So, for the last 8 months I have lived in Yangzhou, sadly the beer here is horrible, the taste is horrible and it averages about 3.2% so a night of drinking beer results in a headache and a horrible bloated feeling before any sort of drunkenness.
This week my girlfriend and I visited Qingdao, a coastal city to the north of China. Qingdao is the home of the most popular beer in the world, Tsingtao, a company started by the Germans in 1903.
Qingdao is littered with people sitting on the street with their barrels lined up selling beer at 20p a pint, the taste is amazing and is normally around 5%.
Now, if you don't want to sit at these "street bars" and drink, like many of the locals, the done thing is to have the boss fill a plastic bag of beer for you that you can then carry home to sup on.
Add this to all the amazing seafood on offer and Qingdao is not only the best city I've ever visited in my life, it is also a beer drinkers heaven.
The other major plus for was all the men have nice big beer bellies, so unlike in Yangzhou, I fit in perfectly.
Roll on September when I finish my contract in Yangzhou, the girlfriend and I will be on the first train to Qingdao, hopefully already with a job secured.
Who wouldnt want a life like this:
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We also visited the Tsingtao factory/beer museum, which was fanstastic, tons of pictures from there on facebook for those of you that know me.
It's a pretty sweet deal, my job is a joke due to how easy it is, I spend 5 hours a day (5 days a week) just talking with students about anything I/they want to talk about.
In return I get paid 9,000 RMB month, the average salary for a local in around 2,500 - so you imagine the sort of lifestyle I get to live.
Coming to China was very much our own choice, although I'd love to do something similar in Thailand one day.
Tsingtao ftw.
The Tsingtao in Yangzhou is utter piss, like all the beer, so here I mostly drink spirits with tea.
Boom boom!
I can't believe it's been that long either, it has literally flown by, which is part of the reason we've decided to stay for another year!
Sadly we flew back to Yangzhou last night, so no more beer in a bag for a few more months :-( hope the move went well for you!
I did a TEFL teaching course, which is a 100 hour online course and a 20 hour weekend course to get qualified to teach here, along with my degree. Saying that many people teach here illegally with no qualifications or a degree.
Probably a bit more to it I know.
I also do an 'adults business' class once a week, which involves teaching them language they'd need at an airport or a hotel, it's aimed at businessmen who travel abroad.
Most of it's pretty easy and enjoyable, plus in my free time I can get private teaching gigs at roughly 300RMB (£30) an hour, although I prefer to use my free time seeing China or drinking, someone more money orientated could make a lot more than I do. I don't see the point when I only spend about 1/3 of my wages anyway.
Even a very basic three star hotel in HK costs around 100 quid per night these days.
Anyway, sounds like you are having a great time, good on you for having the balls to get out and see the world - especially such a unique place.
If you have not been to Shanghai yet then do try and go, its an amazing place.
It's in a barrell. They put it into a bag when you order it.
I've been to Shanghai a few times, it's alright, just doenst feel like China to me. Far too western.
Off to Beijing soon when my parents come to visit, really can't wait for that.
I was living there when that conference centre was being built Gary. It was where Patten and Prince Charles handed HK back to China. Great looking building as I used to get the ferry in past it each morning.
I remember being amused the first time I got a takeaway Pepsi in a plastic bag here. It's now just second nature. But I have never had a beer in a plastic bag.
I hope it's better than my view of Shanghai.