Some people do the latter, but personally I prefer the traditional approach of friendship first, sex later. I would imagine that most people in the west also develop a friendship first to determine if they are suitable for each other. Anyway, it's best to discuss your needs and desires with your partner first to determine what's best for the both of you.
@laotou, thanks for the introduction to Tibetan History 101.
Back on track though, these restrictions leave me curious: I read in "the rough guide to China" that there was a Dutch couple running a restaurant in Lhasa. Does this mean the government will force them out of Tibet too or will they just be out of foreign customers during this time?
@laotou, that is probably the reason, but for some reason I can't wrap my head around that possibility since for me Tibet is Buddhist and Buddhists can't possibly be violent. At least that's the image I have in my mind. So that makes my first "question" quite a obviously a rhetorical one.
Normally Buddhist festivals attract tourists including international visitors that could bring in lots of needed revenue especially to a poor region like Tibet. But well, I guess that's just wishful thinking on my part - if Tibet were in Thailand or Laos there'd be half a million foreign tourists visiting that festival, but well, I digress.
Oh geez, here we go again. Tibet is such a beautiful region and they're preventing foreigners, who most likely recognize that Tibet is a legitimate part of China from going there? Why?
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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.
Getting Away: Luang Prabang
Posted by@flengs, what do you mean by being fed up with the "foreigner-local" relations? Some of them seem quite superficial, but it depends on what level the relationship is. When both parties speak at least one of the other's languages really well, then mutual understanding will increase of course, however, this is rarely the case as few foreigners can speak Lao (except for a few words maybe) and few Laotians can speak very good English.
Major Kunming traffic arteries converted to one-way roads
Posted byAn interesting read. I first came to Kunming in mid-2009 and by then the changes were already made. I actually live just off xue fu lu and everytime I'm in a car or taxi (except late at night) we have to go the long way round starting on yi er yi, passing by hongshan bei lu and finally onto xue fu lu. In the reverse direction it's a straight route direct to yi er yi that takes all of 5-6 minutes outside or rush hour; in the original direction going back home it takes about double that. Good for taxi drivers (they get more money!), good for bus patronage but a little annoying for the average commuter affected by this everyday. Anyway, nothing wrong with it, it's just the way it is now - i never realized it used to be different before!
Getting Away: Jinghong
Posted byReally nice city.
First-hand account: Setting up a guesthouse in Xishuangbanna
Posted byGeezer, where did you hear this? Would be really sad if it was true. I too have thought about such a business and indeed have also considered xishuangbanna, which is one of the nicest parts of all of China. However, all things being considered, I find it much easier to set-up something in SE Asia.
First-hand account: Setting up a guesthouse in Xishuangbanna
Posted byFirst of all, Thais are foreign tourists too if they are outside of Thailand. Anyway, nice article, I wish these people lots of success. I think it would be nice if there were more westerners (and foreigners in general) travelling in Xishuangbanna, because right now it's a world away from neighboring Laos and Vietnam. In fact, even though it's so restrictive, I find it easier to come across other travellers in Myanmar than in Xishuangbanna...why is that? I look forward to the day you can find a central backpacker district in Jinghong that looks like its equivalent in Laos filled with hundreds of western backpackers.