Learning Chinese in Shanghai is so much more than just studying a language. It means living in one of the world's greatest cities, experiencing Chinese culture, cuisine and history, in what is a very unique city. Here some basic information about living in Shanghai.

<strong><a href="http://ltl-chinois.fr/wp-content/uploads/2013/10/ShanghaiCityViewSmall.jpg"><img class="alignright size-medium wp-image-5995" alt="Shanghai Skyline" src="http://ltl-chinois.fr/wp-content/uploads/2013/10/ShanghaiCityViewSmall-300x199.jpg" width="300" height="199" /></a>Studying in Shanghai</strong>

The native language in Shanghai is not Mandarin, but Shanghaihua, which is a different language. However, with Mandarin being taught in all Chinese schools from the age of six and millions of migrants living in Shanghai today, Mandarin is very widely spoken in Shanghai. When people in Shanghai speak Mandarin, they have an accent that differs a bit from standard Mandarin, which is based on the language spoken in Beijing. As Shanghai is a very cosmopolitan city, with people from all over the world living here, English is also widely spoken. To learn Mandarin in Shanghai quickly, we suggest that you speak Chinese whenever possible. If someone does not understand you, do not despair. Your Chinese tones might have been wrong or the other person might not be used to your foreign accent. Keep trying to say it in Mandarin and do not use English whenever possible. Learning Mandarin in Shanghai means speaking Chinese, living Chinese and dreaming Chinese. If you would rather study in a city where more standard Mandarin is spoken, check out our <a href="http://ltl-chinois.fr/learn-chinese-beijing/">Chinese programs in Beijing</a>. If you prefer a city with less English speakers, have a look at our <a href="http://ltl-chinois.fr/chinese-immersion-program/">Chinese immersion programs</a>.

<strong><a href="http://ltl-chinois.fr/wp-content/uploads/2013/10/DSC00748.jpg"><img class="alignright size-medium wp-image-5923" alt="Shanghai School" src="http://ltl-chinois.fr/wp-content/uploads/2013/10/DSC00748-300x225.jpg" width="300" height="225" /></a>Safety</strong>

Like all of China, Shanghai is overall a very safe city. Of course in any city with 19 million inhabitants, crime exists, but especially violent crime in Shanghai is very rare. Should you ever get into trouble, call the police on +86 21 110 and LTL as soon as possible. In the whole history of LTL, during which thousands of students learned Chinese with us, there was not a single crime committed against one of our students. So it is not something you should worry about too much.

<strong>Phones</strong>

The country code for China ia +86 and the area code for Shanghai is 021. When calling from abroad you leave the 0 away. As an example, the Shanghai tourism hotline is 962020. If you are in Shanghai you just dial that number. If you are in China, but not in Shanghai, you would dial 021 962020. If you are not in China, you would dial 0086 21 962020.

<strong>Addresses</strong>

In Shanghai addresses are you usually given as a street, the number and which junction they are close to. So for example a popular Shanghai restaurant like Hot Pot King, is on 1416 Huaihai Lu. In Shanghai when giving directions, you would say 1416 Huaihai Lu, near Fuxing Lu (in Chinese: 上海市淮海路1416号楼, 近复兴路 or in pinyin Shànghǎi shì huáihǎi lù 1416 hào lóu, jìn fùxīng lù), because roads in Shanghai are very long and it is important to know which part of the road you want to go to. To make sure to not get lost it is always good to take the places phone number (in this case 021 6473 6380) with you as well.
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