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Forums > Living in Kunming > Good Puer store

I can recommend the store next to China Merchants Bank on Dong Fang Dong Lu. Near the crossroads with Bai Ta Lu (I think) close to the Thai Consulate on the same side of the road.

It was recommended to us by a Kunmingnese. It is not a cheap place, but they have the full range of teas. Unlike a lot of the cheap places, you get what you have paid for.

They do the full tasting. We spent about 2 hours there and they never showed any impatience or tried to hurry us up, even though it was passed their closing.

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Forums > Living in Kunming > Driver License Test

Yep, there are 1300 questions to learn.
But some are the same question written differently in different sections.

Other questions are grouped and so are easier to learn
e.g. What is the speed limit on [a type of road].
A: 30 kph
B: 40 kph
C: 50 kph
D: 70 kph
All 4 answers are used for different types of road.

Some others always have the same answer, for example on the spot fines for driving offences. Are always the same amount, if it is on the spot.

The road signs are a bit trickier.
For example, there is one sign for a crosswalk.
The question is 'What type of sign is this?'.
One of the answers is for a crosswalk.

However the correct answers is that it is an advisory sign. Why? because it is square.

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Forums > Living in Kunming > Walmart no more

I do the Metro run for stuff I cannot get in the local supermarket. And then I fill the freezer.

Meat from the wet market, as long as you buy it in the morning it seems to be OK. Never had food poisoning from the wet market.

Veg from the wet market or from farmers at the side of the road.

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Forums > Living in Kunming > Elementary Education in Kunming

Primary-middle school is free in state schools, but many headmasters take bribes if the school is a bit better and parents seek it. I am not sure if education is free if you don't have a Hukou for the same city as the school is in.

However, there are many 'experimental' schools which are run as private enterprises. They will always be cost focussed, and looking to maximise profits by charging for anything.

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The economics of junking bikes is a short to medium term gamble..If you are early to the market and can kill competition (like Bluegogo died), you can dominate a market. If you can create a near monopoly and increase the total revenue to more than make up for the initial loss of assets.

The gamble works best when only one player adopts this strategy. Flies in the ointment include:

1. Regulations and fines for dumping.
2. Late entrants taking advantage of your attempts to clear the field, at no cost to themselves. This also negates the advantage you gained at a cost.
3. Late entrants in a strong financial position, when your cash has been depleted.
4. You run out of cash yourself (as happened to Bluegogo).
5. Public perceptions. If your bikes are seen a a pile of junk, they will get treated as such. Personally, I would be much more likely to carelessly discard an Ofo than I would a Mobike. For some users the perception of how cool a bike is, many lead some people away from services that are seen as less cool.

"...If they are able to exchange privacy for convenience or efficiency, they are willing to do so in many cases..."

In my world I did this a long time ago. I realized that I was doing this to some degree when I signed up for my first email account and online shopping. Over the years I have seen my privacy eroded as convenience and efficiency increased. Admittedly I was a little surprised by how far this has gone, and how the data has been used (post Cambridge Analytica revelations), but I knew that I had crossed the Rubicon a long time ago.
Since moving here, I also accept, grudgingly, that I am being surveilled, but to go off grid would inconvenient and inefficient.

As distasteful as the situation given by Robin Li is, I think that he is not that far wrong, in his assessment; note that he does not say it is right, just a fact. As for the the online reaction? nobody likes to be reminded of bad news.

There probably simple work around, BUT the numbers of people who have been disciplined so far (well over 100 000) and the range of sanctions being handed out means it is not worth the risk.

Some of the stories of government officials having to go out into the villages to sweep the streets suggest that a very tight rein is being used in certain quarters.

Reviews

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A reasonable choice of lumber that has improved over time. Fancy hardwoods like walnut, and mahogany are in abundance. There are some plywood and rubber-wood boards available. There are also some kiln dried imported softwoods and merbao available. Some of the lumber is very green, so look for the kiln dried if you need stable timbers.

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Echo everything said by others.
Breakfast great and the serve from 8am. Most other places say 9am and they still are not ready.
Sandwiches are cheap 22-32, and really packed full of filling. We got some sandwiches for a day out, the only mistake I made was ordering two, as this was too much. These are seriously good sangars, and they are wrapped in alu foil.

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In fairness to Metro, they are a wholesalers, and not really a supermarket. Hence the need for a card, which can be got around.

They have improved in the year I have been away. They now carry a more consistent range of imported foodstuffs and they also seem to have sorted out the mported milk supply.

They have a wider range of electrical appliances now, there is a coice of more than one toast. There is also a better range of seasonal non foods, like clothes, shoes, garden furniture and camping gear.