Author: life-china

To China newcomers, the ubiquity of hired help around the house might come as culture shock, but affordability and convenience quickly wins expats over. If you’re looking for a nanny, this is your go-to guide for where to look, how to interview, and what to pay. Ayis Versus Nannies First of all, you’ll hear the term ayi used frequently (a Chinese word meaning “auntie”) to refer to household help of all kinds, but ayis typically focus on cooking and cleaning services instead of full-time childcare, so this guide will use “nanny” (bǎomǔ in pinyin) to refer to childcare-focused help....

Newsflash; gambling's illegal in Mainland China. Absolutely no gambling allowed. Zero. It's why you never see anyone putting money down on games of mahjong, chess, checkers, cards, dice, cricket fights, e-bike races or the stock market in Shanghai. But, realizing blind human optimism is a great way to raise money for charitable causes, the government allows (and runs) two gamblingesque practices. "Gamblingesque" because, according to Chinese law, it's not gambling. It's just a game. Run by the China Welfare Lottery Issuance Center, lotteries have been running in China since the '80s. Like western lotteries, Chinese lotteries are used...