Some Golden Rules for Living in China

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So, you’ve recently arrived in China and feel quite happy and excited to be here. It’s the world’s most populous country, one with a economy that is still growing fairly fast and it is also (if you happen to be lucky enough to live in Shenzhen) the place to be when it comes to hardware innovation. Whatever city you are in, there are a few golden rules that if followed correctly can contribute a vast amount to the overall enjoyability of your time spent living here.

Be aware of the laws:

It is basic commonsense to avoid breaking the law almost anywhere in the world, but it can be easier to fall foul of regulations than you may think. Many expats get themselves into bother through rather avoidable mistakes such as failing to do their household registration in time, working on the wrong type of visa or the use of recreational drugs. Simply being aware of the rules can prevent one from breaking them in the first place.

Adapt to local expectations:

Other than rules, there’s going to be certain things that you are just going to have to get used to; China simply does certain things differently. You’re going to be required to present your passport a lot, just for the simple tasks of checking into hotels, buying train tickets and so on. Chopsticks will be the most commonly offered form of cutlery and no matter how much this country modernizes, people will always use them. 
That may be unless you visit a Western kind of place of course, but things won’t be exactly the same at such places either. Bread will probably be sweeter than what you are used to back home and the beer will often taste rather light. As for vegetarian diets, most people don’t understand them and possibly don’t even care.

Break free of the expat bubble:

Now, I must apologize if the above section scared you a little bit. If you are really new, it may have even made you consider buying an early flight ticket back home. Before you do, let me tell you that there is a cure; and that is to break free of the ‘expat bubble.’ 

It is not hard to see why many foreigner would often prefer to hang out with those from similar background; they are more likely to share something in common, cultural misunderstandings can be avoided and so on. Despite this, taking such an approach may ultimately amount to burying your head in the sand and will not help you to actually feel more comfortable in your new environment.

Therefore, it is important to try to make some Chinese friends and attempt to socialise with them. Their idea of a good social activity may not always be the same as yours, but this leads on to the next tip…

Try new things:

In China, you may find that you may be given the chance to try things that you would not normally get to do at home. Drinking small cups of tea served in a traditionally Chinese manner? You won’t ever get your boss doing that for you in his office in the West. Singing Karaoke in a private room? It is not the same as going to the local pub on a Friday night, I’ll say that. Sharing a hotpot with a large group of people? Most Western people would find the idea of it all to be rather strange.

What’s more, certain things that were prohibitively expensive can be enjoyed on a regular basis in China. For the ladies, spa treatments and massages can easily be done every week, not just when it is somebody’s birthday. For the gentlemen, buying tailor made suits rather than what is offered off the rack becomes a lot more affordable than it used to be. Yet what everyone can also do is… 

Get around more:

Don’t just stay in one city. Take buses and trains to nearby locales; get to know about their specific heritage and culture if you can. If you don’t enjoy the weather and lifestyle offered where you live and work, you can easily select from a wide list of different cities to seek a new job in. This will allow you to improve your quality of life by finding somewhere that meets your expectations without abandoning that whole China experience.

If going past the city limits sounds like too much for you; the great thing is that many Chinese cities are larger than many European countries both in terms of population and area. Smaller rural towns and villages can often be found without going too far away from the centre of your city;  meaning that if you feel that the modern, developed city centres don’t quite offer you the China experience that you had been hoping to find, there’s a way to escape all that for the peace and tranquillity of the countryside.

Concluding remarks:

My ‘Golden Rules’ are not about restricting what you do in any way, but are actually written with the intention of allowing you to get the maximum amount of enjoyment out of your time in China. It doesn’t matter what you do while you are here; if you loosely follow all of those rules, chances are that are you are going to have an absolutely wonderful time living in this country. Have fun!