doesn’t speak English so who knows. Others may have different views on what that’s like. I don’t know. I would only be around to help translate on weekends. Jarek’s site is a good source. There is also some very high level Chen in town I could introduce you to and I know the Chen guy has a fair number of bi-lingual students so the language issue is not as big as with my own teacher.
Important questions:
How old are you?
Do you have a college degree?
If your at least in your mid 20’s then it will be easy to secure a job teaching English. You have the money but you don’t have a visa. Your choices are to enroll in a foreign language program ( I reccomend it) or to teach English. A degree will give you signifigantly better bargaining power for your contract. A tourist visa is only a month from the US but for some strange reason in Hong Kong you can get one that is good for 6 months. I still think it is better to hook up as a student if you can afford it (annual tuition around here runs about $1800) and then maybe teach a bit on the side for extra cash…or be a teacher. The social network is not to be underestimated.
Either one of these options will do a few things for you.
-an instant network of “friends” to help you find your way around when you can’t really speak the language.
-housing
-sanitary food.
-a VISA!!!
-a bit of structure to your day. The value of this is not to be underestimated. The culture shock can be rough enough as it is. Having something to do helps a LOT.
Lot’s of people reccomend against studying the language at a school but there is a HUGE difference between the getting by Chinese you learn on the street and the proper Chinese you can learn at school. It’s not like you don’t get to practice on the street and in cheap bars if you go the school route. But to each his own.
I second the reccomendation for Jareks site. I have been here about 5 years. He’s been doing it apparently for twice that. I can definately show you some pretty incredible Yang style though. The Chen in Xi’an I know by reputation only. I have met a couple people who found their Chen teacher here in Xi’an actually through Jarek. [/B]
This is really dangerous advice!!! As foreigners , particulary for the first time in China, and being that even our embassies advise us how teaching contracts are tentative, volitile in conditional forthcoming from employers / schools, and when they do dodge or not come through on various conditions, foreigners have no cover what-so-ever. I have been in touch with BL since her banning, and this woman had her school not process her visa extension for whatever reason , not uncommon, and so her foreign experts card revoked and is daily battling to keep herself alive while negotiating with embassies , on both sides to little avail, just to get out of the country.
Besides, work hours in China are very different to the west, often having you work until 9:30 pm , up to 14 days in row, with four days offf, 2 - 3 of which you need to recover. So when are you really training anyway?? And that’s before we even get to the food quality, by which you can expect to sick or food poisoned regularly for your first 6 mths or so.
A tourist visa ( L visa ) is a much safer bet as it’s only you and the embassy and doesn’t rely on anything someone else may or may not do.
It is, I hear, despite the difficulties you can expect to encounter, a trip worth taking. Good luck and plan well. You can find information at any emassy website or at www.lonelyplanet.com
Ps: if you don’t have alot of language , an english > chinese electronic dictionary will be your closest friend.
Pps : the condoms ( bl tells me ) are just fine
oh and beijing/ shaghai etc are extremely expensive compared to most of the country. the ****her out from the city you go the cheaper it is, just be sure there’ll be a shifu available or you have language to ask for one and understand the reply. Henan is dirty, but in dengfeng , like at Dechengs’ school, you can bargain your way to 600rmb per week with accom and training. local meals between 5- 30 rmb .
eventually ended up stalking the streets at 2:00 am looking for a 7-11). It was funny in retrospect..haha. 
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