Forums > Living in Kunming > Gao Kao Weekend Gao Kao results are out today. Some are happy while most others are disappointed. 12 years of schooling summed up in one exam. Very few will retake the Gao Kao (less than 1%) to improve their score. Most will helplessly accept their score and base their entire future on this single Gao Kao score.
Now the students must choose a major and a school within the next 2-3 weeks.
Unfortunately, most English teachers are not aware of how important English is on the Gao Kao. English is 1 of 4 parts of the Gao Kao (both Arts + Science) for a total of 150 points. English has the same value as Chinese and Math. Total score for Gao Kao is 750.
In Yunnan, 80% of students who take the Gao Kao score less than 500. To get into a 1st level univ, a student needs at least 540 on the Gao Kao.
Students who score less than 500 on the Gao Kao are unable to pass the Civil Servant exam as the standards for Civil Service have also gone up significantly.
Forums > Living in Kunming > Real GK Meetup Thursday, June 23 at 1700. We had another successful and positive meeting last night.
Among the participants were Long-Dragon, Ricsnap, Tallamerican, JanJal and myself. Michael2015 and Alexz, we missed you guys last night.
Based on inquiries from prior participants, we are planning to have a meeting which includes wives or significant others. Once we get enough people who are interested we can better prepare for this event and our better halves can also meet and interact with each other.
At times, wives can feel isolated as being married to a laowai is not always easy - Haha! It will be good for spouses to relate and share expereinces with one another and perhaps even begin a support group among themselves.
From a military background, wives always played an important role and they always had a support group to help each other, especially for younger spouses who did not know how to deal with absent military husbands. In the case of Kunming, some spouses are not local and may feel alone without their families or they may need a shoulder to lean on to share concerns from a female perspective.
Forums > Living in Kunming > Real GK Meetup Anyone else wants to join? We are set for this week in the north.
Fuxian shampoo incident becomes national topic
Posted byusing online shame to, as the Chinese idiom goes, "kill a chicken to scare the monkeys".
A conversation with Sofitel Kunming GM Andre Erasmus
Posted byWhat a waste.
New high-speed rail line to link Kunming with Dali
Posted byLife in Yunnan just keeps getting better. A 2 hour train ride to Dali is a lot better then taking the 4-5 hour bus ride. Not to mention the delays when there is a traffic accident.
Earth's budget deficit at 160%, hope stems from trees
Posted byEveryone needs to contribute - Now it begins - Yes, we must contribute but when the population does not make their deadline (Dec 31), we must pay - another tax coming just around the corner.
Just like life insurance in the good old USA, you will pay for it whether you want it or not. If you don't pay, they just steal it out of your bank account.
Agenda 21 - controlled by the UN (1 World Govt) will be in charge.
The Global Warming Lie has now conveniently morphed into Climate Change since the weather did not cooperate with the CO2 lies.
Funny how there is no mention of the real problems in the world. The EPA raises the safety limits on poisons every year so that the multinational companies can continue to pollute and make a profit. In the meantime, we get to eat, drink and breathe more pollutants.
Snapshot: Dali and Weishan
Posted byThere are several noodle shops that are still run by very old people. I saw a beautiful OLD noodle machine (at least 50-70 years old) in one shop and I would love to buy it (Keep an eye on the obituaries). It just needs to be cleaned up because it has decades of flour stuck on it and it will make a wonderful addition to a home museum.
Weishan has not been commercialized yet. Any smart foreigner with some business savy can buy up a lot of antiques very cheaply and make a great cafe/museum/information center/guesthouse like the one in Xishuangbanna; he has his fingers in every pot.
Lots to see in the surrounding area - great place to retire, still make an income, and be the #1 laowai of the town.
Heijing offers the same.