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| Li Jie dives in Sipadan, Malaysia. [Photo provided to China Daily] |
Working holidays
Although young people don't usually have savings, they are willing to fund their travel expenses through volunteer work and working holidays, the report says.
Yang Yang, 23, is currently working in a general store in Melbourne, and tours around Australia and its neighboring countries when he has the time.
After graduation from university last year, he went to Australia with a 12-month working holiday visa and postponed his master's studies in the United Kingdom by a year.
He will leave for the UK in August.
In 2015, Australia started to issue working holiday visas to Chinese aged between 18 and 30, with tertiary education and English skills, with an annual slot of 5,000.
"It's once-in-a-lifetime experience. It's like a long-term in-depth tour－I get to live like a local and interact with them and get an authentic understanding of the country," he says.
"I'm impressed by the lifestyle and attitude of Australians. They care about the quality of life. You have to pursue the life you really want rather than follow something blindly."
Yang says leisure in that country is colorful, with families going to the seaside for fishing or water sports on weekends.
He has also received help from locals, including Chinese immigrants, in his daily life, he says. He enjoys the good weather and often goes to coastal areas to enjoy the sun or to swim.
According to Yang, some holders of working holiday visas work part time in suburban farms, picking fruit and milking cows. The average monthly salary is A$4,000 ($3,039).
"It's a sizeable income but the work is hard and boring. You don't have much to spend on in remote places and can save money over six months, and travel around for the remaining six months," he says.
Yang has worked as a waiter and a cleaner in Sydney, Melbourne and Brisbane.
The income from such jobs is lower and the daily expenses higher than in the countryside, but he says he prefers to live in big cities because he enjoys urban life.
"Many take it for granted that life during a working holiday is all good. Actually, only those with fluent English get office jobs. So, options are limited for such visa holders, and many get only manual jobs," he adds.
As for Yang, his average daily wage was about A$140, which was sufficient to cover his weekly rent. "It takes time to get a good offer and one has to be patient."
