Hi Evelyn!!! I found your channel a while ago, and I binge watched all of your China videos :')) Thank you for providing a glimpse of what feels like home. I resonate with a lot of your feelings, especially as a sort of Chinese American (?) and especially in the mother's day video. Hope to see you continue to make content, your videos are always so top notch (def see the bestdressed inspo :))
Thank you so much!! Somehow it feels easier to talk about feelings on the internet than to people I personally know haha...I really enjoy making videos and really want to upload more often! Thanks for sticking around - sending love💕
It's always a treat to see a new video from you. You've got such a joie de vivre! Beijing sounds like a decently affordable place to live and have a great quality of life (but I live in Switzerland so everything seems cheap by comparison :')
Thank you so much!! Yes, most things are definitely cheaper in Beijing compared to Europe. The best thing about Beijing is you can find a lifestyle to fit every budget - which I really appreciate!
I'm making 30k rmb after taxes and living paycheck to paycheck with no savings. Rent and western food eats it all, and providing for my baby..... So guys if you read this, and if you like western food, you are gonna need >40k rmb/month to save some money. If you like local food you dont need as much.
I used to give myself a 100rmb a day budget but in a smaller city. It was totally doable but then I moved to a big city and doubled my budget to 200rmb a day😅. As long as you spend less than 700rmb a week its a win. Great Video!
It might be a bit misleading, your total cost of living doesn't include buying cloth/shoes etc, which is essential and the cost might be high / super high (depends on where you are buying them from and the "brand". Thing like transportation, hair cut, Gym membership etc all cost more. I guess this was your "first few weeks", so those needs haven't come in.. yet.
I think people will understand it is not a complete picture. Still helpful though...yes...eating out and drinking in Beijing kills my soul. In smaller cities you can pretty much always eat out without stressing too much. I remember when I saw a 60rmb meal as extravagent in my smaller city. Even when we went out with friends and ate to our delight at a higher end bbq place , you usually spent no more 45-200rmb and that was a plurge. In Beijing you have to be careful though because the bill can easily climb.
If you're looking for an inspiration for a video I'd love to see what kind of special things made out of tofu China offers and what kind of dishes you can make out of them. When I am abroad my fav places to visit are supermarkets, gawking what people have in other countries that we don't! :3 food culture is very interesting.
Hey Larry! I would love to upload more frequently..thanks for your patience! My insurance is not out of pocket since it's covered by work - it's through the public social security system and I would say my monthly medical expenses are 200-300 RMB - not too bad!
omg whaaat 78rmb for venchi is so expensive!!! in singapore a double scoop in a cone is around 50rmb, there's frequently 1 for 1 discounts so it's 25rmb per cone :0 the brunch prices are roughly the same as sg though! whoa i did NOT expect beijing to be more expensive than singapore on these fronts! loved the video though, always looking forward to your uploads to get glimpses of beijing :)
Through your video I am falling in love with Beijing. Even if my schoold said it will probably not be open for me to come in january for an exchange I still want to come and visit later!
Hey Evelyn! If you got the opportunity to move back to Chicago/USA would you take it? And could you explain why or why not? Thanks, I love how honest you are with your videos btw :)
Hey hey! Oh that's such a good question...I was planning to talk about that more thoroughly in a Q&A video - but short answer is most likely not (as you might have guessed). I'll explain why in more details soon!
Good to see you again!! Don’t worry so much about posting too little though, we understand that ur busy!! This was a super helpful video though I feel like it’s a bit difficult to find accurate cost information like this, so it’s cool that you made this :D
Ahhh thank you so so much! I really like making videos and would love to carve out more time for it...I've never tracked my expenses like this before and this whole experience was eye-opening for me too!!
Hey Evelyn! New to your channel and absolutely loving it!! Have been binge watching all the old video's since lockdown, to get the full 'job quitting' experience😆 you are sooo relatable!! I'm also from 1994 and have such a similar work journey (only having to leave Scotland bc of cov*d, not Chicago😅). Anyway love the videos!! Where do you mostly shop your clothes!? They always look so nice! And where did you get the stripe top you're wearing in the thumbnail!? Loving that one too! ✨🍀🤗
It's 3 am and I keep telling myself this will be the last video i watch... but I just can't stop watching your beautiful smile and listening to your gentle voice. it took me nearly 30 years to 'find myself' and when I hear you talking about your highs and lows, it feels like I'm listening to my inner voice... thank you so much for your videos. Cheers from India! 🙂
i’m pretty sure my small city and beijing are around the same expenses of living which i find very funny because my city only has around 100k people LMFAO
I am happy to see that you are getting happy now. After having been moving out from my parent home for more than 10 years myself, I manage to find my forever partners. I totally understand the up and down, the loneliness, and the insecurity. But it all will pass away, be happy, enjoy life.
Just discovered your videos...if this was only Audio , I would have though you are a English native speaker. And Your personality really shines out.. Wish you the Best in your future..
Great video. I'll be transferring to Shanghai for work soon. From what I've read, it seems like the cost of living there should be somewhat similar, so this was helpful. People have said that rent in Beijing is even more expensive than in Shanghai, is your 5,500 RMB/month rent average or on the lower end?
Hey, so excited you are moving to Shanghai! Yes, from what I've heard, rent in Shanghai is a bit lower than Beijing. I would say 5,500 RMB for a studio in the condition of mine in the heart of Haidian is on the lower end (it's usually around 6-7K). However it all depends on the area - the further out the cheaper, and sometimes there are good finds in Hutongs too.