Yanliang Aston

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Yanliang is located just to the north of the ancient capital city of Xi’an in Shaanxi Province and is technically a part of that city. It is a small town of 200,000 people and one of the most pleasant communities of the greater Xi’an region.The town experiences a climate similar to Xi’an without the accompanying smog and pollution. Summers are warm and wet with occasional thunderstorms. Winters can get chilly with little snow. Spring and autumn are long, sunny and dry.

Life here has a simple rhythm and provides fascinating insight into the small town experiences of modern Chinese. Four times a day the wide, tree lined streets teem with thousands of bicycles as people travel to and from work or school - a wonderful sight often lost in the big and growing Chinese cities. At these times the streets are flooded with children, parents, hawkers, street food venders, and the elderly.

The town is a manageable size and a bicycle is de facto form of transportation. Being several kilometers away from Xi’an proper the residents of Yanliang enjoy relatively fresh air and clean streets that the nearby urban residents no longer experience. Riding around the town’s shady streets will bring you into contact with hoards of locals engaged in all kinds of traditional activities. There are outdoor markets, old men playing endless games of cards and chess, woman selling their handicrafts, ear cleaning booths set up in the park, impromptu kitchens set up on the street for a quick lunch, and so forth.

The people are exceptionally friendly and foreigners are a very rare sight. It is common for our foreign staff to be invited into the homes of local people for dinner and making friends with these people is very easy. As the only visible resident foreigners in town, Aston teachers enjoy a rather high-profile lifestyle. People often want to make friends and engage in conversation.

The food of Yanliang had become legendary to those in the know in the Aston world. Many of the finest examples of Shaanxi cuisine can be sampled in the hundreds of family run restaurants around town and prices are incredibly cheap. The noodle dishes and Islamic food here no doubt rival Xi’an. Many of the best of the places offering these are only minutes walk away from Yanliang Aston. There is also a very good locally run restaurant offering reasonable Western food as well.

Yanliang actually has a handful of discos and bars around town. It is very easy to become well know in these places as the Aston teachers before you have established a relationship with the owners and proprietors. They make for excellent nights out after work or when the short hop into Xi’an seems ambitious. Most of the people in town spend their evenings entertaining in restaurants or at the numerous evening markets enjoying Yanliang’s excellent street food and atmosphere.

Yanliang is the perfect place for those interested in a relaxing environment for which to learn Chinese language and culture, and who also like occasional forays into the big city. While living here you will be totally immersed in a new environment and pushed to expand your language skills. When the time comes downtown Xi’an is less than an hour away.

The town’s bus system has destinations to all of the famous cultural sights of southern Shaanxi. Downtown Xi’an is less than an hour away and busses leave every 15 minutes. From Xi’an you have access to the nation’s rail system and Yinchuan, Lanzhou, Taiyuan, and Zhengzhou are all easy overnight train rides away. Xi’an also has an international airport with daily flights including Beijing, Shanghai, Chengdu, Guangzhou, and abroad.

School

Yanliang Aston celebrated its opening in winter of 2005. Since that time we have become the undisputed ESL leader of our town. We are located on the second floor of a modern building near the town center, down a tree-lined side road emanating from the main town square. We occupy the entire 2nd floor of our building. Our commitment to education quality, and the family atmosphere that we have created, are helping to generate a wonderful sense of community at our school.

Our school has spacious classrooms and a wonderfully equipped and comfortable Teacher’s Lounge. Our proximity to the Xi’an Aston Schools enables us to be a part of their on-going training and development that provides excellent practical advice and support to our teaching staff.

Apartments

Yanliang Aston has two apartments for foreign teachers’ accommodation. Both of them are within short walking distance of the school and center of town. Both of these flats are on the second floor of their respective buildings. The buildings themselves are in family orientated neighborhoods and our teachers form part of a very accepting and welcoming Chinese community – one of the main reasons teachers are attracted to life in Yanliang.

Videos & Resources

Watch School Video

Teacher Testimonial

"Yanliang" on Flickr

"Yanliang" on YouTube

"Yanliang" on Picasa

Yanliang City Guide

Top reasons to pick Yanliang Aston

• Yanliang’s premier English Training School.
• Our proximity to the Xian Aston Schools enables us to be a part of their on-going training and development that provides excellent practical advice and support to our teaching staff.
• A population of 200,000, and one of the most pleasant communities in the greater Xian region.
• Downtown Xian is less than an hour away, with buses leaving every 15 minutes.
• A Chinese city where the bicycle still rules the roads!
• A perfect place to learn Chinese language and culture.
• Xian (1hr)