Heading to China in July for about a month, splitting time between Beijing, Shanghai, Chengdu and Kunming roughly 5-6 days in each city. Traveling with my younger brother (16M), so during the day we're obviously doing the tourist thing together, but as a 23M adult I'd like to give myself a few solo evenings here and there to actually explore the nightlife of these cities on my own terms.
The thing is, neither of us speaks Mandarin. I've read that translation apps can carry you pretty far, but I'm a bit unsure about how that translates to actually going out at night solo, I am kind of used to meet people when I go out in European cities but this time it feels so much different.
So my questions are mostly:
- How realistic is it to walk into a bar, a live music venue, or just a random neighbourhood spot in these cities without speaking the language? Is it awkward, genuinely difficult, or do people mostly figure it out?
- Are there big differences between the cities on that front? I'm imagining Shanghai being significantly more foreigner-friendly than Chengdu or Kunming but I could be completely wrong.
- Any practical stuff I should know before going out solo : apps, neighbourhoods to aim for or avoid, anything like that?
I’m so curious about actually getting a feel for the city at night. Any experience from people who've done it without the language would be super helpful.
Thanks :D