As I go to China once a year, I should say the facts stated by fat_lazy_union_… and Arty are very true.
The changes and progresses in China, especially in the major cities are very rapidly. People there are working very hard to earn a little money. Day and night, workers keep building on new projects. In California, I see some highway projects take years to get complete. In China, same scale projects can be done in only weeks. The Chinese are catching up. Although there is still a long way for average Chinese to match the live stand of average American, most major cities’ life is already very exciting and comfortable even in the current US standard.
A few months ago, I replied on a post in this forum that I would retir to live in China. I am only in the US now to make money and raise children for their education here. I am fortunate to purchase a 1500 sf brand new condo in a major city in China for only $80K in 2005. Now the condo is worth over $200K and still appreciating. The community there is very very nice and beautiful, and quite a lot of foreigners (White, Korean, people form Hong Kong and Taiwan, etc.) live there as well. You can live there like a king with $500/month. HOA fee is only $50/month, cable TV (many channels) is only $2/month. No property tax no far (may have in the future). A maid is only $1.5/hour to do all the cleaning and cooking. A full buffet plus foot massage is only $8. Lots of exciting things to do there as well.
