laotou has a good point.
Dealing with Chinese officials rule number 1.
If you can't get what you want, try asking a different question, or the same question differently.
e.g.
With my Chinese wife at the train station to make a journey. The ticket counter said there were not more seats on any train that day. Shock horror! We could not get home. Then I asked my wife to enquire about 'soft seats'. Yes they had soft seats on all trains that day.
Don't worry if they say 'Impossible'. 'Impossible' does not mean 'no'.
However, 'difficult' often does mean 'no'.
A bit of confusion here because you used the term 'private schools'.
Now is perhaps a bad of year to be looking. Most of the public sector schools/colleges and private sector schools (not language training centres) are now thinking about recruiting for September. Because of the academic year most have contracted staff running until June.
You may need to consider working at training centres, at least until Sept.
Some of the universities and colleges also have 'spin offs' that may recruit on an ad-hoc basis. For the next semester (in two weeks). I have also recently come to Kunming and was lucky, as I am replacing a Chinese teacher who have been promoted to set up a new 'school' within the college, and even this is only part time.
Part-time is the other route. Working part-time is a good option. You can work for several employers at the same time. The rates of pay are higher, and you have the power to say 'no'. You also get to check out the culture in several institutions, before you decide for next year. The downside is that PT work won't get you a visa.
I can't give you any answers, as I am new to Kunming. But one thing I would add, is that you find out about specific campuses as well. There is one well know school with about 30 campuses.
The culture in each campus can be different. I once worked for an international company (not a franchise) and the local director was openly hostile to foreign teachers. She even espoused her disdain. She said that we were all a waste of time and refused to process any 'Z' visa. She said that the company was not a visa service for expats.
In another place the admin/sales manager was a real piece of goods, who would raise customer expectations to overly high levels, just to get her commission. But when the teacher fails to deliver the unreal, who gets blamed?
In both the above cases, it was individuals at the campus level that were the problem
You can buy the same, or better, stuff in the regular markets. If you are buying leather goods, Yunnan produces some great leather goods that are of original design and high quality for much less.
In fact a lot of the fake brands are no longer available. The fake logos are similar but not the same. The the prices are still over the top.
I would guess that a proportion of the money is being invested. Invested in setting up (dumping lots of bikes on the streets) in new cities to attract more deposits. If that is the case, there are parallels with Ponzi schemes.
Didi are unlikely to go broke anytime soon, but even if OFO is owned by Didi, if it is running at a loss, Didi will offload it very quickly. Once the business case is established, or not, people will either re-invest or divest.
The OFO bikes are cheap, have a manual lock, no GPS, I assume no app except for payment. These are the bikes mostly seen ridden by kids, who often are riding a misappropriated machine. It looks like the OFO business model is lowest cost, and accept the losses of assets.
The MOBIKEs have remote locking, and GPS tracking. The bikes were custom built and were expensive to have made, but the app helps to find the nearest bike, and you can reserve them, to save you walking to a bike which in the meantime is hired by someone else. The MOBIKE business model seems to be larger upfront costs, but better service, and traceability of the assets.
I am not sure if the OFO business case is sustainable, only time will tell.
Elevated trains would have been quicker, which is why they use them for long sections of track outside the city.
However, it would have requited tearing down whole neighborhoods, causing huge disruption to city life, not just traffic. Then there is the socio-economic impacts of closing down large areas of the city. Additionally, the large numbers of demolitions would have a major impact on air quality, and what do you with all of the building rubble.
Finally, the increased cost for the whole process; bearing in mind that cost was also a major factor in the lack of progress thus far.
It might be a new guy, or there is some other visit on this week. It is probably worth trying again, and if the same guy is there, just tell him you are going up to the temple.
A reasonable choice of lumber that has improved over time. Fancy hardwoods like walnut, and mahogany are in abundance. There are some plywood and rubber-wood boards available. There are also some kiln dried imported softwoods and merbao available. Some of the lumber is very green, so look for the kiln dried if you need stable timbers.
Echo everything said by others.
Breakfast great and the serve from 8am. Most other places say 9am and they still are not ready.
Sandwiches are cheap 22-32, and really packed full of filling. We got some sandwiches for a day out, the only mistake I made was ordering two, as this was too much. These are seriously good sangars, and they are wrapped in alu foil.
In fairness to Metro, they are a wholesalers, and not really a supermarket. Hence the need for a card, which can be got around.
They have improved in the year I have been away. They now carry a more consistent range of imported foodstuffs and they also seem to have sorted out the mported milk supply.
They have a wider range of electrical appliances now, there is a coice of more than one toast. There is also a better range of seasonal non foods, like clothes, shoes, garden furniture and camping gear.
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Celebrating a Miao Christmas in Yunnan
Posted byFor many societies, once people have elevated to a level of 'security', through wealth or power, these people turn away from religion towards mammon.
Kunming's bike share options: A user guide
Posted byI would guess that a proportion of the money is being invested. Invested in setting up (dumping lots of bikes on the streets) in new cities to attract more deposits. If that is the case, there are parallels with Ponzi schemes.
Kunming's bike share options: A user guide
Posted byDidi are unlikely to go broke anytime soon, but even if OFO is owned by Didi, if it is running at a loss, Didi will offload it very quickly. Once the business case is established, or not, people will either re-invest or divest.
The OFO bikes are cheap, have a manual lock, no GPS, I assume no app except for payment. These are the bikes mostly seen ridden by kids, who often are riding a misappropriated machine. It looks like the OFO business model is lowest cost, and accept the losses of assets.
The MOBIKEs have remote locking, and GPS tracking. The bikes were custom built and were expensive to have made, but the app helps to find the nearest bike, and you can reserve them, to save you walking to a bike which in the meantime is hired by someone else. The MOBIKE business model seems to be larger upfront costs, but better service, and traceability of the assets.
I am not sure if the OFO business case is sustainable, only time will tell.
Report: Kunming to add two Metro lines
Posted byElevated trains would have been quicker, which is why they use them for long sections of track outside the city.
However, it would have requited tearing down whole neighborhoods, causing huge disruption to city life, not just traffic. Then there is the socio-economic impacts of closing down large areas of the city. Additionally, the large numbers of demolitions would have a major impact on air quality, and what do you with all of the building rubble.
Finally, the increased cost for the whole process; bearing in mind that cost was also a major factor in the lack of progress thus far.
Around Town: Kunming's secluded Lianhua Temple
Posted byIt might be a new guy, or there is some other visit on this week. It is probably worth trying again, and if the same guy is there, just tell him you are going up to the temple.