Lifestyle
Life in Macao is pretty simple.The salary is just ok and should keep the laonsharks at bay. Now seriously, the cost of living has been on the rise the last couple of years, rents going for about US$1000/month for an expat standard apartment(I use the term loosely). Macao has a population of just under 500,000 so it's not quite a cosmopolitan city, not too much to spend your money on, unlike with our rich sibling to the East, Hong Kong. If you're a family man, life on Taipa island or Coloane island, away from downtown Macao ia nice and there are a few international schools to choose from(about US$6000 per year). The airline itself has had a hard time keeping pilots around. Since you don't have a retirement scheme and no salary increases with every year of service, it makes little sense to stay here for too long. Most guys are looking for an upgrade, build a couple of years time in the leftseat and then it's time to return back to europe for a better job. If you are out of a job or looking for your first airline job, it's a good deal. Scheduling is a problem here also since they are always changing your schedule around, not enough standbys and lots of delays flying in and out of the major chinese cities. Change is in the air here though, hopefully management can find the will to improve the conditions and keep more people around for longer, it would be in everyone's interest.