Greetings from Qingdao
So Jason asked me to write a blog. I’m not really sure that anyone will care what I get up to in my oh so fascinating life, but he thought it would help potential CSAers get know a bit more about life in China. Also I enjoy talking about myself. So it’s a win-win situation. I get to ramble on about my life and dreams and Jason gets…….well a load of drivel probably, but I will leave that up to you for judgement.
Anyhow, so just a very brief introduction about me. I am from England, and after graduating from Manchester University, spent a year working in trading before deciding to come to China to study in order to improve my career. One and a half years later I am still at it. I spent a year in Beijing before deciding to come to Qingdao where it is much cleaner and less crowded, and there are loads less foreigners, which means more chances to practice Chinese. I got an internship here. In the mornings, I study Chinese and in the afternoons, I work. Seeing as how I work in Chinese, it is very good practice allowing me to improve my levels of speaking and writing. To give people an idea of what Qingdao is like, it is the only attractive city in China that I have been to. It is by the ocean with clean air and few crowds. It was mainly built by the Germans so the city looks very European at certain locations. Makes me feel much more at home. It is also quite a bit cheaper than most of the big cities which is great. At a guess, it has about 1000 foreign students so much less than Beijing. In addition, you can get a pitcher of Qingdao beer, made that day for 15 Kuai. It is really good and one of the best things about this city. That is only beaten by the keg which you can get for 80 Kuai. I have not actually hosted a kegger yet but it is in the pipline. I will update on that when it happens.
- Nick