Would You Just Get Up & Fly Away?

[HappyDude20]

I've been presented w/ a very interesting job opportunity.

I'm currently living in Los Angeles, California, while the job is located in Beijing, China.

They're asking me to fly out as soon as this Sunday, not even 4 days away.

This position will most likely last till August, good timing considering i'll then come back to Los Angeles to pursue university at UCLA.

The friction in my mind currently resides with my best friend not being able to make it out with me. The original intent for the past 6 months was for both of us to go out there together. Now, if I do indeed fly out in 4 days my buddy would still be able to join me, but perhaps not till June.

My biggest qualm is the fact that this is so sudden. So sudden that all my good-byes with family will be rushed; everyone from my sister, parents, grandma and aunt..along with my best friend is going to feel so rushed. . . considering I won't return till August.

The other side of the spectrum consists of my wanting to go out to Beijing; considering if I don't jump at this chance...most likely I'll have to wait till June myself...but the truth is, I hate my current living situation here in Los Angeles. I'm making low money, of which has affect my (lack of) a social life, and really have squared away everything I needed to do with school until UCLA comes in the fall of this year.

I have no idea and its killing me.

 

[stevenlangley1]

I'd do it in a heartbeat and I have before. Get out and see the world for a bit. Your family will still be there when you get back. I'm sure they'll be understanding of your rushed goodbyes.

 

[allmIne]

To be honest, it sounds like you're in the perfect position to move away - look at the few months while you wait for your friend as time to get settled and pave the way to make the move easier for him / her!

You've no partner, presumably, but you do have family - the great thing about family is they'll always be there. No potential jealousy or commitment issues, no long distance relationships needed.

Four days isn't a lot of time, even though you're prepared for the idea of moving, in that you knew it would be an option some time ago. I moved 300 miles at four days notice, but due to geography and work commitments, it was a weekend flight home every two weeks to a month. Even that killed me, but mainly because I was leaving my girlfriend. Of course I missed my family, but as I said, that's an easier situation - much less maintenance, in a way.

It's not an easy decision, but it's made as easy as possible by:

a) lack of partner
b) friend will be coming out, even if it's a few months away
c) your economic and social situation currently in LA

Good luck!

 

[elizabethjane]

You only live once. Just do it!

 

[redAPPLE]

Go Go Go!

 

[puma1552]

Let me guess, crappy English teaching job?

 

[0098386]

Let me guess, crappy English teaching job?

That's what I thought; a friend of mine did the same thing. Got back after the school year finished and won't ever set foot in China again!

But still go for it. A temporary change of scenery is always good.

 

[vincenz]

Go for it! Nothing to lose.

 

[puma1552]

That's what I thought; a friend of mine did the same thing. Got back after the school year finished and won't ever set foot in China again!

But still go for it. A temporary change of scenery is always good.

Perhaps I'm wrong but that's my guess. Any job wanting a warm body without a college education to fly overseas on 4 days notice is likely a shady English company.

There are a lot of reputable English teaching companies out there, but there are a million scummy/illegal/terrible working conditions companies out there too.

Just look at Japan; in the last two years 3 of the biggest chain schools have folded. Crappy product, horrible working conditions/hours, pittance pay, terrible company policies, illegal/shady visa procedures, CEOs embezzeling/blowing money, etc. Good riddance to those companies, the whole industry needs to implode on itself to fix the myriad problems.

I don't know about China, but I know Japanese immigration will not let anyone work here who doesn't hold a 4-year degree; they don't want any uneducated people working here. I can't speak for China, so maybe it's different, but I'd suggest the OP look hard into the immigration laws in China. The other issue is that even if they don't require a degree, they'll require a visa beyond a tourist visa. No way they are getting that in four days. My guess is they are telling him to come in on a tourist visa and then they will switch it over. In Japan, that too is illegal. Again, China may be different, but I wouldn't be surprised if their procedures/requirements were similar.

Don't get me wrong, there are a lot of really, really good, legit English teaching jobs out there in Asia...but be very weary of anyone wanting to swoop you away on such short notice, especially if you don't have a degree.

 

[molala]

Has your tourist visa or work visa been arranged? Only few nationalities can go to China as tourists visa-free.

If all looks legit, I would go for it. You're only young, mobile, without attachments and complications for a short time in your life. This is the best time.

 

[HappyDude20]

Perhaps I'm wrong but that's my guess. Any job wanting a warm body without a college education to fly overseas on 4 days notice is likely a shady English company.

There are a lot of reputable English teaching companies out there, but there are a million scummy/illegal/terrible working conditions companies out there too.

Just look at Japan; in the last two years 3 of the biggest chain schools have folded. Crappy product, horrible working conditions/hours, pittance pay, terrible company policies, illegal/shady visa procedures, CEOs embezzeling/blowing money, etc. Good riddance to those companies, the whole industry needs to implode on itself to fix the myriad problems.

I don't know about China, but I know Japanese immigration will not let anyone work here who doesn't hold a 4-year degree; they don't want any uneducated people working here. I can't speak for China, so maybe it's different, but I'd suggest the OP look hard into the immigration laws in China. The other issue is that even if they don't require a degree, they'll require a visa beyond a tourist visa. No way they are getting that in four days. My guess is they are telling him to come in on a tourist visa and then they will switch it over. In Japan, that too is illegal. Again, China may be different, but I wouldn't be surprised if their procedures/requirements were similar.

Don't get me wrong, there are a lot of really, really good, legit English teaching jobs out there in Asia...but be very weary of anyone wanting to swoop you away on such short notice, especially if you don't have a degree.

Yeah the program was a teach abroad program. They did tell me to apply for a certain visa, telling me to fell the Chinese embassy I'd be going for cultural exchange business and not specifically teaching. However they were having me sign a contract sating I'd be getting paid $1200 a month if I lived in Beijing or $900 if I was outside of Beijing, with housing provided if it was outside of Beijing.

The only thing is though that they want me there by Monday at the latest. Currently it's Friday afternoon.

In a way, I still feel like doing it...even for only a small adventure.

It be better than the nothing I'm currently doing here in Los Angeles. Currently at the time of this writing I'm at work, wasting away the hours (@ least it feels thus way) till something comes along.

I'm in a unique position I haven't been in in over a year and a half, where I have the tine and livery to do what I want... 2010 consisted of really focusing on school and work to get out of debt. Even with this chinese program offering me a monthly paycheck, I'll be able to have extra cash to spend about. ..... Even make a pit stop of Tokyo, as vie been wanting to do forever Now...(w/ the hidden intent of needing/wanting to climb Mt. Fuji this summer)

The thing though...is that if I do indeed take up this opportunity, I'll be flying to Beijing alone and not with my best friend, as was the original plan for the past six months...now if he was to indeed join me out in china, he would do so in June at the earliest.

 

[jbachandouris]

I'd go for it. As they said, you only live once. It could turn out to be great or not, but at least you would have an adventure.

 

[UTclassof89]

I looked into doing this (in Japan) when I was just out of school.

I always regretted not doing it.

Even if it sucks, you'll have a great adventure to tell for the rest of your life!

Go!

 

[firestarter]

Beijing is a fantastic city (quite cold this time of year though!)

It would be fantastic if it panned out. Sounds a bit sketchy though.

 

[HappyDude20]

I looked into doing this (in Japan) when I was just out of school.

I always regretted not doing it.

Even if it sucks, you'll have a great adventure to tell for the rest of your life!

Go!

I'm preferring to find something in japan. I've been in china before for moths on end and though it's fun, I'd much prefer a Japanese mindset for the next five months. I've always wanted to become a pescatarian and it seems japan would be the prime place to begin.

...though it does directly coincide with my wanting to try a Kobe beef steak.

That and I wanna tackle mount fuji.

Omg!!!!!!

 

[iJohnHenry]

I looked into doing this (in Japan) when I was just out of school.

I always regretted not doing it.

It would be fantastic if it panned out. Sounds a bit sketchy though.

Worlds apart, IMHO. Japan actually has ethics.

Perhaps China needs your organs??

 

[Love]

Do it man!

 

[HappyDude20]

Worlds apart, IMHO. Japan actually has ethics.

Perhaps China needs your organs??

Lol. I remember being in china and then being in japan for a few days and instantly the way of living was completely different. My hotel in japan was ridiculous. Very minimalist yet, nice. Little bathroom but very modern. I loved it. The sunrise in narita was bliss.

China was different. Very ASIA, if that makes any sense.

But still china seems like a better alternative to as to what I'll be doing here in the states for the next five months. Here in calendula it would be a l

Worlds apart, IMHO. Japan actually has ethics.

Perhaps China needs your organs??

Lol. I remember being in china and then being in japan for a few days and instantly the way of living was completely different. My hotel in japan was ridiculous. Very minimalist yet, nice. Little bathroom but very modern. I loved it. The sunrise in narita was bliss.

China was different. Very ASIA, if that makes any sense.

But still china seems like a better alternative to as to what I'll be doing here in the states for the next five months. Here in california it would be just blindly drinking and smoking weed considering I have no realcommitments till school begins in the fall.

In all honesty. It's about sex.

I'm currency crashing at home and can't really bring a female over and have sex loudly. Being blunt here.

Yes this fall when I move out I'll be able to. But now is the intermission period and I have the opportunity to decide where I wish to spend it. Tokyo or Beijing would consist of living on my own. Though neither cater Los Angeles girls. And personally I prefer the Japanese women. But that's another story.

Decisions decisions.

I keep telling myself to just keep looking for other opportunities to come my way. But with japan it'll be tougher considering that even though I've taught abroad before, I don't yet told my bachelors degree, which presents a Japanese hurdle.

 

[UTclassof89]

The experience in China may open doors for you to do it in Japan, if that's what you want.

 

[Zmmyt]

I've been presented w/ a very interesting job opportunity...

I would do it in a heartbeat.

But it depends on you really.

I had a similar experience. I decided to apply for a job, they sent me the contract and in within a month i was gone.

quick goodbyes and my idea was to stay away for max. a year. now it's have been five years away from "home".

good luck with your decision.

 

[puma1552]

Please, we don't need another charisma man here who just wants to bang Japanese chicks.

While I share your preference, and going back home will be the most depressing thing on earth where there are nothing but white landwhales as far as the eye can see, we don't really need another guy coming here just to screw the local girls. Come here for a better reason. Consider the women a fringe benefit. A very, very, very, very nice fringe benefit as they are absolutely everywhere with style and beauty far exceeding anything you'll find back home. If you haven't been to Japan before, you'll be extremely pleasantly surprised by the women when you get here. The mind boggling part is the frequency with which you see smoking hot women everywhere. They are literally everywhere. I've given up trying to explain it to my friends back home because unless you come here, you will just never get what I'm talking about.

But that said, do come here with better intentions. The last thing you want to do is go work for belly-up Nova as an eikaiwa drone making 250k yen per month and wake up one day realizing you've screwed 2,000 very pretty ladies but are still a Nova drone @ 250k a month with no future and no marketable skills to bring back home, or transfer into a job with a future here. I've seen it happen too many times. Way too many 40 year old guys living the life of a 20 something rockstar, banging 20 year old girls all day long but simultaneously have nothing to look forward to here aside from that. It's very easy to get caught up in the women here, they can be like a drug. Don't lose sight of your future though, no matter how many girls you have. I've got a buddy who literally is physically stressed from all the girls, he currently has seven different girls on rotation, and he is stressed out having to clean his apartment every day so the next one can't tell another one just left a couple hours earlier, and he physically can't take the sex anymore, it's too much for him. So yes, it's easy to get caught up in the women to the point you take it for granted, but you have to keep focused on other things too.

You won't be able to make any kind of Tokyo pitstop on a $900-$1200 a month salary in China--trust me on this. And you will not get into Japan without a 4 year degree. Don't even waste your time trying to buy a fake degree online, it won't fly and you'll get deported and banned from the country if they find out. Immigration is very aware of these diploma mills as well.

Also, if you are planning on smoking weed here, think again.

As someone living abroad in Asia, I think you should probably just go to school in the fall like you mentioned, get a degree, and come over on a reputable program. You will have the same opportunity that you have now, but with better prospects when you are out of school. Trust me, this isn't a once in a lifetime opportunity, if you haven't finished college yet. Once you are done with college, then you'll be in the same boat as now, but with a degree and options. The Chinese company is telling you to get your own visa, screw that. They need to sponsor it and get it for you.

Do it after you finish college.

In the meantime, start taking language lessons. It will help land a job here.

 

[HappyDude20]

Please, we don't need another charisma man here who just wants to bang Japanese chicks.

While I share your preference, and going back home will be the most depressing thing on earth where there are nothing but white landwhales as far as the eye can see, we don't really need another guy coming here just to screw the local girls. Come here for a better reason. Consider the women a fringe benefit. A very, very, very, very nice fringe benefit as they are absolutely everywhere with style and beauty far exceeding anything you'll find back home. If you haven't been to Japan before, you'll be extremely pleasantly surprised by the women when you get here. The mind boggling part is the frequency with which you see smoking hot women everywhere. They are literally everywhere. I've given up trying to explain it to my friends back home because unless you come here, you will just never get what I'm talking about.

But that said, do come here with better intentions. The last thing you want to do is go work for belly-up Nova as an eikaiwa drone making 250k yen per month and wake up one day realizing you've screwed 2,000 very pretty ladies but are still a Nova drone @ 250k a month with no future and no marketable skills to bring back home, or transfer into a job with a future here. I've seen it happen too many times. Way too many 40 year old guys living the life of a 20 something rockstar, banging 20 year old girls all day long but simultaneously have nothing to look forward to here aside from that. It's very easy to get caught up in the women here, they can be like a drug. Don't lose sight of your future though, no matter how many girls you have. I've got a buddy who literally is physically stressed from all the girls, he currently has seven different girls on rotation, and he is stressed out having to clean his apartment every day so the next one can't tell another one just left a couple hours earlier, and he physically can't take the sex anymore, it's too much for him. So yes, it's easy to get caught up in the women to the point you take it for granted, but you have to keep focused on other things too.

You won't be able to make any kind of Tokyo pitstop on a $900-$1200 a month salary in China--trust me on this. And you will not get into Japan without a 4 year degree. Don't even waste your time trying to buy a fake degree online, it won't fly and you'll get deported and banned from the country if they find out. Immigration is very aware of these diploma mills as well.

Also, if you are planning on smoking weed here, think again.

As someone living abroad in Asia, I think you should probably just go to school in the fall like you mentioned, get a degree, and come over on a reputable program. You will have the same opportunity that you have now, but with better prospects when you are out of school. Trust me, this isn't a once in a lifetime opportunity, if you haven't finished college yet. Once you are done with college, then you'll be in the same boat as now, but with a degree and options. The Chinese company is telling you to get your own visa, screw that. They need to sponsor it and get it for you.

Do it after you finish college.

In the meantime, start taking language lessons. It will help land a job here.

Years ago when I first ever traveled abroad it was simply to GTFO of a rut at home. It was post high school and saw my big circle of friends and party-goers doing nothing all night long, simply to wake up the next day to do it all over again. Binge drinking on a nightly basis was not uncommong amongst friends and friends-of-friends; admittedly I joined in a few times as well...but only to wake up wanting to get out of the rut, back then.

That is how I first traveled to China, where I taught at a high school and it blew my mind in ways I didn't think possible. Aside from living on my own and being on the other side of the planet away from my entire family, it truly brought a sense of independence, whether I liked it or not. I even managed to sneak in a few days of Tokyo between my flight from Beijing to Los Angeles, where I had a great japanese meal and a girl named Diana. (i'll stop with the sexual encounters )

This time however I feel like i've earned the right to get away. 2010 I was so heavily focused on school; I truly don't know how I made it out of my Math course. Now that I have time to kill till this Fall, I feel it vital to my own sake to go abroad. MY vision is to experience the excitement and independence I once did before while I was abroad, but this time channel it right before school this Fall. I feel (personally) that if I simply just waste away here @ home til school starts, some of the current blah would transfer over to the next chapter (being school this fall).

Within these past few days I've definately learned that I won't be passing up the next opportunity that comes my way, of course with a cautious mind.

I do not plan on smoking any weed at all while i'm abroad; in fact, I see this as an opportunity to get away from the drugs and alcohol.. But in no way will I excuse myself for wanting to persue sex. I want it and i'll get it. There's no point in lying about this. The last and only time i've yet been to Tokyo consisted of neon lights everywhere, blurring my inhibitions to only wake up the next day in complete calmness, taking it all in.

Truth be told, in my current situation the ideal goal is to get away...even if just for a few months. Though I'd really prefer Tokyo, seeing as I'd never really lived in Japan. Hell, i'll settle for Kobe...or anywhere in between. I'm not looking to live the Tokyo nightlife, I'm simply inviting myself to jump into whatever another country abroad has to offer me, in terms of new values and perspectives that i'll be able to take back with me when UCLA starts for me in the fall.

 

[puma1552]

I see where you're coming from, but maybe a better option would just be a month long vacation?

As for Kobe, that is such a classy city (I live in Himeji just a half hour away). By far the classiest and most internationalized city in Japan. Lots of wealth there. Funny thing is, of all cities in Japan, Tokyo included, Kobe tops the list for quality of life and satisfaction amongst foreigners living in Japan. You know when you're in Kobe just because of how it feels, it really is a place like no other in Japan.

Very nice place. I would love to live there, no doubt. Just a stunning place in the world, on the water wedged between the Seto Inland Sea and the mountains that overlook the city.

 

[HappyDude20]

I see where you're coming from, but maybe a better option would just be a month long vacation?

As for Kobe, that is such a classy city (I live in Himeji just a half hour away). By far the classiest and most internationalized city in Japan. Lots of wealth there. Funny thing is, of all cities in Japan, Tokyo included, Kobe tops the list for quality of life and satisfaction amongst foreigners living in Japan. You know when you're in Kobe just because of how it feels, it really is a place like no other in Japan.

Very nice place. I would love to live there, no doubt. Just a stunning place in the world, on the water wedged between the Seto Inland Sea and the mountains that overlook the city.

A month long vacation has been discussed with my friend and I, however that would either mean waiting tillmthe summer to take off, or be back home for the summer here. There's nonwrong answer here, it's just that the intent is to completely submerse myself into another culture, to presumably learn another language and most importantly to not be home. I want it timed so that when I do return from either China or Japan, I'll only have less than a week back at home before it's time to go and pack everything up again to start school. I've thought long and had about his and I'm firm on this.

The incentive of getting a check while I'm abroad is nice too...considering bing out there for five or six months without working could really eat into my wallet.

 

[125037]

*snip snip* I'll be able to have extra cash to spend about. ..... Even make a pit stop of Tokyo

Really? $1200 isn't much. You said they provide living only if you are outside of Beijing? What's the cost of living there? Here in the states $1200 won't do much for you, but living in another country? That just seems low to me but then again, I have no knowledge of expenses, cost of living, etc. outside of the country.