I've also been to Puzhehei numerous times and have never bought any entrance tickets. 200 kuai for a half an hour boat ride, ridiculous! I've made boat rides with local farmers for a very small fraction of that price. And they are much more fun!
Has anyone actually heard of illegal teachers getting deported for working a few hours on the side in Kunming? I haven't heard anything. Only some crackdowns on film sets, but they apparently were able to bribe their way out.
Hahaha, Billdan is very passionate about his dislikes. I argue he hasn't been looking good enough and has thrown in the towel prematurely after a few encounters with either too spicy or tasteless rice noodles and bad experiences with vegetarian dishes. As the capital of Yunnan, Kunming has a very diverse and colorful kitchen and you can find really awesome food if you know how and where to look, and maybe most importantly know what you need to be looking for. Of course, this food is better outside the big city. Actually, one of my jobs is to take groups on culinary trips through the province and there hasn't been a single person that disagreed with me about any food tastes. Anyway, I'm wasting my time here, it's completely ridiculous that you say "all the Chinese food in Kunming is crap", and you have proven to be impossible to argue with. Have fun chewing on your toast.
Billdan, excuse me for using a "gay term", I just watched a southpark episode and I quoted Cartman calling Kyle a Negative Nancy. What I mean is that you are continuing to make a fool out of yourself ranting on about the quality of western food in China. We are in China, so the local (southwestern) Chinese food will taste best. Western food will be of inferior quality because we are not in the west. If you are in Europe, you'll probably find western food tastes better and Chinese food will taste bad. Isn't that logical?
In China -> Good Chinese food, bad western food
In the west -> Good western food, bad Chinese food
1 + 1 = 2
No results found.
This place is without doubt my favorite restaurant in Kunming. It is truly Simao-style, but adds its own unique touch. The ingredients vary per week and the ingredients are all carefully sourced in specific markets or brought straight from the mountains. Their wild vegetables are always sweeter than other places in Kunming. There are plaques on the wall that say: "we don't feel the need to enhance the flavor with weijing or jijing, we do our best to source the best natural foods for you". You will not see any grease after finishing the plate, not even with the deep fried dishes. They are very flexible with ordering combinations and the super-friendly owner-chef will be happy to step out of the kitchen and give you some great advice. If he has time, because this place is crowded on most evenings. Service is friendly and attentive (but it is still Kunming). You get free home-made kimchi and apple vinegar with all meals. They have cold Fenghuaxueyue beer. Without doubt a safe Chinese eatery, really delicious food, friendly people who are passionate about their product. A true gem, in my opinion.
I heard Richland Hospital has proper testing material.
I think the medical staff is of the same level as other Kunming healthcare facilities. I needed to translate some specifics of a medical report I got in another specialized hospital. I wanted to do this by letting the Richland doctor have a phone call with the specialized doctor that had done the tests. I came in and there sat a young physician with a translating nurse. When the phone call to the other hospital wasn't successful he wanted to have look at the report himself. I asked if that would make sense if he wasn't a doctor that was specialized in that specific field. He told me he wanted to have a look anyway. To my horror, he promptly misdiagnosed me with a truly appalling disease. When I came home I was puzzled. I didn't have any symptoms, how could I have something that serious. I checked the internet and found out that the condition that he described DIDN'T EVEN EXIST. Well, I have to give him, he had me stressing out there for a minute. I wanted to confront him with his mistake but apparently all the doctors had taken the weekend off. Eventually, in combination with my visit to the other state run facility, I was in constant uncertainty and stress over the period of 4 days for something that turned to be NOTHING. I had NOTHING.
Please use the highest level of common sense in dealing with local healthcare. The situation is grim. Best to let them test (if the facilities are ok) and make conclusions and decisions by yourself, if serious ask a physician in another country. Never blindly trust anything they say.
Really friendly people, very tasty proper Indian food, all made with fresh ingredients and very reasonably priced.
For sure the best Indian food in town!
Chasing the Tea Horse Road in Pu'er
发布者Yes, I know it does. The digging always goes on. It's interesting you mention those libraries in Thailand and Nepal.
Chasing the Tea Horse Road in Pu'er
发布者Thanks everyone for the invaluable input to this interesting discussion. I might have gotten a little heated up with this singular story you hear so often, the "Great Wall of China" story and the "Tea Horse Road" story, which definitely glances way over the complexities that make it interesting in the first place. @peter thanks for sharing with us that vivid image of the Khampa ruffians traveling afar in the good old days. I'm sure that makes for some fantastic stories! I'm sure I'll have to dive into that a little more. Do you recommend any specifically engaging sources on their exploits?
According to a friend, Nakeli was completely destroyed by a large earthquake and has been rebuilt as a 'tea road theme park'. I don't know the sources for this, but I know I can trust the friend who told me.
@Mike, please let me apologize for accusing you of doing "too little research", that was not fair for I can also see that the article was only meant as an introduction. Like I said, I usually get an automatic allergic reaction when I think stories lack the complexities they deserve, and that is more to blame to the mainstream tourist industry that is abound everywhere then to you in your quality as a travel writer. Again, no offence and thanks for your article. I didn't go into the trouble to write it myself.
Chasing the Tea Horse Road in Pu'er
发布者What always bothers me is the impression about "The Tea Horse Road" of "men making the entire journey in one go" like stated in this article. That is indeed the thing that is told at the official Tea Horse Road theme parks (like Nakeli) all over the province. But if you only do only a little more research, you find that there were indeed multiple routes with multiple wares. Not moving statically like a group of men in one go from point to point, but much more functioning as a network, stretching far over current national borders into Southeast Asia. Then winding through Yunnan from one "bazi" to another with different pack animals and different ways to pack them. Who in their right minds would think that a pack animal from southern Yunnan would be fit to cross 5000+ meters passes up in Tibet? Those places involved other people, animals, different wares, and a completely different style. It's an interesting given indeed that stuff from Southeast Asia indeed ended up in Tibet, but to imagine it was a single group of people delivering it there from point to point, that's far out. It was much more dynamic and diverse than this story of "the" Tea Horse Road that is marketed everywhere for the sake of appeasing tourists. Thanks for the article, but if you're interested in this piece of history, it wouldn't hurt to do a little more research.
Getting Away: Hampi, India
发布者@Peter99 I'd be very excited to hear that story about when King Gesar came to fight the Dali King. Do you know where I'd be able to find it?
China International Travel Mart set to open in Kunming
发布者Yes, I'd really like to have this info as well...