Forums > Living in Kunming > who thinks we chat is for business use I remember many years ago when computers became available to common folks. Everyone jumped on the MSN bandwagon because they gave you free email service. Then came Yahoo that offered Instant Messages. So stupid people did free advertising for the rich profit making yahoo and they invited others to join yahoo. In years to follow, this process repeated many times. We have all been asked to join this or join that but amazingly, no one offered a system that can talk to other systems. In time, people had their information posted on several systems because one did not connect with another (MSN, Yahoo, Facebook, etc).
Here in China it was all about QQ. My students would tell me how their password got stolen and I never understood what that meant until I met a chinese techy guy who showed me how he can go in and steal their passwords. I made the move to QQ when yahoo was no longer allowed in China a few years back.
Now its wechat! Went to greenery cafe and they no longer gave us a menu because they told us to go to wechat and order. We insisted and got a menu. When it came time to pay the bill the waitress looked at us like we were crazy when we handed her cash - she told us to pay on wechat. Most people use a wechat number not their telephone number so when they give us their contact info they always use wechat which is useless to a person who does not want to use this crap.
In a few years, it will be a new sytem in place and everyone will make the transition again. For us old timers who have done this crap time and time again, we can see the big picture and no longer fall for this crap.
It is all about profits, that is the reality of the present. So when I see companies that offer many things for FREE, it is clear there is an agenda. The agenda is to get as many people hooked on this as possible. Went to the movie theater last month. Tickets were 80 Yuan but with wechat it was only 30. That is a huge difference and people will get wechat to save 50 yuan per ticket. No agenda there.
In the west, most people have seen how credit cards ruin lives and families. Here in China this beast is just beginning to manifest. I see more and more examples of young people up to their necks in debt because they use credit cards every day to buy junk or a single yogurt at Walmart.
Forums > Study > KCEL a profit-making school Went to KCEL (Dong Feng) the other day. What impressed me most was the very big poster on the wall that had the PSB regulations in both Chinese and English warning students that they can NOT work with a student visa. I think this is very important and all students should be aware of this as soon as they begin classes.
Side note: I think GK staff should regulate (control) all advertisements on GK (classifieds) when it comes to English schools seeking english teachers. As a requirement to put an ad here, the school should provide GK with the authority granted to them by PSB to hire foreigners.
I see many ads for english teachers here and some very clearly state they they can give you a working visa while others do not or are seeking part time work which will certainly not be able to provide a working visa.
The institutions that can not provide a visa are clearly advertising to hire illegal workers.
Forums > Travel Yunnan > Police certificate of no criminal records www.gokunming.com/en/forums/thread/12365/police_clearance - Contact this person and ask him how he completed this process. Read the thread as there is some good information provided.
Forums > Travel Yunnan > Torch Festival - Huo Ba Jie www.gokunming.com/en/blog/item/342/torch_festival_time_in_dali
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I find the smaller events are much more enjoyable. The big Torch festival in Chuxiong (Yi) is very crowded.
I prefer the smaller events in Dali (Bai). I especially like to see the community participate in making the giant torch and all the surrounding ceremonies that are included in preparation the days prior to the event. Best one yet has been in Zhou Cheng near Dali Old Town.
Check internet for different dates for this event. This is a minority festival, not a national festival. It is also a lunar calendar festival so look for the solar equivalent this upcoming week. Fun to watch if you have not participated in one before. Still Fun even if you have seen many of them like me - Hehe! Best to go to different places to see how each is similar and different.
Do not go to the Minority Village near Dianchi Lake - ends up costing you and arm and a leg for a totally fake and overcrowded environment. Best to find a small village - Bai and Yi Torch Festivals are very different so best to try a different one every year.
Laos extradites drug suspects to Yunnan
Posted byYou ask a very good question. I was not asked either. So the question remains, Who made the Georgia guidestones? I know that in the USA, you need a work permit for everything. So who constructed this? Why is it that no one knows and there are no records? No asked but yet this policy is dictated to all.
Laos extradites drug suspects to Yunnan
Posted by500 million = 1/2 Billion
How can you keep humanity under 1/2 billion if there are 7 billion people?
Who decides who are the 500 Million who get to live?
I guess we have to purchase a ticket like in the movie 2012.
Laos extradites drug suspects to Yunnan
Posted byRead article 1 of the Georgia Guidestones.
Rescuers close in on railway workers trapped for 70 hours
Posted byFuning County in Wenshan, Yunnan.
Laos extradites drug suspects to Yunnan
Posted byBuddhism states that all life is suffering and that suffering stems from desire. Letting go of these desires should be one's purpose in life. Addiction is viewed as being stuck in the physical realm and life continues like a scratched record until a person can let go of these physical obstacles to freedom (nirvana - to extinguish desire). If not, you'll be back next lifetime with the same or another addiction until you get it right.
Yes, the question remains - is an addict a victim or does he have power or control over his addiction? If an addict is a victim than he can not be rehabilitated because he has no control over the addiction.
Now we venture into Nature vs Nurture. My daddy made me do it, Its in my jeans. I inherited this addiction so there is nothing I can do about it.
Meanwhile, every time you go purchase a pack of cigs, you are stealing from your own family because you are not buying food for the family but rather just cigs for me, me, me and only me. Unless, your spouse is also an addict and then you can share your cigs with her and wait until your kids are old enough so you can share your cigs with them.