@harriss, Chinese people do the weirdest things in China, certainly not westerners or other foreigners! What about all the parents allowing their children to take a piss or a crap in a supermarket in the nappy (diaper) section!!! Hello....buy a freaking nappy (diaper)!
But anyway, I digress...
My 2 cents - it seems that even if Chinese nationals are eligible for a visa-on-arrival the Chinese government does not let its nationals leave the country without a visa for that country. Things may have changed, but every Chinese person on the flight from Kunming to Vientiane I was on in March had a visa in their passport (no one used the visa-on-arrival facility at Vientiane airport). Similarly, I observed numerous Chinese people at Bangkok airport with Thai visas from the Embassy in Beijing; this despite Chinese citizens being eligible for visas on arrival in Thailand too.
Sounds like you are one of the few foreigners who haven't been to Thailand yet made it to Kunming first. Thailand has about 100+ times more foreigners in any given location than you'll find in Kunming or Yunnan in general. English is widely spoken and it's very easy to get around. Anyway, since you're asking, well you can start by staying in the Sukhumvit or Silom areas of Bangkok, or Khao San road for the cheapest backpacker style accommodation options. However, there are plenty of cheap beds to be had even in the former areas and there are equally cheap beds in other areas such as Ramkamhaeng road (though few first time travellers stay in these other areas as they are further away from the sights, English is less widely spoken and it's harder to get around, though with the extension of the skytrain this is beginning to change). It's quite easy to find hotels or guesthouses for around 400-600 Baht per night (around $13-20), however, cheaper places can still be found though prices have certainly increased over the years.
Try searching on www.agoda.com to see what you come up with. The same goes for Phuket and Koh Phi Phi.
Try John's car service. His contact details are listed on this website. John Xie speaks great English and has about 4 cars available for use. He can just act as a driver and not a guide - he charges 450RMB a day, however petrol and tolls are extra.
@blobbles, I agree with you about your points regarding interaction at home vs. Asia. However, I think that in China people tend to avoid any contact with strangers and don't care about people they don't know (only when they go to foreign countries do they try to seek out strangers due only to the most superficial commonalities). Although when it comes to Chinese people's reactions to foreigners in cities with relatively limited numbers of foreigners (i.e. Kunming) a small number of locals will have strange reactions to the presence of foreigners, which to someone quite self-conscious like me, becomes rather irritating and makes me want to avoid such situations (I'm talking about the hellos (by far the most common comments probably accounting for 90%+ of "interaction"), but also the occasional comments about foreigners that would appear racist or otherwise discriminatory if they were repeated back home).
The presence of foreigners in a given location automatically removes that stigma, because you're not likely to face such comments in areas frequented by foreigners, since people are used to seeing them. Therefore, while there's nothing wrong with being the only white guy in a particular location, for me at least, the excitement and possible feeling of uniqueness is no longer something positive, but becomes annoying because at the end of the day I am not that special, I'm just an everyday guy and why should I be the object of attention when a Chinese person (usually) doesn't receive much attention in the west anymore?
Therefore, if a westerner were to come up to me and start a conversation, I'd be more than happy to engage him/her. Sometimes we forget that living in China is still considered to be a "difficult" environment (especially for a foreigner) and trying to fit in and gain acceptance is not as easy as some people think it is. So if someone, especially a foreigner goes out of their way to be nice, rather than make an unfunny joke like saying "hello!" that's a good thing. Of course it's also an awesome thing if you can befriend locals too.
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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.
Video: Kunming driver crosses pedestrian bridge
Posted byI'm surprised his car was still driveable and didn't end up with a zillion dents (or maybe it did). I wouldn't dare drive like that knowing that damaging my car is almost certain if I were to attempt that and secondly I have more regard for the safety of pedestrians than this bozo did.
Still, this was an entertaining piece of news.
Kunming addresses taxi shift change troubles
Posted byYep...though I'm more used to getting hassled than ignored. I thought we were all walking atms to these guys! Haha...anyway, it really depends though, because those taxi drivers that constantly pester you in places like Vietnam often rip you off, but if you go for the ones that are not specifically looking for fares they'll actually use the meters. Of course, taxis are better than motorcycle taxis though since they are less likely to rip you off. Also, you can almost always find a taxi or something else when you need one in those countries, even during rush hour. Something that's hard to do in Kunming and even Shanghai...
Also, apart from the occassional three-wheeled scooter or electric scooter driver willing to drive you somewhere, there are few alternative forms of transport in Kunming apart from the standard forms you'd see in the west: buses and taxis (and eventually, a subway). Only on the outskirts of town will you find motorcycle taxis who congregate around tourist spots such as the Nationalities Village, but these guys don't pick up fares inside town, probably because they aren't allowed to, I presume.
Kunming addresses taxi shift change troubles
Posted byWhat i find that's totally bizarre to me is that in a developing country like China, no taxi driver follows a foreigner like would happen in neighboring Vietnam, Thailand, Cambodia or elsewhere. In those countries, you don't look for the taxis, they look for you! In Kunming and China in general, you can walk down the street and no taxi driver will ever stop for you unless you want them to.
Yunnan preparing warily for China smoking ban
Posted byTell the people to look at the signs and see what their reaction is! If they don't react, tell them that they can't read (which is what I would assume, if someone was just so oblivious to a sign right above their head).