@AlexKMG, That's a really interesting observation. I left Chongqing in 2007, which was pre Bo Xilai, and came back in 2011. I was shocked at the change, and agree, quite a bit of the charm disappeared. Quite a bit of the nastiness did as well.

I'm pretty new to Kunming, infrastructure-wise, it feels like Chongqing did when I first got there...shitty traffic and no public transportation. I mean, yea a bus...

If I've learned nothing else in China, it's that the government here is quite good at social engineering. Especially considering the scale they're working with...and the time constraints related to that.

This whole issue, to me, seems like an experiment. If it works, hooray, if not...

But, I do like the bit about the charm : ) Why does it seem like the whole city shuts down at 9pm?