I realize that there is no way for anyone (other than the PSB and Immigration dept.m perhaps) to produce actual statistics on this.
What I'm seeking instead is just guesses as to the average overall expat population in Kunming at any given time. My criteria for expat would exclude any tourists, but include foreign students studying for at least a year. It includes those gainfully employed, as well as Kunming's resident "retired population".
When describing Kunming to friends on the outside, I want to be able to throw out some ballpark figure - 1000? 5000? 10,000?
For those really willing, you can try to break it down by nationality.
Which nationality has the biggest population in Kunming?
Thai? Lao? Burmese? American? Brit?
What is there in the way of art galleries in Kunming? I'm having a really hard time finding much.
I already know about Nordica and a couple galleries in that complex, but I'm looking for more.
Not art museums, but smaller galleries, with independent, contemporary artists and such.
Something like 798 in Beijing, or Moshangan Lu in Shanghai (yes, yes, obviously I know Kunming won't have anything remotely approximating the scale of those cities' art scenes, but I'm still hoping to find something resembling a scaled back version)
I did an exhaustive internet search for art gallery (画廊) in Chinese, and got very few results. A pursued a couple of those results and found that one was permanently closed, and one was not actually a gallery but the private home of an artist who recently closed his gallery because of poor business.
Any help in this matter would be much appreciated.
I'm going to Cambodia soon and am trying to find malaria pills. I've asked around at a bunch of Kunming pharmacies for 抗疟疾药 (anti malaria medicine) and none of them have anything.
Anyone have any idea if they exist in this city? Thanks.
I know that all-you-can-eat buffets are not common in China, but I'm wondering if there might happen to be any in Kunming. (I know the Box has one on Thursday night, but I'm talking about Chinese food, not Italian food).
I also know that the saunas often have all-you-can-eat buffets, but I'm looking for a restaurant, not a sauna.
Great article and vivid descriptions of teas and tea mountains.
Just one tiny anal geographic note...
Shuangjiang County is a part of Lincang Prefecture.
Where the article refers to "Lincang Prefecture", it actually ought to refer to Linxiang District (临翔区), which is the administrative center of Lincang, a prefecture-level city.
Thanks for posting this. I got a library card here 3 years ago, and then promptly forgot all about it and never set foot inside the door. Inspired by your article, I stepped in the door again finally after all this time and was delighted by what I found.
My library card had long since expired, but to browse the collections you don't need a card at all; you can just walk in.
To me, the most interesting collection by far is on the 5th floor. The room in the southeast corner is filled with multiple volumes of the annals of every single locality in Yunnan Province. I'm talking about the 126 counties of Yunnan, and the 16 prefectures. Each one publishes a "yearbook" (县志,or 年鉴) every year, and the library has all the back issues going back to the 90s and in a few cases the 80s.
These books are full of information about the economy, geography, and cultural resources of the various counties of Yunnan.
You may call me for dwelling on semantics, but sometimes semantics are important.
I've always thought it's stupid that the Kunming government referred to the original six lines of its planned urban mass transit system as "Light Rail". No, it's not. Light rail systems primarily operate at street level, and are not grade separated (meaning cars and other cross traffic are controlled so that light rail vehicles can cross intersections unobstructed).
Kunming's original six lines are an real, honest to gosh subway system. Yes, the majority of the track is actually above ground. Only the lines in the city center are underground. In the suburbs they run on elevated viaducts. Being part underground and part above ground does not mean it is not still a subway system (or a "metro" system as it is called in some cities). The New York Subway has massive sections above ground as well, but they are still called the New York Subway.
Now that they have announced that the 8 new lines will become Kunming's "subway" it makes the original light rail moniker all the more ridiculous. What's the difference? They should just call the whole 14 line system the Kunming Subway, or Kunming Metro.
I found Lincang city to be pretty boring personally. But some of the other counties of Lincang prefecture are beautiful. Places I've been to and would recommend include Cangyuan (沧源), Gengma (耿马), Wengding (翁定), Mengding (孟定), Nansan (南伞), Fengqing (凤庆), and Lushi (鲁史).
Cangyuan is on the Myanmar border, home to the Wa nationality (佤族), and hosts the annual mud-throwing festival (摸你黑).
Wengding is a Wa village in the mountains above Cangyuan. The houses are made of wood and thatched roofs. It's not authentic. The government gave the residents money to rebuild their houses in the traditional manner 5 years ago, and now there's a 50 yuan fee to enter the village. However, since the traditional Wa architecture is difficult to find these days, Wengding is still an interesting place to visit.
Gengma is home to the Dai and Wa nationalities. The small city is surrounded by beautiful hills, mountains, and flowers. There's a terrific spicy shrimp restaurant.
Although Mengding is technically only a "town" within Gengma county, it's actually much bigger and busier than Gengma county seat. It's set in the fertile Nanting River (南汀河) plain, at a far lower altitude than Gengma county seat, so it has a hot an tropical climate. Many Dai here, and many Burmese traders as well, thanks to the Myanmar border just 20 km away. The town itself has a very southeast Asian vibe, with lots of tropical fruit, and Burmese food. Waterfalls outside of town are a popular hangout spot for local teenagers.
Nansan (the county seat of Zhenkang County), is in a semi-tropical valley 1000 m above Mengding and the Nanting River valley. It is surrounded by massive karst formations. The old city is a Dai village. The new city is growing like gangbusters. Due to its location right next to Myanmar, the local government wants to turn Nansan into a major port, boasting that it's closer to Kunming than Ruili or Daluo.
Fengqing is a county seat on the old tea horse road. The old city is set on the hill above the new city, with lots of historic architecture and temples.
Lushi is a town on the old tea horse road. It used to be a transit point between Kunming, Dali, Lincang, and Baoshan, but today it is very isolated and one of the best preserved secrets in Yunnan. It boasts an astounding collection of historical buildings, all on cobblestone stepped streets up and down the side of the mountain. The old town is pedestrian and horse only, and there are as of yet no tourist-themed guesthouses.
This is a really nice new restaurant in Dali. High quality vegetarian and vegan food, varied menu, daily specials. They make their own kombucha, too. The environment is very chill...multiple layers, floor seating, an outdoor courtyard and terrace balcony overlooking the the roofs of the neighbors in old Dali
Recently experienced both very early morning departure and very late night arrival at Changshui. Was worried about making the connection to and from the airport, but both turned out well.
First, the departure. It was 7:30 am. I arranged a taxi to pick me up at 5:00. That he did. Cost: 100 yuan.
The departure was scheduled for 12:30 am, was delayed, and didn't get in until 2:30 am. I was sure I'd have to find a black cab, and wasn't even sure if I would find that. Instead, I was delighted to discover that the Airport Express Bus was still running! For 25 yuan it took me to the train station, where I then caught a cab for the short ride the rest of the way home. I was very impressed by this late night bus. I'd thought the buses only ran till around 11 pm-midnight. I don't know if this is a regular occurrence or not. Maybe, knowing my flight was delayed and there would be hundreds of passengers looking for a ride home, the airport dispatched an extra bus. If so, kudos to whoever was responsible!
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Yuxi-Mengzi railroad to be operational this year
发布者Anyone have any news on the status of this thing? Is it still opening this month as originally announced?
A journey to Mengku, the heartland of teas
发布者Great article and vivid descriptions of teas and tea mountains.
Just one tiny anal geographic note...
Shuangjiang County is a part of Lincang Prefecture.
Where the article refers to "Lincang Prefecture", it actually ought to refer to Linxiang District (临翔区), which is the administrative center of Lincang, a prefecture-level city.
Around Town: Yunnan Provincial Library
发布者Thanks for posting this. I got a library card here 3 years ago, and then promptly forgot all about it and never set foot inside the door. Inspired by your article, I stepped in the door again finally after all this time and was delighted by what I found.
My library card had long since expired, but to browse the collections you don't need a card at all; you can just walk in.
To me, the most interesting collection by far is on the 5th floor. The room in the southeast corner is filled with multiple volumes of the annals of every single locality in Yunnan Province. I'm talking about the 126 counties of Yunnan, and the 16 prefectures. Each one publishes a "yearbook" (县志,or 年鉴) every year, and the library has all the back issues going back to the 90s and in a few cases the 80s.
These books are full of information about the economy, geography, and cultural resources of the various counties of Yunnan.
Kunming approves eight new subway lines
发布者You may call me for dwelling on semantics, but sometimes semantics are important.
I've always thought it's stupid that the Kunming government referred to the original six lines of its planned urban mass transit system as "Light Rail". No, it's not. Light rail systems primarily operate at street level, and are not grade separated (meaning cars and other cross traffic are controlled so that light rail vehicles can cross intersections unobstructed).
Kunming's original six lines are an real, honest to gosh subway system. Yes, the majority of the track is actually above ground. Only the lines in the city center are underground. In the suburbs they run on elevated viaducts. Being part underground and part above ground does not mean it is not still a subway system (or a "metro" system as it is called in some cities). The New York Subway has massive sections above ground as well, but they are still called the New York Subway.
Now that they have announced that the 8 new lines will become Kunming's "subway" it makes the original light rail moniker all the more ridiculous. What's the difference? They should just call the whole 14 line system the Kunming Subway, or Kunming Metro.
Getting Away: Lincang
发布者I found Lincang city to be pretty boring personally. But some of the other counties of Lincang prefecture are beautiful. Places I've been to and would recommend include Cangyuan (沧源), Gengma (耿马), Wengding (翁定), Mengding (孟定), Nansan (南伞), Fengqing (凤庆), and Lushi (鲁史).
Cangyuan is on the Myanmar border, home to the Wa nationality (佤族), and hosts the annual mud-throwing festival (摸你黑).
Wengding is a Wa village in the mountains above Cangyuan. The houses are made of wood and thatched roofs. It's not authentic. The government gave the residents money to rebuild their houses in the traditional manner 5 years ago, and now there's a 50 yuan fee to enter the village. However, since the traditional Wa architecture is difficult to find these days, Wengding is still an interesting place to visit.
Gengma is home to the Dai and Wa nationalities. The small city is surrounded by beautiful hills, mountains, and flowers. There's a terrific spicy shrimp restaurant.
Although Mengding is technically only a "town" within Gengma county, it's actually much bigger and busier than Gengma county seat. It's set in the fertile Nanting River (南汀河) plain, at a far lower altitude than Gengma county seat, so it has a hot an tropical climate. Many Dai here, and many Burmese traders as well, thanks to the Myanmar border just 20 km away. The town itself has a very southeast Asian vibe, with lots of tropical fruit, and Burmese food. Waterfalls outside of town are a popular hangout spot for local teenagers.
Nansan (the county seat of Zhenkang County), is in a semi-tropical valley 1000 m above Mengding and the Nanting River valley. It is surrounded by massive karst formations. The old city is a Dai village. The new city is growing like gangbusters. Due to its location right next to Myanmar, the local government wants to turn Nansan into a major port, boasting that it's closer to Kunming than Ruili or Daluo.
Fengqing is a county seat on the old tea horse road. The old city is set on the hill above the new city, with lots of historic architecture and temples.
Lushi is a town on the old tea horse road. It used to be a transit point between Kunming, Dali, Lincang, and Baoshan, but today it is very isolated and one of the best preserved secrets in Yunnan. It boasts an astounding collection of historical buildings, all on cobblestone stepped streets up and down the side of the mountain. The old town is pedestrian and horse only, and there are as of yet no tourist-themed guesthouses.