Blogs from Kunming, Yunnan, China, Asia - page 2

I've been living in the dorm for a month now. I quite enjoy the new surroundings and still go out every week to discover new places. I visited Black Dragon pool by taking publis bus from the Carnival area, 2 blocks south from my school. And finally have tackled the mountains seen from my dorm window, the Chang Chong Shan ( Shan is Chinese for Mountain.) The weather has been absolutely fantastic this month, not too cold and not too hot, perfect autumn for hiking and venturing out,... read more

CYCLING AROUND KUNMING As many of you already know, I have become a pretty avid cyclist. Living in Kunming provides some excellent places to ride and explore. Just 15km or so from my front door brings one into the real countryside of Southwest China. Lacking of cars and trucks, the routes usually get held up with herds of goats, water buffalo, and dairy cows. The occasional flock of geese or random chickens running about also make it a fun place to ride. It has been fun to cycle this year starting in February to watch how the crops cycle, and seeing when (and where!) our food is being produced. Early this year saw the planting of wheat, which was harvested about a month or so ago. The farmers take the stalks and beat them against wooden ... read more

Friday: Kunming Breakfast was in the non-revolving revolving dining room on the 23rd floor of the hotel!! Then it was off to the 'Stone Forest' ( see photographs) - although this was busy I think we were the only westerners (apart from a couple of back-packers). We are now in the remoter SW part of China, off the normal 'Western Tourist' route. This area is a lot more like I'd imagined China to be - mind you, everyone under 30 strolls around clutching an iPhone!! For dinner we ate 'Across The Bridges Noodles' - a recipe developed by local women so that the food did not go cold when it was taken to their husband (across a bridge!!) at lunchtime. After dinner Kate and I strolled around the local streets - these came alive with street ... read more

Moc pěkně to teda nezačíná. Na nádraží v Lijiangu jsem bezmyšlenkovitě vešel do zóny za rentgenem (systém čínské železnice se totiž spíš podobá letištím), kde už se nebylo kde najíst. Zkusil jsem tedy čínskou variantu chemického polotovaru známého v Česku jako "čínská polívka", v Číně jako 方便面 čili pohodlné nudle. Bohužel jsem vzal sečuánskou variantu, a už ve vlaku mi žaludek začal tancovat. Po příjezdu do Kunmingu mě dále na nádraží začali otravovat různí podnikavci, takže jsem chtěl co nejrychleji vypadnout, ačkoli jsem ani nevěděl, na kterém nádraží to vlastně jsem - mobil zrovna vypovídal poslušnost. Vystoupil jsem tam, kde se mi to zdálo jako centrum, a dal se do hledání ubytování, podle turistických průvodců - většinou totiž hotely do předu nerezervuju. První hostel byl zjevně zbouraný, druhý nejspíš nikdy neexistoval, další hotel byl stonásobně předražený, ... read more

Geo: 25.0389, 102.708That was unusual. At 8.40 am there was still no sign of Lotus and given the extraordinary punctuality of every "friendly China guide" it was almost cause for concern. At 8.45 Lotus pulled up outside the hotel, sitting side saddle on a motor cycle! Apparently there had been an accident on the freeway (surprise surprise with the way everyone drives!) and after being stationery in the bus for so long, Lotus jumped off and hailed a scooter....."it's the local way" Lotus reassured us.First stop in the morning (if you don't count the interminable delays in the traffic) was the Yunnan Nationalities Village. This theme park showcased the different ethnic minorities of China. Currently 26 minorities are represented with small villages stablished in the park. The villagers actually live and work in the park. Each ... read more

Geo: 25.05, 102.7Last day in Lijiang and thanks to Lily we have a 2 pm late checkout. What a bonus! Gave me time to repack the luggage and restore some order while swapping winter clothing options for summer. We are leaving the cooler mountain regions and heading for warmer coastal climes...an expected 30C in Kunming tomorrow.Lunch was at 3 pm in a restaurant near the Black Lagoon and we were driven there by Lily's husband Peter (previously known as FLNMWLTCSF) and as soon as we got into the car Lily informed us that Peter was a really bad driver. We thought he was great - a very, slow, careful driver. It never ceases to amaze me how much we can eat! But this was an exceptional meal that included duck and roast pork. We have been ... read more