User profile: voltaire

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Forums > Living in Kunming > Kunming Tap Water

Tap water can be filtered and is then definitely drinkable (source: Direct from a French urban water system consultant who works for the Kunming government as well as other major cities in Asia) but a decent filtration system will cost 2000RMB or so and does need to be maintained. The filters on expensive systems may cost you 1000RMB/year to replace after the first year.

Most people get ~10RMB 20L bottles delivered. There are many providers of this service, just pick a nearby provider when you arrive.

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Forums > Travel Yunnan > Xi You Cave

It's not far to cycle or taxi all the way to Xiyoudong (西游洞), I wouldn't bother with buses.

I believe Diego was mentioning another cave complex to the east of Kunming called Jiuxiang (九乡).

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Forums > Study > Yunnan Uni - Non-degree language program?

Hi there. I'm an Australian who has been here on and off for ~15 years. Just yesterday a friend of mine who studies there explained to me that he had switched from a non-degree program to a degree program because it was cheaper with better conditions (more classroom hours per week, etc.). This was in direct response to changes in the non-degree program resulting from a sudden influx of international students from South Asia which has apparently caused issues. Although it is a 4 year program, he said there is also a 2 year honors program if you have a previous degree from elsewhere and already have strong Chinese.

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Forums > Living in Kunming > New Carrefour online store

Currently my family buys something like 2 kilos of cheese per month. We almost exclusively buy from Taobao these days because neither Metro nor Carrefour have reliable supplies.

I was hoping that the Carrefour online store would have a broader range than the typical in-store selection, which has definitely shrunk over the years.

Alas, nothing French and edible. Nothing in non-consumer sizes. Everything overpriced. Only the worst brands of tasteless pretend European cheeses, from exotic locales such as Japan and the least reputable backblocks of Ireland, for uncompetitive prices. You'd think they'd pass on some of the volume savings to their customers, but apparently not. Shame on you Carrefour!

Francophones should petition the French consulate to uphold better standards...

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We delayed a week due to bad weather and went down last weekend, though it took us all day to get there.

We found the village named in the linked Chinese article - Shati (沙提) - and indeed there are lots of boats there, but they are all made of metal, not of wood. Currently because it is the end of the season they are all hauled up on land being re-coated. There is quite a lot of pollution as the village burns off its rubbish right next to the lake... even though they fish from it. Some government garbage collection effort is necessary!

Anyway, it should be possible to get a half-day on one of the boats when the season re-opens, according to the locals it runs from about April/May through October.

Nearby villages also have boats, it's not exclusively that one place, but that's where a fairly large fleet of fishing boats is based (upwards of 25 of them).

The easiest way to get there is to get a bus from near Haigeng Gongyuan in the Dianchi Road area of southwest Kunming for 4元. The bus simply goes straight down Huanhu Lu (环湖路), and the very last stop is close to Shati, either you can walk there down the main road (about 15 min) or you can get a cab or local bus from there.

Unfortunately, much of the nearby area to the northeast along the coast has been destroyed and is completely overdeveloped with stupid empty 'resorts', golf courses and ridiculous housing developments. There is an exception though. We also found a natural area a little beforehand, where the severe cliff topography has prevented over-development and there are still some beautiful little villages with some lovely old traditional houses still standing. The locals said that in March or April, when the water is lower, it is possible to walk across the lake and around the cliff. Could be a nice trip!

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Alien, the immediate north around this period was the Shu Kingdom of Sichuan.

The Shu were very talented bronzeworkers.

However, the site of the discovery is very close to Tonghai (通海), which although probably a far later toponym, literally means "connection to the oceans", and probably refers to the area's ancient role as a critical stop on trade routes connecting central Yunnan's lake-plateaux with what is now northern Vietnam via the Red River. In a sense, once you had arrived at Tonghai, you had arrived at the "oceans" (large lakes). Similarly, if you left Tonghai southward bound for the Red River, you were heading toward the ocean proper.

Note also that the Dongson bronze drum culture of northern Vietnam is very significant in the region. It spread its influence and artifacts to Yunnan as well as Burma, Cambodia, Thailand, Indonesia and the Philippines.

Therefore I would hazard a guess based purely upon geography and timing that the early evidence of bronzeworking discovered in Tonghai was likely due to technological and cultural influences from northern Vietnam rather than Sichuan's Shu Kingdom.

Reviews

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@nailer is being unfairly dismissed: they are certainly fallible. At one point they were well managed and the only game in town, and their outdoor bar had an interesting social vibe. Recently, none of these is the case (was given a bad bill to the tune of ~300% - no managers present and a subsequent complaint resulted in a less than ideal outcome, many more places are now open, and the outdoor bar is closed). Unless you are specifically seeking faux-Americana (often far better examples elsewhere) or two degrees removed faux-Mexicana, there's little reason to go there. How come French Cafe can serve a great sandwich for 24元 but Sals requires 50元 for a pretend-exoticized nibble? Certainly the business will continue, but the hey-dey is clearly gone. Romaniticizing the past aint gonna help. E-waste recycling by shipping (non carbon neutral) junk across the country? Puh-lease. Garbage processing people here recycle anyway! I applaud the ethical stance of one of the managers, but the place has frankly lost its mojo.

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Hands down the best draft craft beer in Kunming. On top of that, very reasonable prices for food and other drinks (especially wine).

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Called the number provided on a Friday at 2:15PM while a 10% discount was advertised "on Friday and Saturday" (listed in GoKunming specials).

A Chinese person answered the 'English' phone number in Mandarin then explained in broken English that you need to order 3 hours in advance. (Subtext: As their business is so slow)

Grumble. False advertising. Waste of time. Seems 100% Chinese run. Probably bad pizza.

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The listing here is wrong! Teresa's are not defunct, they are just back to being one store instead of two stores on Wenlinjie now! They are still in business, still answer on this phone number, and are still delivering! Points for consistency, it's been years! As of right now, it's 68元 for the more toppings vegetarian at the largest size. They will do thin or thick crust. Yes, it's not to everyone's taste, but I always used to find adding dried chilli powder and some extra salt brought it up to tasty. Might go for a dash of Sichuan pepper oil to spice it up this time around. (You know you've been in China too long when...)

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I also had a bad experience here recently.

Honestly, I wish them the best of luck, but I do think the staff are poorly managed and the owners have the wrong attitude and a clear lack of experience in service-oriented business. While the pizza is OK, everything else I have tried (including overnight stay) can be had cheaper and better elsewhere, and the pizza at Roccos is better in my opinion. The service has always fluctuated between acceptable to don't care.

Since they don't have their situation resolved yet, and it has been a few years, I have made the decision not to go there anymore or send anyone else. It's just not worth the hassle, given the crappy location (masked as private or lost). Better pizza with more quiet and privacy on Roccos' terraces.