Would you travel or send dc to study abroad in Shanghai or Hong Kong right now?

[Anonymous]

I’d probably not want my kid in a polluted hellhole like Shanghai. It’s a miserable place in my experience.

[Anonymous]

Is your DC outspoken about politics/religion or are they mainly interested in cultural/language immersion?

As someone who grew up in China, I think your DC will be fine if they stay away from touchy topics. But if you're really concerned, sure, Taiwan or even Singapore are safer alternatives albeit not quite the same.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:No way. If anything happened to your kid, there is no legal system to turn to.

I’m pp, that’s not exactly true. The American embassy will help you, unless the state on their website they can’t help you, like during swine/bird flu if you were quarantined. If there was an epidemic or some kind of mass violence though, I’d hightail it to the airport with my purse and passport.

No, it is exactly true. The American embassy is more of a liaison and doesn’t issue get out of jail free cards in the nonexistent Chinese legal system.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I’d probably not want my kid in a polluted hellhole like Shanghai. It’s a miserable place in my experience.

Ok, that was my experience 25 years ago and again 10 years ago BUT not just last year. Nothing could be further from what I saw. Shanghai looked great. Clean, good air, really nice. I will give the government props for what they did to transform the place.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Yes,
Most people understand the difference between the government policy and the citizens of that country are different.
Ask people who travel to Iran or Afghanistan the people are very friendly to American tourist.

It's not the people. It is the government. No. I would not want my child to go to Hong Kong or Shanghai. And, Hong Kong was one of my favorite cities in the whole world.

It's not just the government. I'm pretty sure there is stuff around the corners that you don't see as a visitor. I mean I was at a subway terminal waiting for taxi, and the pick pockets were thicker and more aggressive than black fly. My in-laws all from China said basically we're never going back. There were some stories also about the government though. People there don't travel, much. When they travel, they stick to tours.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I’d probably not want my kid in a polluted hellhole like Shanghai. It’s a miserable place in my experience.

Ok, that was my experience 25 years ago and again 10 years ago BUT not just last year. Nothing could be further from what I saw. Shanghai looked great. Clean, good air, really nice. I will give the government props for what they did to transform the place.

DP. I haven’t been to China in 8 years but my understanding is that they have really changed in a lot outwardly positive ways since COVID but there aren’t a lot of Americans there at all.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I’d probably not want my kid in a polluted hellhole like Shanghai. It’s a miserable place in my experience.

Ok, that was my experience 25 years ago and again 10 years ago BUT not just last year. Nothing could be further from what I saw. Shanghai looked great. Clean, good air, really nice. I will give the government props for what they did to transform the place.

DP. I haven’t been to China in 8 years but my understanding is that they have really changed in a lot outwardly positive ways since COVID but there aren’t a lot of Americans there at all.

Agreed. Almost no westerners. It was like it was 25 years ago. Russians were nearly the only white people. Didn’t hear French once which is amazing considering the place was full of them in 2015.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:If things get heavy, China will view dumb young Americans as bargaining chips. No way.

This. Not a chance I’d let my kids go.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:If things get heavy, China will view dumb young Americans as bargaining chips. No way.

This. Not a chance I’d let my kids go.

You guys clearly know nothing about China. They leave expats alone and foreigners are actually treated better by the government than native residents. It is a safe place to travel and the hotel prices are very cheap compared to the US.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:If things get heavy, China will view dumb young Americans as bargaining chips. No way.

This. Not a chance I’d let my kids go.

You guys clearly know nothing about China. They leave expats alone and foreigners are actually treated better by the government than native residents. It is a safe place to travel and the hotel prices are very cheap compared to the US.

Do you include phone taps of foreign students and going their garbage in your definition of leaving expats alone?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:If things get heavy, China will view dumb young Americans as bargaining chips. No way.

This. Not a chance I’d let my kids go.

You guys clearly know nothing about China. They leave expats alone and foreigners are actually treated better by the government than native residents. It is a safe place to travel and the hotel prices are very cheap compared to the US.

Do you include phone taps of foreign students and going their garbage in your definition of leaving expats alone?

The US gets all this information from CISA anyway. Not sure that civil rights are any better in the US (anymore) considering the events over the past few months. At least your kid wont get shot by some crazy person with a gun in China.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I would say no. China has a habit of imposing exit bans on foreigners to use as bargaining chips, and there has been some worrying incidents of violence against foreigners this past year by locals. In a society controlled by the CCP, public sentiment against Americans can turn nasty very fast (and it is already not good).

For language, go to Taiwan. It will not be the same but close enough.

I lived there for years and never saw that happen, and I saw a lot of sh-t happen. A friend lost her passport in a taxi and they didn’t care if she ever left. After going to several police offices, I finally asked the expat community for someone I could bribe.

General Americans are safe there because they will make an example out of any Chinese who hurts them. I would let my kid go because it’s getting to the point where is just as unsafe in the US. For bodily safety for American women, it’s much safer in China. I walked home at 1am often with no issues.

I really don't understand your stories at all. Lost passport in a cab and they didn't care if she left? Don't know what that means, or how that involved bribing. But I am betting you lived there a while ago. China of today is very different, in their attitudes towards westerners. There are very few westerners there post covid and they are not as welcome.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Yes,
Most people understand the difference between the government policy and the citizens of that country are different.
Ask people who travel to Iran or Afghanistan the people are very friendly to American tourist.

Yeah many people there are very friendly. Actually I remember spending a couple weeks drinking tea with this one group of very friendly locals over there only to catch them gang raping kids.

We just got a Delta employee who was kidnapped in Afghanistan released back to the US

[Anonymous]

We faced this choice recently as my HS kid won a scholarship to complete the last two years of HS at the UWC, which has a school
In the US and 17 around the world including one in China and one in HK. We could not chose the school but had list them in order or preference and could exclude only one. We listed Japan among the first three, while putting HK at the bottom and excluding China. Heck, the school in Bosnia was ten spots above HK. Sorry but not sorry. Nothing is totally safe but not sending my kid to a place with 24/7 surveillance where the government decides whether you are locked up as bargaining chip snd there us no legal recourse (yea the irony is not lost on me of the current situation in the US but China is still way worse). So my answer to OP’s question is no.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I don’t see how either place is worse than Trump’s America.

This is where I am. IMO, the Chinese know most Americans do not support Trump and would treat Americans who would be interested in being in china better than Trump would treat those same (liberal/DEI/communist) students.

The Chinese understand that half this country enthusiastically supports Trump and that’s why he is back in office now.

You’re the one in the bubble. China understands your country better than you do.