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Forums > Living in Kunming > Where to buy a good Microwave

We have a good size microwave, push buttons, grill, micro combi.

Samsung Selection Grill (bought in China), and bilingual. Not sure where, it was in the place we rent.
Don't assume ALL Chinese consumers are behind the times, that is a big mistake. The style of MW the OP described sound like the bottom end of the market.

Try looking in the bigger electrical stores in the city centre, avoid those in the residential areas where people are more concerned with price.

Have you tried METRO?

Loads on Taobao from less than 300 to more than 1600rmb.
Midea do a nice 25Ltr combo for about 1600

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Forums > Living in Kunming > Tailor for simple services

Just a suggestion. Walk around your neighbourhood, check out the market and anywhere that looks like it sells buttons, wool, haberdashery etc.

What you are looking for is a sewing machine, either at work or ready for it. Most neighbourhoods have someone who does this.
Sometimes the sewing machine is out on the street.

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Forums > Study > Studying Chinese in Kunming - Which University?

I echo what has just been said.

They don't really speak putonghua here.

some other thoughts

I have not studied in Kunming, but from what I can gather from my experiences in other cities, teaching can be very hit or miss. The advantage of the Normal university is that it is a teaching university.

Find out what materials the teachers are using. Very often it is BCLU books, which I really have an issue with. The Shanghai East China Normal books are much better and relevant to everyday life, but I don't know if anyone uses these in Kmg.

Another consideration is location. Find out where the campus is. If it in in Chenggong new district (like most Chinese city new districts and only been open a year), it will be a new campus. Disadvantages could include incomplete facilities (including IT and language labs) and away from the city centre. The advantages are you will be surrounded by Chinese students who all have at least the same 5 questions to ask.
Other campuses are right in the old academic centre near Green Lake. Most of the expat bars and cafes (nowhere near as sophisticated as those in BJ) are located. You are also near the downtown area.

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I don't think the courts are uneducated. I think more cynically. The amount owed is $14k. I bet the owners are still driving flash cars and own several properties. The company may not have assets to pay, but I bet the owners do.

I have just come back from a quick trip around that area, and spent one afternoon and night in Dali. Dali has found a new identity.

I have visited Dali several times over the years, and like many people on here was disappointed with what I saw. The slow commercialisation of Dali, leading to a schizophrenic (not one thing, not another) mess.

On my recent visit, the street vendors had gone the really low end food places had mostly gone. The city was busy, and for a mid-week just before CNY that was surprising. It was not a frantic busy, everything was moving smoothly and working well. Even noise seemed to be down, and I found it a lot less stressful.

There is a sort of gentrification among traders. There are more upmarket shops. There are many more shaokao (national trend) and most of these are chains, rather than small independents. Many of the small family food places have redecorated and are not the old dim and dismal places that they used to be. The commercial development has also spread into other streets.

Dali is not the Dali of old, but it has found a new identity. This new identity may not be to everybody's taste, but I found the city a much nicer place to stay, than I did 3 years ago.

@Janjal, your argument contains many assumptions and additional requirements (story tellers etc). If we cannot provide the additional resources your suggested strategy would require and you cannot get China's rural poor to demand answers; again we have a moot point.
Comparing EU farmers, who are business owners who learn to work the system for profit with the rural poor, Is perhaps a case of chalk and cheese.

Of course material wealth is not the only measure, but it affects many other measures, and is a predominant feature in a capitalist system.

Perhaps it is human nature to want more than we have now, in capitalism this includes having more than the guy next to us. If we have more now than we had before, there is likely to be a sense of achievement/progress/increased security/satisfaction/happiness in that fact alone,. It is also a very simple qualitative measure for almost anyone.

Q. Do I have more than last year. A. Yes/no. If yes, has my relative position compared to my neighbors also improved? Am I content/happy with this?
In reality the questions are not even asked, they are not even out there, but they are part of the zeit geist. In cities with stronger economic growth the answers to the questions are going to be yes for more people. Chengdu is such a place. It is only when the personal costs of achieving this wealth are perceived to outweigh the advantages of the new wealth that people start to question it, but that comes later.

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.