The Kunming Massive

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Today we were off to the bird and flower market with our new friends and this time we didn't leave anything to chance with the buses. We skipped the hotel breakfast which is proving to be too greasy for us and got to the bus stop nice and early. Surprise, surprise, because we weren't in a rush the bus turned up really quickly. It was packed to the brim with commuting Chinese so we took a chance and waited for the next one to turn up, which it did just 2 minutes later. We were at our meeting point with almost 20 minutes to spare :-)

David arrived just after 11.00 am as arranged and gave us the happy news that Spring would be coming too. A few minutes later she turned up and said that she had invited another friend along who wanted to practise her English and did we mind. We were so thrilled to have finally found some genuinely friendly Chinese people that it was a case of the more the merrier and not long afterwards, a girl called Ashley appeared with a whopping great smile on her face and wearing possibly the funkiest tasteful glasses ever. We were now officially a posse and with Glynn and David already absorbed in manly discussions about technology, we girls chatted away like a trio of old ladies at a WI meeting.

The bird and flower market is famous for selling all kinds of curiosities, particularly small animals as well as all kinds of birds. It was a little bit distressing to see all the various animals in such cramped conditions - puppies, kittens, terrapins, lizards, fish, guinea pigs and rabbits plus an array of budgies, parrots and song birds - but there was really nothing we could do. I was quite alarmed to see that some of the bigger terrapins had had their shells painted with cartoon characters or slogans. It just felt wrong. Glynn was obviously most upset about the dogs but it was all pretty unpleasant. Further on in the market it changes to a craft and tourist souvenir market and I bought myself a little woven leather bracelet and Glynn veered straight for the sword and spear stall, getting all excited at the sight of a selection of ninja swords. We allenjoyed ourselves talking together and getting to know each other better as we walked along the crowded streets.

For lunch we headed into the city centre and to one of a chain of restaurants named after the Brothers Jiang. They are famous all over China for their Crossing-the-Bridge noodles so Glynn and I felt it was vital that we tried some. The food arrived in installments: first there was a big bowl of broth (I didn't want to know what it was made of!) to which we could then add green vegetables, mushrooms and a variety of sliced and chopped meats like pork and chicken. You then get a bowl of the famous rice noodles and tip them into your soup and add vinegar and chilli flakes to suit your taste. Naturally I stuck to the veg and let Glynn have all the animal bits. It tasted really good though Glynn and I both struggled to eat elegantly from a bowl of soup using chopsticks! The five of us ate for just 45 Yuan, which is just over 3 pounds. Food is incredibly cheap here in China which I'm afraid is one of the country's few redeeming features.

After lunch we messed about in the main square by the water fountains and posed for photos with Jish at some of the stunning traditional Chinese city gates. It was another hot day so we decided to go for a beer or two. Unfortunately, Ashley was suffering from the heat a bit and I had to admit my legs were getting tired, so we abandoned the beer plan and went to a little park to sit down and recharge our batteries. We chatted a bit more and eventually everyone agreed that perhaps we were too tired go go anywhere else. Glynn and I felt really sad as we said goodbye to Spring who has to work tomorrow but David and Ashley are going to meet us again tomorrow to help us try and find an English book shop. We would like to buy a Vietnam guide in English but given that most Chinese don't get to leave the country, I'm not hopeful we'll find what we need. Still, it will be great to see them both again regardless.

Time now to go and grab abite to eat for dinner if we can dodge the evening rain long enough to get to the restaurant we fancy trying tonight. Fingers crossed!

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