Living in Shenyang

Welcome to Shenyang. Please fasten your seatbelt!

Why Shenyang? It’s a question I hear from Chinese (especially the taxi drivers) and foreigners alike in and out of China. Shenyang is not Beijing. Shenyang is not Shanghai. Shenyang is not Hong Kong or Shenzhen. She doesn’t have the political gravitas of Beijing nor does she have the glamorous cosmopolitan charm or financial excess of Shanghai. There’s a gritty, survivor, pragmatic toughness to Shenyang that strikes a certain appeal to many of the expats –who stay for a year or for rest of their natural lives- who decide to live and work in the reemerging Northeast.

The local denizens don’t carry themselves with the pretentiousness, if not outright superiority snootiness, of Shanghaiers, but don’t have the Beijing inferiority complex either. Quite possibly the directness and candor is what I like. They like to drink. They bore the brunt of the Japanese invasion in WWII, cold winters and were more or less left to their devices after Mao came to power and the industrial base collapsed. She has been rehabilitating herself ever since. Shenyang is akin to an urban jungle. If you can survive here, you can survive anywhere in the world. Liverpool. Johannesburg. Pittsburgh. Shenyang.

While Shenyang is not exactly an urban jungle thickly forested with skyscrapers which top out at ever increasing heights a la Shanghai, Shenyang sprawls and it is big. Shenyang has already started constructing the largest twin towers in the Northeast just south of Government Square. It is thought to become the financial center of the new Northeast. And with a population of 7.5 million and growing the reemergence of Shenyang is happening here, now. This is just another reason to stay and watch the renaissance of a hardened provincial capital.

Shenyang is strategically located on the Beijing-Harbin corridor and is a central hub for travelers, businesses, and is the regional anchor of the great Northeast, or ‘insert Chinese laodongbei’. Shenyang was originally the old industrial belt of China, but since WWII has suffered a series of setback and overall neglect by the central government in Beijing. This has all begun changed. The central government is attempting to revitalize the Northeast. The provincial government is aiming a bit higher and would like to become a municipality similar to Chongqing and Shanghai if everything goes according to plan.

Climate

Liaoning Province has a temperate climate. Shenyang-and the Northeast on the whole- has four distinct seasons. Winter and Summer are the longest seasons in Shenyang. Spring and Fall are relatively short, temperate in Northeast China and last about a month each. Summers run from mid-May to mid-September and are hot and humid; and are also the wettest months of the year with the highest precipitation occurring in July and August. Winters are long, dark and bitterly cold; especially when the winds blow in from the northeast and it is particularly arid.

Late January and the month of February are the coldest of the year. It’s tough, but plenty baijiu and hot pot will keep you warm and see you through to Spring. The last few winters have been rather mild, but a record snowstorm in April 2007 did show us that the weather can still be considerably unpredictable. Mid-April of 2009 saw two weeks of nearly continuous rain which is also extremely unseasonal for this time of year. 2010 saw the longest and coldest winter in over sixty years. Follow this link for more climate information: www.liaoning-gateway.com

Food:

Northeastern style food has typically been shunned by the rest of the Chinese eating world. It’s hearty fare for a hearty people raised in a tough environment. Lots of meat, noodles, potatoes, pork and vegetables-an omnivore’s favorite kind of munchies. Epicureans may find the dishes of northeastern China on the bland side, but you can find just about any style of food from all over the mainland in Shenyang. The Western-style food scene is nascent and has plenty of room for growth (see below). Some of the more famous dishes of the Northeast include:

Hot pot: Without a doubt something that cannot be missed here in Shenyang. While the origins of hot pot are hotly debated throughout the country, the northeast version is that features large plates of lamb, pork, beer, vegetables of every variety. Crabs, prawns and shrimp are often seasonal and fresh can be purchased at a local market and added to hotpot. The standard hotpot in Shenyang does not reach the nuclear level of spiciness as its Sichuan or Chongqing brethren. There are several authentic Sichuan-style hotpots in the city that will require you to drink copious amounts of peanut milk or Snow beer to quench the flames. Prices vary depending on how much your order to eat.

Guo bao rou: This isn’t the Sweet & Sour Pork you order from the Chinese restaurants back home. This predominately a pork dish (but can be made with chicken or beef if you are Muslim or do not eat pork) is a staple dish in Shenyang. Gooey and sweet. Average price in a neighborhood restaurant is 18 to 20 RMB. The Northeasterners say it’s a dish for girls, but it’s okay to man-up and admit that you love to eat this dish. When in doubt, order GBR!

Disanxian: Potatoes, eggplant, and green peppers sautéed and fried to perfection. Variations on this dish include adding carrots, bell peppers and/or garlic. Simple, but delicious and can easily be made at home even if you aren’t Wolfgang Puck, Gordon Ramsy, Georges Perrier or the Iron Chef. 8-12 RMB.

Liurouduar: Another staple dish to be had at any northeast-style restaurant with quality that various from establishment to establishment. Cost is about 15-18 RMB.

Chuar: Meat sticks or meat kebabs are another local favorite and can be found on nearly every street off of the main roads and avenues. Choices from the ‘grill’ include: lamb (lean and fatty), chicken hearts(another favorite of mine), mantou (steamed bread), silkworms, chicken heads, prawns (seasonal) and various other items. Prices vary. You can find a mix of ‘chuan bars’ and street vendors all over Shenyang which cater to a variety of tastes and wallets. The Xinjiang restaurants (Muslim) usually have heartier chunks of lamb on the sticks from 5 to 10 RMB. 0.5 RMB and up depending on what you eat.

Outdoor night markets and stalls abound all over the city during the warmer months. Take a walk and enjoy outdoor dining all across the city. You are bound to find something to suit your taste buds from chicken, beef, lamb, chicken hearts and more.

Sample Basket of Goods From a Local Convenience Store

Bottle of dry red wine: 20-30 RMB
Red Bull (gold tin/silver tin): 5.50/7 RMB
Instant noodles (bowl/package): 4 RMB/2.5 RMB
Baijiu: 2.5 RMB and up
Bottled water: 3 Liters 3-5 RMB/ Single bottle 1.5 RMB
Bottle of Snow Beer: 2-5 RMB depending on type
Bottle of Juice/Iced Tea/Coca Cola: 2.4 to 5 RMB
Milk (box or bag): 1.5 to 2 RMB
Sausages (pack of 3): 4.9 RMB

Housing and Utilities (including mobile phones):

Rent prices vary throughout Shenyang depending on what you are seeking in the accommodations. A two bedroom, living room, bathroom and kitchen at 100 square meters in Heping or Shenhe districts can run from 1400 to 1600 RMB per month excluding utilities. These two districts are centrally located and tend to see higher rents than Dadong, Yuhong or Huanggu districts. Tiexi district, in the west, has significantly lower rental fees but is located further afield and taxi fares increase with the distance. However, it is well-connected by numerous bus routes which run frequently during the day. This should be less of an issue once the subway is completed.

Electric bills rarely peaks over 150 RMB. Expect significantly higher bills if you run an air-conditioner during the summer months or an electric, coil or oil heater in the winter. Most apartments in Shenyang still use radiators for winter warming of apartments so using your air-con as a heater will provide a hefty jump in your bill. The electric grid is stable here and there are very rarely blackouts year round. Usually the only time the electricity is out is for infrastructure construction or maintenance reasons.

Internet connections are an ADSL connection through China Netcom or insert other in-city providers. It’s 900 RMB per annum for service and there are very rare disruptions in the service; and my building is over twenty years old and I did not encounter any wiring problems as some of the other MLK contributors have. While the connection is not blazing broadband from back home, it is perfectly acceptable for my casual web surfing needs and downloading. This may not apply to gamers of the WOW variety and others who have not complained about the speed of their connections. Bring someone along to ask about Internet packages and related costs if you don’t speak Mandarin. .

Water runs about 1.9 to 2.5 RMB per cubic meter. Usually, you pay 300 RMB for the first half of the year and another 300 for the second half of the year and then for any additional usage. The water company is actually a little funny, irritating about leaving the notice of payment due bill on your door. Half the building seems to receive their notices taped to the main door opposite the elevator; while others will receive a notice on their door; and still others-like me-never receive a notice. Still, when in doubt go check it out instead of waiting for your water to be shut-off. By the way, in five years of living in the city I’ve never had my water shut off for not paying the bill on time. Electricity; yes. Internet-definitely.

Mobile phone for most of my daily communication and rarely spend more than 100 RMB per month on a single card. You can purchase 50 or 100 RMB (plus 1 RMB handling fee) cards at most Mom and Pop convenience stores. A landline setup is required for the Internet. It’s a 20 RMB a month fee for local calls after initial set-up. Services are offered by China Unicom and China Netcom and depending on where you live and the building you are in it could be either company. Check with your landlord and the company with the exact address.

Mobile phones range in price from 200 RMB in second hand stores to more than several thousand RMB for top of the line LG, Nokia and Samsung. SIM cards are relatively cheap depending on the number you choose. Choosing a local number will allow you to make cheaper calls locally, but you cannot use it outside the province. China Mobile is useful for all most mobile needs. China Unicom is mostly local service. Take a local contact with you to help you decide. Blackberry phones are available from 400 RMB for the Spartan version up to 1800 RMB for one with all the nifty widgets and whatchits. The new LG ‘Cookie’ is selling for 2300 RMB in most stores. 3G is also available now in Shenyang..

Getting Around Town (and out of town)

Shenyang is a sprawling city and it is difficult to reach major points of interest without doing some significant walking. A combination of bus, taxi, your feet and bicycle is an extremely useful way to get around Shenyang. A bicycle is also an excellent option for the environmentally conscious individual, but is offset by the risks of taking on Shenyang traffic during any given daily commute. Like most cities in China, the drivers can be aggressive and the bus drivers even more so. Ride at your own risk. If you are risk averse, then avoid the bicycle option.

Buses are plentiful and cheap. A one-way ride costs 1 RMB. If you purchase a bus pass, the price goes down to 0.9 RMB per ride. There are several routes that run on a north-south axis and a east-west axis through the city. Numerous other bus routes cover other areas of the city and you often have to make no more than one connections to reach a required destination, unless you are going to the ‘suburbs’ which may require another change.

The city has begun to replace its aging fleet and many private companies have taken over the running of some lines. There are two long-distance bus stations in Shenyang that can whisk you to most locations in Liaoning. Dalian, a vibrant, bustling ice-free port city on the Liaodong Peninsula- is four hours to the south. Dandong, on the China-DPRK border, is only three to three and a half hours away by bus. Harbin is six to seven hours by bus depending on traffic and weather conditions.

Taxis are also plentiful in the city. Flag fall during the day (6 AM to 10 PM ) is 8 RMB for the first three kilometers. After 10 PM flag fall begins at 9 RMB for the first three kilometers. During the summer months, having the air-con on in the car will also raise the initial flag fall to 9 RMB. Thus far, Shenyang’s taxi fleet has been immune to a fuel surcharge in addition to the base fare as I have seen in other cities like Harbin. Also, beware of the taxi changeover that begins at 16:30 and lasts until about 18:00. It can be extremely infuriating trying to catch a taxi at this time (or during inclement weather)-plan accordingly. You have been warned.

If you are a newcomer, make sure you know where you are going, carry a card with you (or scrap of paper) and learn the major landmarks of the city by which to navigate. Taxi drivers, especially at night, have a tendency to try and take the ‘long way’. Do not hesitate to call the taxi company or at least threaten to do so if you think you have been cheated. The name and picture of the driver with their license number, company and company contact information should be displayed prominently on the dash just as it is in most major cities in China.

The subway system is still under construction. The projected completion date for lines 1 and 2 is mid-late 2010. Line 1 will run North-South and Line 2 will run East-West.

Shenyang is a central hub on the Beijing-Harbin corridor and you can reach anywhere in the northeast and into Inner Mongolia from Shenyang. The ‘D-trains’ or fast trains make the run to Beijing in a mere three hours and fifty-nine minutes, and are extremely punctual. A first class ticket (two seats per side of the aisle and more legroom) is 289 and second class ticket is… (three seats per side of the aisle). These trains are scheduled to decrease their travel time in the next two years from Shenyang to Beijing and vice-versa to two hours. Regular trains run daily to Beijing and take from six to eight hours. Overnight slow trains are also available to Beijing, Harbin and Changchun which all have hard seats and sleepers and soft seat and sleepers. Prices vary depending on destination and seat choice; all of which are completely reasonable on most foreign teacher salaries.

Shenyang’s Taoxian International Airport is located ten kilometers outside of the city and handles flights from most major domestic cities and internationally there are flights to and from Japan, Korea, Russia, Mongolia and North Korea (if you are so inclined to go there). A taxi ride to the airport is about 50-60 RMB plus the toll road payment of 10 RMB. There is a 10 RMB shuttle bus that begins and ends near Maluwan (or at the airport) and takes about forty minutes to get to the airport depending on traffic. There is also a newly opened check-in center/transport depot that has opened on Qingnian Dajie that can handle check-in, baggage and transportation. It is extremely convenient.

Cars or motorcycles: Motorcycles are banned within city limits, but this may or may not be lifted in the future. Owning a personal vehicle is up to the individual. It’s expensive and your chances of getting into an accident are high. Mopeds, large electric scooters and the ubiquitous electric bike are not banned.

Medical care:

Global Doctors, Inc. An Australian run service. There is one branch in Shenyang located in Dadong district in the Deji Hospital. There is an American doctor on staff along with a Chinese colleague who is bilingual; as is most of the staff. When in doubt, get it checked out here. The local doctor, Dr. Gu, also has numerous connections with various specialists throughout the city should the need arise. Check www.globaldoctor.com.au for more details. The local number is 86-24-2433-0678. Office hours are 8:30-5:00 Monday-Friday.

Chinese: Yikedaxue or the China Medical University is located at Zhongshan Square and is associated with CMU.

Eye care options are quite good for residents of Shenyang. AIER Eye hospital. The staff is competent and professional. Most of the staff members DO NOT speak English. Your Western prescription will need to be changed to a Chinese one which involves undergoing an eye exam.

Fitness Centers

Listen up all you health nuts. The gym choices here in Shenyang are limited. There are two Bally’s Fitness Centers? in central Shenyang. An annual membership will cost around 5000 RMB. For most teachers working a 12-15 hour schedule this amounts to roughly a month’s salary. There are also two Weider-Terra Fitness Centers? in downtown Shenyang. A year’s membership sans use of the pool is about 3000 RMB and the facilities are comparable to Bally’s. They offer belly dancing, yoga, Body Pump?, Spinning? and other classes for those looking to spice up their workouts. You can also purchase workout supplements at these establishments.

Yoga centers are also proliferating in Shenyang. The largest is Yoga Wave on Zhonghua Road in Heping District. The center offers a range of different classes including Bikram. A two year membership runs about 7000 RMB. More centers are opening every couple of months.

You can negotiate with the respective centers to reach an agreement to suit your needs. Some centers will even allow you to stop your membership for a period of time if you need to leave town for business or to travel.

Western Food and Amenities:

Shenyang has a growing selection of stores that carry more and more western products and amenities.

Wal-Marts are located at the three main shopping areas of Taiyuan Street, Middle Street (Zhongjie), and one out in Tiexi-expect more as Shenyang grows.

Tesco- a popular British box store. Four of them are present in the city and offer many of the same products as Wal-Mart and Carrefour.

Carrefour: The French hypermarket is everywhere in Shenyang. There are already five branches in the city and more on the way. Products vary by store. For example, the Carrefour near my house does not sell baguettes, but the one that is three kilometers away does (a 16 kuai ride if I take a taxi or 2 RMB round trip ride by bus to purchase a 2 RMB baguette.

Metro: The German hypermarket is located in Tiexi district near Korea-town (xita). Personally, this is my favorite store in the city. They have a decent selection of wines from around the world, cheeses, bread, beer, tortillas, spices, electrical appliances etc. They have larger style cooking ovens if you are buying for a home and require something that approximates an oven in a kitchen and not a toaster oven on steroids. Originally, this was a ‘members only’ store, but it has since opened to the public. Take your passport, a business card, sign up and shop!

Pizza: Other than the ubiquitous factory pizzas from Pizza Hut, Shengyang has two delightful pizza establishments for those who require custom created pies or one from a menu. ‘I Love New York Pizza’ has a nice selection of pies or custom made pies to order. They also do parties (with advance notice) and offer free delivery. Pies start from 89 RMB.

Koala Restaurant is also a growing favorite among expats and locals in the city. The owner is Chinese but speaks decent English. He spent several years in Australia honing his cooking skills in Sydney restaurants and cafes. He will work with you to create pizzas to taste and other dishes, too. He may even add it to the menu if he likes them. Pizzas start from 38 RMB and there is free delivery depending on your location.

Indian food is also available in Shenyang due to the strong contingent of foreign students studying at China Medical University. It is a small establishment, but the food is cheap and satisfying.

Starbucks has a small presence in the city. There is a branch at each of the main shopping streets and one next to the Intercontinental Hotel. 20-30 RMB for a cup of coffee. There are several independent coffees shops that have begun to spring up in the city. Ask around and you may find others.

Shenyang Sights:

Imperial Palace (gugong): The only other ‘Forbidden City’ outside of Beijing. While not as imposing and awe-inspiring as the Beijing version, the Imperial Palace of Shenyang was the home to the Manchus who founded the Qing dynasty. It’s well-maintained and only takes an hour or two to go through. The remains of Nurhaci, the dynasty’s founder, and his mistress can be found at the East Tomb if you are so inclined to visit.

9.18 Museum: This interesting little gem of museum can be reached by bus 325 from the North Station. It tells of the September 18th incident that sparked the Japanese invasion of northeast China and the establishment of the puppet state of ‘Manchuguo’. Agent provocateurs or locals responsible, you decide. A fun exhibit if you are into torture methodology and don’t have a queasy stomach.

Liaoning Museum: Provincial museum located on the east side of Government Square next to the provincial theatre. It’s a great rainy day excursion to escape from the DVD abyss.

Shenyang Botanical Gardens: You can reach this scenic area by bus, train or taxi. Summer is the best time to go. There are a series of rope bridges across some canals that are entertaining to play on. Bring a towel and a change of clothes if you decide to partake.

Beiling Park/Ming Tombs:

Qipan Mountain: Another scenic spot outside of town. It can be reached by bus from Maluwan for 5-10 RMB. Activities include paintball, horseback riding, hiking, a safari-esque ‘Animal Kingdom’/zoo and more. During the winter months there is skiing and a local, smaller version of the Snow and Ice Lantern Festival that mimics Harbin. It’s great place to go for a date or with friends to play for a day. Subway line 1 will be extended to Qipan Mountain.