@redjon77, are you honestly trying to make me believe that a full 50% of all elevators you have used in China just don't work? I cannot imagine such a difficult life. I have used elevators all over China, and they seem to work fine. Where are you going, that a full one half of elevators do not work?

@yankee00, no I do not, because I do not loudly proclaim that "All Chinese food is terrible!" and get excited over Corn Flakes. Sure, I sometimes go to Sal's and drink, because they have some nice choices in food and beverage. The difference, is that I do not believe that Sal's is superior to all local food and drink. Surely you can see the difference?

mm, most chinese people probably think the food from your country is crap and would never eat it. are you offended by that?

the fact is, most people aren't going out of their way to prove that their food is superior. people just eat what they like. and most eating habits / tastes are acquired in early childhood.

in fact, that's why you get so many expats bitching about the western food here.

Because it's not EXACTLY the same as back home.

it has more to do with HABITS than colonialism, arrogance, superiority, and the pyramids in Egypt.

Several years ago there was no butter in Kunming. It was margarine in big canisters kept in room temperature. The cheese could be bought outside Kunming at a few shop in special wholesale-markets from small fridges and it came imported from HKG. The ham was this "spam" ham, in canisters and also kept in room temp. There was a "Pauls Shop" and a few cafeterias wher you got some stuff that could be swallowed as "Western". Then came the wave of fruit pizzas, sweet popcorns and cold french fries as a Western thing. No Carrefour, no "Sal" (not that Ive ever been there) and no Papa John etc. When McDonalds came around 2003 there was a queue about 200 meters long for first days. Since that you could get a double-cheese for brekkie. Then it built gradually up.

Swallowing rice and mixian for breakfast for 2 years was enough to drive one to the brink of lunacy.

Anyway, Im saying this to make a perspective here. You guys who think the Western food is not okay now, can only try to imagine how it was several years ago.

Have it Gods sent by now.

Why no "edit" button here?

I wanted to edit and say the cheese used to be in freezers, not fridges, and as big chunks.

@Peter99

Yeah I agree, Western food availability is quite good given Kunming is a tier 2 city. It honestly adds to the livability of this city. Like most of the expats, I probably eat it only a couple of times a month, but knowing the options are there is nice. As they say, variety is the spice of life.

During the "bad ol' (Western food) days" - there was always pretty okay bread around - but only at a certain places. Goes under the name Ying Ke, which is something like "hard piece". Someone said only old akunming people ate it and the habit was from French culture in Vietnam. If thats true its quite interesting, as this bread is still around (although more and more hard to find). Back several centuries Vietnamese had shops around Jinbi Rd and even sold pastries, bread and coffee there (Uncle Ho even passed by for a coffee here and made strategies sipping coffee in Kunming). Now theres a Coffee House back there that tried to pick upon this heritage, but its pretty crap IMO.

But there was always a solution in bad ol' Wetsren food days, if you didnt want another bowl of mixian or sankuaifan ("3 yuan food") for breakfast: to buy a Ying Ke and put jam on it. Gnaw-gnaw...

Well being bad in a lot of places I can only really say for about 50% for nan ya di yi cheng on dianchi lu, that shopping centre is always full of broken elevators.
They seem to be on rotation which ones are broken lol

@redjon77, so, to be fair, it is fact not the case that 50% of Chinese elevators do not work, as you previously claimed? Also, I work in Nan Ya mall: I go there 6 days a week, and every single time I go, the elevators, though very slow, are working.

I am just making a point. Foreigners who say horrible things about China, when pressed for evidence, often have none. I mean nothing personal against you, but perhaps this particular discussion would carry influence in the Kunming food discussion.