@Dazzer, agreed. Also, the same can be said about Pattaya on possibly an even larger scale (and reputation wise too). Stay away from jetski rentals too, lest you want to put up with their scams.
@CROwai, Umm...actually, some people do have very boring lives here in China, especially elderly people so watching an accident unfold is a form of entertainment, even if it's not in a good way. Think of it as a "live" form of watching the news. I think what some of the posters have tried to say here is that watching an accident unfold is not an everyday event, so of course they'll start watching. For some people here (less than a few years ago, but still), just staring at a foreigner is a "form of entertainment". Those people's lives must be completely boring if watching a foreigner walk past them could grab their attention, so I think stopping to watch the circumstances that unfold relating to an accident will grab some people's attention. This would be the case even in the west.
Also, the other responses about possibly causing trouble for yourself if you get involved are true. Unfortunately, China does not have the same form of law and order as the west just yet. This explains people's lack of willingness to get involved.
All I know is China isn't much noisier than living in a big Australian city. For starters, few Chinese people have house parties and cause havoc on Friday and Saturday nights in your own neighborhood compared to Australia or the USA. This has been my experience and I have lived in 2 different places in Kunming for about 1 and a half years and I have able to sleep in peace every night. When I was living in west Texas a couple of years ago, I seem to recall an awful habit of disrepectful locals having extremely loud parties well into the night and most other residents not being "game enough" to tell them to shut the hell up. It was impossible to sleep and I was beginning to question why I didn't tell those idiots to shut the hell up. A nice middle-aged lady did finally do so, but it wasn't a long term solution.
In short, I'll take living in China anyday over living in that city over in Texas.
Hmm sounds interesting. I think if you really love the country enough, then why not? I was told by a Chinese academic last year that China is considering allowing dual citizenship sometime in the future. In fact, I believe Vietnam now recognises dual citizenship in limited circumstances So China could be next. Anyway, I hold multiple citizenship from a couple of European countries + the largest country in the South Pacific, so I can tell you that dual citizenship is of enormous benefit to anyone that holds it.
@Billdan, I think that explains why Chinese men married to SE Asian citizens are more likely to reside in those countries than the other way round? For starters, those countries are more foreigner friendly than China, and visas are easy to renew on a long-term basis. All you need is enough money to pay for the visa extension, that's it. It also explains the large number of other foreigners married to locals living there.
Would I care to take on Chinese citizenship? For now, nah...Thai citizenship would be better, besides, Thailand is that little bit more cosmopolitan than China, features visa-free travel to all ASEAN members (including Myanmar, soon) and recognises dual nationality if you become a naturalized citizen! Not to mention the low cost of living and great climate.
There are 10,000 Vietnamese students studying in Kunming? Wow...that seems like a lot. I have noticed some, but there seem to be far more Thai and Lao students here than Vietnamese. I seem to recall a few recent "international" incidents in the South China Sea which have not contributed to China becoming "the flavor of the day" in the minds of the Vietnamese, but anyway, I digress.
Vietnamese food in Kunming? Where? Certainly not any around wenlin jie or nanping jie. If it's anywhere else then I'm too lazy to travel there...
No results found.
What do you mean by "foreigners"? Everyone who is a non-citizen of Myanmar and wants to travel there is a foreigner. I doubt Burmese citizens require visas to return to their homeland.
Horrible tasteless, thick-crusted "cardboard" like pizzas that are a far cry from what they should be like. Way overpriced too. Wine may be good, but why bother when the nearby Prague Cafe makes much better pizza at a more reasonable price?
Great Mexican food and ice cream, excellent Raspberry smoothies and an overall good atmosphere. Can't do much about the low ceilings on the second floor, but the early closing time could be adjusted, after all, the nearby French Cafe closes at 1am.
Chinese teens murder seven before arrests
Posted byThis is crazy! Sounds like the kind of thing you hear about happening in the US, not China. Anyway, they were arrested quickly and yes, Liumingke1234, they can and most likely will be given the maximum penalty for their crimes. I believe in China 14 year olds can be tried as adults. It doesn't say how old these teenagers are, but my guess is they are certainly in their mid to high teens.
The Box says goodbye
Posted byVery sad indeed...I hope the new tenant is also a foreigner who opens up a similar bar or restaurant to you guys. Good luck with the future and hope to visit you in Lijiang or Shangri-la. In any case, stay in China! Restaurants/bars like yours really make places like Kunming feel cozier.
Chiang Mai's Chinese invasion
Posted by@Peter99, I agree that there could be many more independent Chinese tourists in Chiang Mai, or indeed in many other parts of the world in the future.
I have seen many independent Chinese tourists, many travelling by themselves in places like Thailand, Vietnam and Cambodia. They usually have enough English to at least order from a menu though. It's kinda ridiculous for people like the young Chinese tourists above to not know what they "are ordering". If you ask me, except at Wenlie Jie and a few downtown areas, it's much more difficult to know what you are ordering in China!
Contrary to what is stated in this article, I don't think the Chinese can take away Thai jobs or properties because unlike in Laos, the Thais are fiercely protective of their rights and know what they are. Also, foreigners can't own land even if they become married to Thai citizens. With the exception of jobs requiring Chinese language skills, Chinese citizens wouldn't be able to find work in Thailand either and they can certainly forget about working in protected sectors like farming etc. so I think the fears raised above are unfounded unless Thailand opens up more but their restrictive property and work laws are probably in place to avoid such a scenario.
However, for now, the Chinese train project from Kunming through Laos connecting all the way to Singapore is not going to happen, but the Thais seem to be confident about a possible Japanese investment for some domestic HSR (high speed rail) lines in the near future. Personally, I would still put my money on the Chinese coming through eventually, but it might take 10+ years to happen so the original opening date of 2015 is now nothing more than a pipe dream given that the Chinese have now scaled back on HSR projects given safety issues, the resignation of the railway minister etc.
The road through Myanmar (Burma) from Mae Sai/Tachileik to China has too many restrictions on travel and since the Mae Sai crossing only allows travel to/from Mae Sai it can't be used by anyone planning on travelling overland between Thailand and China via Myanmar territory; thus Chinese and Thai/third party tourists/businesspeople etc. travelling overland between Thailand and China must go through Laos (or alternatively, Laos and Vietnam). I hope that with the recent positive developments in Myanmar that an overland route connecting Thailand and China and an upgrading of the Chinese/Burmese border post to an international one will happen, but until it does it won't become an option for anyone.
I wouldn't put my money on low-cost flight options to Kunming happening anytime soon, though eventually they should come through put this will depend entirely on demand for such services.
@invisible, the railway link from Kunming to the Vietnamese border has existed for like 100 years but only now does it look like it will reopen again after being closed for roughly 10 years now. As such, this will mean you can once again travel by rail from Kunming to Hanoi and beyond to Ho Chi Minh City. When it opens is unclear, but I'd say give it a year or so.
Kunming to Laos by bike: Part II
Posted by@pickley - hitchhiking is possible, but not really recommended due to the low cost of public transport and possible risk of things going wrong, though having said that hitchhiking is far safer in most parts of East Asia than in the USA for example. But you can still try anyway and it is surely a very interesting way of travelling.
I think Chinese truck drivers (starting in northern Laos, not far from the border) or Lao truck drivers (who wouldn't go much beyond Mengla) would help you cross the border, and then you could try flagging another vehicle to go further north. Alternatively, Chinese tourists driving themselves in southern Xishuangbanna or possibly in Laos itself might be willing to help you. It would be a good idea to offer some food, drinks or something for the ride and truck drivers often expect some payment anyway, but if you are nice and give them some food, cigarettes (if they smoke) or something else then that should make them happy enough without the need for monetary compensation. Every experience is different so you'll need to just try it out and see what happens.
Kunming to Laos by bike: Part II
Posted by@russell, it's Ji. There's a much faster way of translating English to Chinese these days and requires no travel outside of your own home: it's called google translate.
Anyway, from this itinerary it looks like the writer is about to enter Vietnam before he enters Laos, unless he backtracks first. Normally to travel from Kunming to Laos one would pass through Yuxi, Yuanjiang, Simao (Pu'er), Jinghong (Xieng Hung or Chiang Rung), Mengla (Muang La) and finally Mohan before reaching Laos. Of course while you can't cycle on the expressway, I have seen western cyclists on the highway between Jinghong and the border (there is currently no expressway there).
Therefore taking the backroads between Kunming and Jinghong would be the fastest way, but this cyclist's itinerary sounds more interesting and passes a more beautiful region of Yunnan - I too was very impressed by Yuanyang (hence my GoKM username right hehe), not to mention Lvchun and the Vietnamese borderlands before reaching Hekou.