washed down with peptobizmal

Dazzer you only eat at small dirty mixian shops? Try eating real Yunnan food...it's good stuff.

i dont eat mixian and i have had the la duzi in nice restarants. are you honestly telling be you have never had la duzi from eating out. coz if you say that very few people will believe you

Of course I've had it

so real yunnan food gave you la duzi, so why should i want to try it.

I believe "la duzi" is the reason you're supposed to use baijiu chasers...kill/sanitize everything in your stomach for 4-12 hours.

Ok, so I'm going to give you a much lower estimate, but everything depends on your lifestyle.
Last year, I studied at KSTU, here is what my living costs looked like:

1. Housing: shared dorm room, 3 other girls, 1200 RMB / year.
It's a big change from living on your own, but you're at the foreigners' dorm, meet people (both foreigner and Chinese), are not alone if you get sick... and it's dirt cheap if you're low on cash.

2. Water and electricity bills. We paid up to 200 RMB for 3 months in the winter, using washing machines, electric heaters and heated blankets. Add 3 RMB for communal showers on rainy day (solar water heater in the dorms are very inefficient). So let's say 1000RMB a year.

3. Food. University cafeteria + oatmeal breakfast + fruits from the market approx 30RMB / day (could go much lower if you don't eat meat and cafeteria breakfast: 10~15/day). Count about 1000/ month without going out and no foreign food (unless you saved and ate just rice for a while)

4. Phone. I used to go by with about 20~25RMB a month. Using wifi most of the time and 2G for the occasional map lookup and e-mail / WeChat. Right now, 4G from China mobile costs me about 100 a month with 1G of data and plenty talk time/text. Unless you're streaming on you phone, that's quite a lot.

5. Shared internet: we paid 200 each for the entire year.

OK, so my minimum: 14, 700 RMB for the entire year.

That doesn't include buying necessities: Bedding (300 if you go to the markets), kettle / water dispenser (30~50), desk lamps (min 30 RMB each new), extension cords (20 min), hand warmers (50, warms you nicely in the winter, and if you're used to the cold, don't need a heater), laundry (by hand 0, dorm cleaner 5/3kg, or by a laundry machine), personal hygiene products vary, western ones are expensive

so it is achoice of which end you purge from :-(

I live in the south now, shared apartment. My costs went up, but not as much as other people. My budget is 3000/month at most. 1200 for my furnished room, utilities included, 100 for the cell phone, 500 for food (very little meat and western food). I use Chinese brands for everything so about 100 for necessities. Basically, not going out, 2000/month, the extra 1000 is for extras.

@marcuschen, nah man, he said at the very beginning of his post meals are typically from 10-20 kuai. At your contention point, he is saying that can be the price of a meal at one of the bars or Western pub type joints.

We must read in context, friend!!! :-P