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Published: January 10th 2009
For my first few days in Kunming I was able to enjoy warm, spring-like weather, but today it's quite cold. The private Chinese classes I'm taking are going well, but they've also made me realize just how horrible I am at speaking Chinese. In Wuhan I was able to convince myself that I was doing a decent job of learning in, because I was able to use it to my advantage in most daily life situations. Unfortunately, being able to shop, by train tickets, and order food isn't worth anything in terms of day to day social interactions. I have no aspirations of becoming fluent in Chinese, but I'd like to know enough that I can have a real conversation with a Chinese person who doesn't speak English.
I borrowed a Kunming guide book from the school, and between classes I've been using the point-and-go method to get taxis to take me to the famous locations in the city. So far I've been to the Green Lake Park (notable for its free Yunnan opera performances), and Yuantong Si Pagoda. Yunnan is one of the major tea regions in China, so I've been buying far too much tea. Yunnan coffee is also popular, and it's a treat after spending so much time in Wuhan, where coffee is expensive, poor quality, and hard to find.
I'm having doubts about going into Vietnam. I've never been to a country where I don't speak a single word of the local language, and the idea of doing so worries me. I'd also be going completely on my own, and I don't really know anything about Vietnam. As bad as I am at speaking Chinese, I know that I can at least ask for directions, and function enough to eat, shop, and sight-see. However, I also know that if I don't go into Vietnam now, there's a good chance that I never will. I need to decide quickly, so I can buy my onward train tickets, and book hostels.
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Nyree
non-member comment
Do it, do it, do it!
I suspect, sweetie, that the Vietnamese, especially if you go into the southern part, will be pretty good at English. Vietnam was featured recently on a TV programme, and it looks stunning - and they were all very friendly (well, they would be, with a film crew on hand!). The Top Gear guys ended up in a breathtakingly beautiful place, on the coast in the north-east corner - in the Haiphong area - full of little islands of most fantastical shapes in great calm bays. I hope you love wherever you go, but the coast looks the most interesting!