What is it like to live in Beijing, China?

 I can only answer this from a foreigners point of view, since I'm born and raised in Sweden and only 4 years ago came to Beijing to study. So this answer is also based on my own experience.Beijing is a huge metropolis, very developed, has a strong big city feeling, it's easy to feel small or lonely in a place like this. It also means you can find anything here.Food is good, and bad. It's definitely not like the Chinese food in the western countries, that's pretty far away from actual Chinese food. Chinese food has so many variations, types and flavors. Sour, sweet, salty, spicy, you name it. You can always find something you like to eat, but just in case, bring some spices and food from your own country, cause it might be very hard to find similar stuff in the regular Chinese grocery stores. Food can be pretty oily as well, especially in cheaper and busy restaurants since they gotta do it very fast.China can be extremely convenient, for many reasons. The basic reason is that Chinese people use internet payment. Either through the social media app called Wechat (which EVERYBODY uses, so make sure to get it as well) or alipay (which actually functions more as an internet payment platform). You simply connect your card and personal information, and you don't even need to bring your wallet when you go outside! Altough scams do happen, it is generally very safe. You can even order food, flowers, cakes, buy cinema tickets, order cabs and hotels, even train rides and plane tickets through these platforms. You can even do your grocery shopping from home, and they will deliver it to you within a few minutes. I think China might be one of the few countries in the world where you can just stay at home forever lol.Transportation is also very convenient. There are around 16 subway lines and countless bus numbers. Taking a cab is also very cheap, with a starting price at 13RMB (around 1.5- 2$). Electric scooters are also extremely popular, very environmental friendly, might be a problem sometimes since there are sooo many, and you don't need any sort of license whatsoever to use one, so alot of people drive pretty recklessly. Public bikes are also very popular lately, especially the brands OFO and MOBIKE. It's extremely convenient since they are everywhere(Literally EVERYWHERE), and easily accessed since it's used through internet payment.There's a huge amount of tourist attractions. Huge parks, the 2008 Olympic stadium, religious temples, bars and clubs (heads up though, alcohol in most bars and clubs are fake, be aware!), museums and tea houses, shopping areas. It kinda depends on what you like to do, but most likely you will always be able to find something to do here.Finding friends is not hard, especially as a foreigner. Chinese people are very interested in foreigners, as the lifestyle and culture is so different. There are so many people in Beijing (approximately 30 million… Thats about 3 times the population of my country) that you can find all kinds of people here. Generally, if you befriend a Chinese person, they will be extremely friendly with you. Otherwise, for example in public places, they can seem rather rude, but you cannot blame them. It's so packed and the living pace is just extreme here, there's no time for being polite to strangers.Then again, a lot of foreigners live here as well, just like me, most are students studying in universities, or businessmen. So finding someone from your own country is very likely, or even other countries. In my time in Beijing Language and Culture University, i've met people from over 100 countries.The weather can be good and bad. You might have heard of the extreme pollution in Beijing, but since the big Communist parties meeting 19th of October, a lot of smaller factories has been closed down, and surprisingly, the sky has been very clear and blue lately(which is a huge relief).Many people like to refer to the weather in Beijing as pretty extreme. In winter, huge winds from the Siberian mountains blow down to Beijing, and it feels like the wind just penetrates your entire soul. Spring comes in like the OH YEAH Juice from Family Guy, and leaves the city in lots of pollen flying around in the air, so remember to close the windows, it looks kinda pretty at first but it's SO MUCH. Pain in the ass for people allergic to pollen. Summer is pretty nice, around 35 degrees, and not very humid. Just that mosquitoes are everywhere, but it's no biggie if you have mosquito spray. Autumn starts with LOTS OF RAIN for like a week, and then goes over to a beautiful, orange-red-yellow autumn scene.Life in Beijing for foreigners is absolutely not same as for Beijingers. Foreigners are still pretty new in China, and a lot of foreigners are seen as high class people (especially white people). We have opportunities here that we wouldn't have anywhere else in this world, simply cause we are foreigners. It's quite interesting.At first, Beijing can be a bit overwhelming, but it's because the culture is way different than anywhere else in the world. The humor, what seems to be acceptable and not, values in the society, it can be hard to get used to at first, but it all becomes more and more understandable the longer you stay. I was supposed to leave 1 month ago since i just graduated my bachelor degree, but there's something charming about this place that i decided to stay for another master program. If you decide to come here for a longer period, remember to be open minded. You'll be able to adapt faster that way, and maybe you'll see something in this city the same way i did.Edit: Totally forgot about a major thing in China, called Taobao! It's an online platform where you can buy literally anything and have it delivered to you, wherever in China you are. I have friends who bought fake driver license for their petrol scooters, pets like cats and fishes. It's incredibly fast too, i once ordered a pair if headphones in the morning and got it in the afternoon the same day. It's impressive.