Shangstar wrote: I think that's because, China has a better education system than India.

Sorry mate, but you got this one wrong.

Yashodhara wrote:from top to bottom - Bangkok, Mumbai, Bangalore, Ho Chi MinhCity, Nairobi, Shanghai, Jakarta, New Delhi, Dubai
bottom basket - Sao Paolo, Manila, Johannesburg, Dacca

Bangalore or New Delhi over Sao Paulo... I wonder if u have been there!

SP is a quite messy (20m people, that's more or less the population of Shanghai), traffic is a nightmare (but I wonder if in India is better) but one of the most cosmopolitan cities in the world (Italian - 7m! -, Portuguese, Spanish, German, Russian, Arabs - 1 million -, Japanese - 500k-) have migrated there last century.

It's true it has a few favelas (but less and it's safer than Rio de Janeiro for instance) but it's a Western city by most standards (and with a great climate all-year round)

I think only Joburg is more criminal than SP

Andreas wrote:

LondonSW1X wrote:As for Mumbai, I guess u'll live in a more old-fashioned expat lifestyle, just mixing with local upper-classes, expats and disconnected to the vast majority of the local population.

And believe me, there's nothing wrong with THAT.

I was not questioning whether it was wrong or not. But you can take a plane to Shanghai (saving the distance, language and visa issues) and jobhunting or studying Chinese or doing nothing as Germans or Italians or Polish do in London, for instance.

U CAN'T do that in DXB or Mumbai.

I was just saying that you are able to have more possible lifestyles in SHY.

Yeah, that's right, but mind you it is not very easy now to find a job here in Shanghai. Unless you have lots of background and experience.

Andreas wrote:I think only Joburg is more criminal than SP

Never been to Jburg but stories from there look quite nightmarish.

According to the articles below, SP is safer than Washington DC or Detroit (well that shouldn't be something to be proud, as everybody knows how unsafe they are). And I'm sure other Latin American cities (notably Mexico City and Caracas) are more dangerous than SP.

http://news.ncmonline.com/news/view_art ... 8c76bc84b5

http://www.economist.com/world/americas ... d=11975437

And SP is the biggest but not the most dangerous city in BR. I don't have any figure, but it's vox populi that other big cities (i.e. Rio de Janeiro and Recife) have been and are more dangerous than SP.

Yeah, it would definitely not be my choice.

tihZ_hO wrote:

txaggie07 wrote:

But not too difficult to drive there. The mentality is not as **** up like here in China. I would go back there any time.

When was the last time you were there? It's awful driving there!

Well maybe it was when Gandhi was around...

Because if you believe that then you will believe this...

bloody hell man. i have coffee all over my screen!

Shangstar wrote:I think the biggest difference is the class divisions in Mumbai. The poorest are the untouchables and stay that way for generations, whilst the whiter looking upper crust dominate politics and business. At least in China, they tried to remove class divisions and to a certain extent succeeded in that poor farmers in the city are not treated badly in the street for example. I am sure class divisions exist here but not as much as in Mumbai where it is ingrained in culture and society.

The desirability of white skin however is stronger in Mumbai than in Shanghai. I think that's because, China has a better education system than India.

The worst assessment ever.

If anything, the "get white get in" mentality is non-existent in India (yes i know its a sweeping generalisation). If anything the British rule has left deep rooted bitterness against westerners there.
Chinese education system better than Indian? You've got to be kidding me! The stress on overall development (sports, extra curricular activities etc) is more in China, yes, but barring that they are way ahead of their Chinese counterparts' rote learning methods.
As for class divisions, i agree with what you have said if you take out the word whiter from "whiter looking upper crust". The class divisions have nothing what-so-ever to do with skin colour.
Everything is based on my personal experiances and not gleaned from lonely planet.

Andreas wrote:

Shangstar wrote: I think that's because, China has a better education system than India.

Sorry mate, but you got this one wrong.

Agree with Andreas. Chinese education system better? That's the biggest joke I've heard in a long long time

As for new/creative ideas coming out, I'd place my bet on Mumbai, a much more LIVELY place, in spite of the relatively worse living conditions -- Shanghainese are VERY dull, lacking in energy/enthusiasm, they can only follow instructions, they can do nothing on their own.