Well, it turns out I don't have as much figured out as I originally thought. In my search for a new home I assumed I could use temperature as one of the main determiners: Warmer latitude = warmer heart = good home. Doesn't entirely work that way I guess. Part of my goal in going to China is to study Mandarin. From my detailed internet research, most of the cities that I had been considering speak dialects that are not "mutually intelligible" with Mandarin (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_Chinese_dialects). According to the map Chóngqìng speaks standard Mandarin but further research has suggested Sichuanese Mandarin is spoken there. A handful of expats in China have recommended moving toward Běijīng or Tiānjīn.
Honestly, having never been to China or really understanding a lot of Mandarin, I have no idea what all of this means. Even if I ended up somewhere where I couldn't informally learn Mandarin by speaking to the locals I am sure I would enjoy it as much as possible. The ultimate goal is for moving to be a good experience for me.
This entry really hasn't provided as much resolve or insight as I'd hoped and now I am just more confused. That and thinking about food poisoning...maybe stomach flu...whatever I have right now...and whatever future struggles I will have with foreign food and digestion. I guess that is truly pointless though, maybe I will react better to Chinese food than I do to food here.
Screw this for now. Let me know if you have any insight into these observations! Thanks.
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