Tibet. 

* Hefei. At the time I was there, visible foreigners (lots of Japanese there, but they are invisible) were really rare. There are more of them now, because industries are moving to Hefei (cheap labor force). It's a city (5 millions people) so there's cinema, shops and all those kind of things. It's an Anhui, which is not as fancy as the coastal provinces. I'm not sure what you want to do, but Hefei job's market have room for some foreigners.

* Small towns (less than a million) in poor inner provinces like Ganxu or Shanxi. No worries, you won't see much foreigners there. Getting a job might be a bit hard, but who knows, try ! If you are into education, some universities will be glad to have you, if you are not looking for money. You won't be in a Western environment, at best, it will be very poor imitations of imitations. If you such a move for one year or more, it can be hard at time. Don't except anybody to really understand you. You will be alone, utterly alone, even with a crowd of local friends. It's not bad but not good for everybody.

You're too late

Definitely take Dr.Monkey's advice about smaller cities to heart - there are benefits but also serious detriments to being a lone expat. I work in a small city myself, and it's a lonely view.

As for the "China experience", expect disappointment. China has sold off its rich cultural heritage (assuming it wasn't all a glorified myth in the first place) for a bit of extra economic growth. Whether you are surrounded by 'modern' wannabes and their epic-fail-attempts to emulate western/modern life, or you immerse yourself in 'traditional' lifestyle in a smaller town, people are roughly the same.

They have all grown up in a society that pick on the weak without remorse, so wherever you go and whatever it looks like, it's still a playground for the rich. Nobody says sorry, thank you or please to strangers, unless they're trying to be friendly. People are friendly to satisfy their curiosity, or for some other reason; never spontaneously.

Everyone cares about mianzi/facesaving as an anti-bullying survival tactic. People are shallow and materialistic; easily groomed by wealthy suitors. Everyone chases wealth without creativity, because wealth is power, and protection from bullying. Lacking savings, people borrow all they can to buy cars, houses, iPad and other status symbols to augment their image, gain acceptance, and not become a target. The country is so corrupt that it has become a norm. People are very cowardly, unwilling to defend their own interests or stand up to antisocial behaviour.

Appearances are most important to Chinese, and their me-first attitude has ruined the services in the country. Customer service gets worse the higher up the ladder. If people feel they do important work, they become lazy and entitled, and you'll notice this in bank most of all.

Education is a lucrative business, but hopelessly ineffective in teaching people useful skills. Parents have certain rote-learning style expectations of education, so schools do their best to create a professional *appearance* for the money and the examination scores, but care nothing about education.

Hospitals are a disaster wherever you go, but at least the bigger hospitals in cities have some competent staff. They have no bedside manner, and will make alarming statements like "your baby's head has a strange shape" to pregnant mothers (my wife can attest), while there's nothing wrong at all. Regardless of whether they adopt Traditional Chinese Medicine as treatment or not, good health care is seriously lacking. You must pay through the nose for and hope/pray you're not being poisoned/screwed accidentally/deliberately.

Want Chinese culture?  Hrrrm, should be hoardes of wreckless E-bike riders and plenty of shopping malls in most places you go.   Go get some!   Mcworld is very strong in China, so you won't find much of what you want.

Hotan (Khotan), Taklamakan.

I think you want India they still use rickshaws. China has always had cities. I think China had the biggest train station in the world, tore it down and now want to rebuild it. The only place you can see old China is rural. I saw an ''Old Town'' outside Guilin, narrow streets old style buildings with sliding wood doors, the back of the buildings were often 3 storey new block buildings.

Try Nepeal, Xinjiang, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan, Uzbekistan, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan,,,, places nobody has ever heard of or can pronounce or wants to go to.

If you want to find "real China" I don't think you need to go very far.

Just go up the narrow lane at the side of McDonalds and go into the village behind.

I live outside of GZ and I know of lots of places that can be described as the OP wants. People cooking with wood fires outside the houses, old people in their open fronted mud brick huts, ponds and streams that are no more than open sewers.

You just need to go to where the factory workers, street vendors and recyclers live. Even in big con-urbanized areas there are still places where foreigners are never seen. It's not very scenic, but it is the real China where most Chinese live.  It's where the migrant workers can live cheap so they can save money to buy an apartment in their home towns.

The problem foreigners will have is getting the Police registration to live there .

I'm not double answering because I want the points. 

I have been thinking about the question and I want to bump this thread up.

Effectively, what the OP want's to see is poverty. Because that's the real China, away from the western fast food joints and neon lights. 

I can see why he want's to see it, but at the same time I personally would rather it not be there for him to see.  What are the real motives behind the question?

Is it because he wants to take photos of poverty?. Have stories to tell? Perhaps he want's to help?  Ask his Church for money to spread the "doing good buzz"?

This is a complex issue. rather like the lost tribes of South America.  Rockstar Sting want's them to stay pure and untouched.  But maybe the people themselves are getting fed up with high infant mortality rates and eating grubs. Why should anyone have the right to deny another individual anything that we take for granted.

It's a bit like saying " I am smarter than you, and although you don't know about  it or even understand why, I have decided on your behalf to deny you access to fast food...because it's rubbish"

Hollywood want's Tibet to go back to what it was. A feudal superstitious society led by some dude who was selected as the boss because of dreams and the orientation of the stars. And that's fine, because it lets the Hollywood types make an annual trip to see their favourite Lama and then do TV interviews about how fantastic it was.

If I was living in a desperately poor place with no facilities, the last thing I would want is some rich foreign dude visiting me for two weeks telling me how lucky I am to have such a glorious simple life.

Just my opinion.  The subject is well worth a debate I reckon.

The OP asked a good question.

I spent enough time in small town China to know it just isn’t worth trouble. If you go to an isolated village you are even more of a spectacle than normal in China. My experience was that I encountered the worst part of China in a village, the ignorance multiplied times a hundred. I thought the people in Guangzhou could be rude and ignorant but at least they don’t actively follow me and point and snicker amongst themselves.

I live in Anhui for about 8 months when I first moved here in 2009. It was ok I guess...I was 22 and and fresh out of university.

Was it an interesting experience and do I feel slightly better informed on what the world is like having done it? Yeah absolutely.

Would I willingly do it again? Fuck no.

Other than as a temporary learning experience on the value of good planning and hard work (so you don't HAVE to live some place like that!)...the only thing you get out of it is tons of unearned praise from ignorant people. You ARE special and you don't have to accomplish anything to be so. It makes you lazy...why accomplish anything if you don't have to?

I am much more satisfied with my life as a professional in a big city than I was as a teacher in a small one.

I had a good time in Jinghong in the southwest of Yunnan, a beautiful city along the Lincang/Mekong River with a nice blend of Chinese/Han, Burmese (even some Indians among them, some of them speak near fluent English) and Tai people. Very good food - you could taste the quality of the ingredients, good meat and so forth - clean air, low cost of living. There were plenty of foreigners but no westerners.

Look for a place that's cleaner and more ethnically diverse than other places.  I visited Yunnan earlier this year and found both those things there.  If I didn't live where I do, I'd live in Yunnan.  

Both cleaner and ethnically diverse are evident where I do live though.  North west Xinjiang.  Yes, Chinese... but different.

Qingdao has a lot of urban places.....

and villagers too....

All i can say is these are excellent replies and just want to say thanks for taking the time to Answer them. 

All i can say is these are excellent replies and just want to say thanks for taking the time to Answer them. 

Almost any place with an urban population less that 2 million.

For cities like the ones you mentioned try going 100 km from the core.

A good example is Chengdu. 10 million people and a modern urban core by western standards. But go 20 km from Tian fu square and you'll find the real China.

These people don't even speak mandarin. But don't go to modern cities that have been built in the last 30 years.

I being a Brit thatn lived in Nanning for six months and enjoyed every minute of it. I saw one non Chinese man in six months. So there obviously are not too many foregners in Nanning.

I Britishand lived in Zhangjiagang until recently for a period of 3.6 years. Zhangjiagang 1 hour west of Suzhou. It's beautiful, clean and safe. I mean really clean. There are lot's of parks  to relax and not too many foreigners.I lived a 2 minute walk from Walking Street. I owned a car, bicycle and e-bike so on free time I could to Suzhou/Shanghai or into the countryside. McD's is located 2-3 km outside on the ring road, Maybe that because KFC has  3, yes 3 outlets in Walking Street, each end and the middle. To do and see well I guess you make your own plan, as for the people well they are really welcoming and friendly. Although the city suited myself and I was sorry to leave, it may not suit all. I moved to  Hankou district of Wuhan, with very deep regret, dirty filthy place, and not so friendly natives. Goods luck with the travels

come to jing hai, tianjin, no bars, no foreigners.

You Might as well go home.

http://www.bjstuff.com/profiles/blogs/china-foreign-teachers-rate-hangzh...

I agree with the top three picks. Beihai and Zhuhai are heaven on Earth as well - kind of like a poor man's Sanya.

I have been in Jiuquan, Gansu province, for 8 months. There is not even a McDonalds here. Of course, there are only two westerners in this whole place, myself and my other myself whenever I see a mirror

haven't experienced men and women together in the same roon

My advice is to not experience the country side of China. They are completely devoid of common courtesy,privacy,etc. Unless you just like that kind of environment,however unlikely. I have lived in a city where I am the only foreigner, and I have not spoke to anyone whose first language is English for 2 years now. It's not fun or interesting, more like isolation in a sea of people who constantly remind you that you are different in every way.