"I Love Sports" is 800 yuan/year, never packed and on the lower end of Kunming gyms in terms of upkeep - bathroom and changing area is a little malodorous and there are no showers. That said, their weights are as heavy as any other gyms and they have a nice little green area with a good view of Kunming where you can stretch and relax. Not bad if you're into cheap/no-frills.
I've been also been to Powerhouse and Impulse, both of which are part of international gym chains. Both are cleaner and more pleasing to the eye than I Love Sports, and both of them cost a little more... can't remember off the top of my head exactly how much for a year. Tianhao is along the same lines but rather small.
What area do you mean when you say 'northwest part of town'? Kunming's big enough that most of the gyms listed could be considered in the city's northwest. The most northwestern gym listed would be the Kunming Municipal Gymnasium Fitness Center on Huancheng Xi Lu near Jiaoling Lu. Hope that helps.
I don't know if Kunming can be compared to Shanghai very easily... if you're looking for nice green surroundings, chances are you'll want to check out the Cuihu/Green Lake area or Beichen in the north. Younger foreigners tend to favor around Cuihu and families tend to live in Beichen, but more families are beginning to move the Cuihu area.
Dongfeng Lu, Renmin Lu and Beijing Lu are slightly similar to Huaihai Lu and Nanjing Lu in that they're developing into Kunming's CBDs. These streets will add more amenities and conveniences in the coming months/years and are already better than most other parts of the city in terms of transportation. Newer residential developments on these streets tend to have more green spaces than the average Kunming xiaoqu.
Just came back from the airport for the second day in a row... my 10pm flight was delayed to 11:30 and it seemed like no flights were managing to take off. Didn't want to spend another five hours at the airport waiting for my flight to be canceled, so I left.
There were several departure gates with angry crowds wanting to get out of Kunming. One small group was chanting "We want to go home!", they were being escorted away from their departure gate by the fuzz.
I saw a few lines of 50 or more people waiting for hot water to drink or for instant noodles. The airport's food and beverage facilities were doing brisk business.
I called the flight info hotline (96566) several times before going to the airport and after arriving and it was out of service.
Given the state of the airport tonight, I would suggest that anyone with flights tomorrow assume that there is a chance your flight will be delayed or canceled tomorrow. If there's any way to avoid checking luggage, I would recommend it. Should your flight be canceled, you won't be in the mood to wait an additional hour or two for your bags.
@blobbles: No changes to the article text were made.
Deng Ling requested a different photo at the top of the story because she said the original pic, which I shot the day before she left for London, made her look "like the old woman on the Hongdouyuan sign".
Anyway, I passed her request on to current GK management and they kindly complied.
Thursday we were wondering why the haze was so bad despite reports that the fire had been extinguished... until we saw this:
"A forest fire in southwest China's Yunnan Province started again Thursday morning, the local forest fire prevention headquarters said Thursday.
The fire was rekindled in Wangjiatan forest in Anning, a county-level city on the outskirts of the provincial capital of Kunming. The fire is currently under control, and nearby villages haven't been impacted, Cao Long, chief of the Yunnan forest armed police said."
My favorite Tengchong-style restaurant in Kunming. Their ersi and erkuai are trucked over from Tengchong and are the real deal — Kunming ersi and erkuai do not compare.
The restaurant itself is a bit jumbled, but there are a couple of tables outside in the courtyard that are nice to sit at when the weather's pleasant.
Don't believe them when they say they don't have lufu.
Fog shuts down Kunming airport, strands thousands
Posted byJust came back from the airport for the second day in a row... my 10pm flight was delayed to 11:30 and it seemed like no flights were managing to take off. Didn't want to spend another five hours at the airport waiting for my flight to be canceled, so I left.
There were several departure gates with angry crowds wanting to get out of Kunming. One small group was chanting "We want to go home!", they were being escorted away from their departure gate by the fuzz.
I saw a few lines of 50 or more people waiting for hot water to drink or for instant noodles. The airport's food and beverage facilities were doing brisk business.
I called the flight info hotline (96566) several times before going to the airport and after arriving and it was out of service.
Given the state of the airport tonight, I would suggest that anyone with flights tomorrow assume that there is a chance your flight will be delayed or canceled tomorrow. If there's any way to avoid checking luggage, I would recommend it. Should your flight be canceled, you won't be in the mood to wait an additional hour or two for your bags.
Interview: Deng Ling
Posted by@blobbles: No changes to the article text were made.
Deng Ling requested a different photo at the top of the story because she said the original pic, which I shot the day before she left for London, made her look "like the old woman on the Hongdouyuan sign".
Anyway, I passed her request on to current GK management and they kindly complied.
Forest fire burns near Kunming
Posted byThursday we were wondering why the haze was so bad despite reports that the fire had been extinguished... until we saw this:
"A forest fire in southwest China's Yunnan Province started again Thursday morning, the local forest fire prevention headquarters said Thursday.
The fire was rekindled in Wangjiatan forest in Anning, a county-level city on the outskirts of the provincial capital of Kunming. The fire is currently under control, and nearby villages haven't been impacted, Cao Long, chief of the Yunnan forest armed police said."
english.cri.cn/6909/2012/03/22/2021s688540.htm
American fugitive and environmental activist sentenced to prison in Dali
Posted byAn update on Solondz's situation in the US:
seattletimes.nwsource.com/[...]
Lijiang to launch international flights this year
Posted byFlights between Kunming and Taipei began at the end of 2008:
www.gokunming.com/[...]