Originally Posted by Northbrook60065
What would be awesome would be to hire a guide for two or three days to escort me on my shopping tours - possible?
It's very possible. But arguably a waste of money. And it would take away most of the fun.
On the shopping front just go for it. Even if you don't speak a word of Chinese you can make an expression that suggests that the price quoted is something you find quite horrific, and grab the calculator to show your offer. Ultimately it's not so much a case of getting the best price (difficult seeing as you'll be pretty clueless as to local market values), it's a case of getting a price you're willing to pay and the trader is willing to accept. Remember that the principle of 'buyer beware' very much applies.
My feeling from your message is that you're not that confident about coming to China, and you are particularly worried that it will all be very 'foreign'.
Well, it will be very foreign, but it's a quite civilised place and you should have no real problems.
You
can drink the tap water - but bottled stuff (available everywhere) tastes better.
For your daily workout try a brisk walk and stop off at the excercise stations that are dotted around Chinese cities.
When entertaining, explain to those you are entertaining that you're a newbie in town and ask where
they suggest you go. You'll end up in far more interesting, far better, and far cheaper places than your Hilton, Hyatt, Sheraton, etc.