6 months in Shanghai

I chose to go to China for 6 months as an Au Pair, mostly to improve my Chinese, and actually in the end it turned out to be a very good decision. Also the choice of YES Au Pair was very good, because I always felt well taken care of.
I felt really welcomed when I arrived at the Shanghai airport and the first days or orientation were very nice. As YES! Is a smaller agency, the orientation is very personal and not just theoretical lessons in a meeting room.
Also the match with my host family was very well, I was very happy with them. Of course you have to expect some cultural differences when you live in a Chinese family and are not used to it (e.g. the grandma living in the house). In my family were two children, and in the beginning it was a little hard to get along. We could play together, but then it was hard to understand for them that we had to learn something together or do homework, too. This was a little hard, but if really needed, I could reach out to YES! for help. After the first two weeks though, it got way better, especially with the little one and we developed a routine and struggled less to have the lessons. With the older one, it was a little harder, especially because he already he had a lot to do in school and didn't feel like doing home etc. At home what I could totally understood. So I had to find a way to get along with this, and somehow were able to. So it's important, even though it can be tough in the beginning, to not give up and to be patient with oneself and the kids. In the end I saw a huge development for both of the kids, so I could be very proud of them and of me.
Overall I was very happy with my time in Shanghai, you have to opportunity to learn Chinese in one-on-one classes, which is good if the language level is different, but you also have enough free time to visit the city. Also we connected with the other Au Pairs from the agency and Au Pairs from other agencies, so together we could go out and also explored the cities nearby Shanghai. So don't worry that you won't find friends.
So all I can say is that I was very satisfied with my choice to go to China with YES! And my choice to live in China as an Au Pair in general.