Forums > Living in Kunming > How are Black-Aqmericans treated?

In short, it will be better than Mississippi, but not as good as Boston.

Forums > Living in Kunming > Do the Chinese of Kunming stare a lot at Laowai?

They will never stop staring, so you just have to get used to it. People say its just because they haven't seen foreigners before/often, but I've been to rural Japan and Vietnam where the same is true, and guess what? They don't stare. I've also been to Beijing, city with literally hundreds of thousands of expats... they still stare.

Minority nationalities actually tend to stare a lot less, probably because they know what it feels like, and they're tired of being told: "Wow your Chinese is great! Where are you from, Korea?"

And yes, the hello game does get old fast, and I do think it goes beyond mere curiosity into the realm of animosity. The "hello!" shouts are the equivalent of five year-old children tapping on the glass of a fish tank. They don't want any form of interaction, just a reaction.

There are two pieces of good news. One: most Chinese don't act this way, its just that assholes, regardless of where you are or who they are, tend to stand out. Second: a pair of headphones, a pair of sunglasses (the stares tend to dissipate quickly when they realize eye-contact isn't possible for them), and a protective hand on your wallet can block it all out if you're having a bad day and this all starts to get to you.

Don't worry, the weather and the food are great, and the people generally are too. You're gonna have a great time!

Forums > Living in Kunming > Chenggong to house 2.3 million university students?!?!

Well the numbers are ridiculous and inflated, but that happens pretty much anywhere in China when it comes to these sorts of massive urban development projects.

As to why the government would want to relocate university student (and teacher) populations outside of the major political and financial centers of the city?

Think of Beijing, in either June of 1989 or May of 1919, and you start to get the picture. Nicely laid out with straight, wide roads and accurate maps, without many hidden nooks and crannies, and very easy to lock down if something happens (which it probably won't).