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March 16, 2008 Kunming (CHINA) Arriving in Kunming, Chinese Cities, and Another Overnight Bus to Dali
After an hour-long walking tour/search of downtown Kunming, we found what we were looking for: a white and red colored Bank of China ATM. With cash in hand, our odds were finally looking up. I felt bad for David and Neil because they did not have the easiest entrance into China, and first impressions in China are often not best anyway with all the smoking, pollution, traffic, non-English speakers, etc.
With more searching, I spotted a couple of outdoor pool tables along the street, and figured why not? At only 1 yuan ($0.15)/game, it was an ideal way to kill time, stay outdoors (the tables were positioned on the side of the street), and kick some ass in billiards. Oddly, I ended up losing four consecutive games of Cut Throat, but all was well because the owner actually brought us out free bottles of Wulong Tea. His business was significantly improved upon our arrival because there was a never-depleting group of locals watching us play. (The pool tables must not have been regulation size because my ability has never been under any doubt.) At around 4:00 pm we headed back into Kunming to grab dinner, walk some more of the city, and eventually board our night bus. I searched out a place called Mama Fu's, which supposedly serves great Chinese and Western fare, and although it took us an hour to find it (who wants to pay for a taxi?!) it did not disappoint. I re-introduced my palette to Tsingtao Beer, China's most famous brand, and ate classics like braised eggplant and diced chicken with peanuts and chilies. As it was my birthday only a few days ago, David and Neil used this as an excuse to treat me to cake for dessert, which is hardly something I can complain about.
Look closely at the picture to the left, and you will see that this is a cross-walk that runs directly into a 1.5 foot high cement wall. Too bad for anyone on a bicycle who isn't paying attention. Why would anyone do this? I was wondering the same thing... However, with a 12 hour bus ride ahead of us, we weren't out of the woods just yet. |
At 10:00 am this morning, the 35 hour marathon of a bus
ride finally came to a grinding halt in the capital of Yunnan
Province, Kunming, in Southwestern China. My body
was a mess, and I probably smelled awful, but I was happy
to be back on solid ground and away from the miseries of
my prison cell on the back of the bus. However, getting
off the bus brought troubles of its own as I had to
secure my bags before anyone walked off with them -
something one man was trying to do until I grabbed him
and forcibly took possession of my belongings.
Then, with David and Neil following behind, we set off
searching for a Bank of China so we could take
money out. With only 16 rmb ($2.15) between the three of
us, we were literally broke.
Our
first 'real' meal (I refuse to count the food we ate
along the miserable bus journey) was at a noodle shop
serving Yunnan's famous Across-the-Bridge-Noodles
for 20 yuan ($2.50).
Basically, the meal consists of a large bowl full of
steaming soup that is served with a dozen small dishes
on the side - stewed chicken, duck, spare ribs,
vegetables, egg, and so on. What makes this dish particularly unique is
the layer of simmering oil on top of the broth that
keeps the heat inside the bowl, thus allowing much of
the food to cook once everything is thrown in. I breathed a sigh of relief when one
of the waitresses came over and demonstrated how to cook
everything because I was clueless about the whole
process (not that it was particularly difficult, to be
honest). Nevertheless, I do seem to recall calculating
similar heat transfer functions in a thermodynamics
class, but I obviously wasn't keen to relive those
memories on my vacation. (Even if I am not on my
vacation I never want to relive those memories...)
Rather
than spending the day loitering around in this growing
metropolis, I decided to search out a historic area on
the outskirts of the city called Guandu (
There
were several imposing temples in the area, along with a
newly constructed park that was swarming with locals
enjoying the fine afternoon weather, but it was the
market area that first caught my attention. Had I been
braver, I might have tried the spicy Yunnan
snails (shown to the right), but I neither trusted the
cook nor my own stomach when it came to the strong chili
sauce. There were also several stalls selling the aptly
named smelly tofu, and anyone else who has had
the unfortunate experience of smelling this rancid food
knows that it will quickly turn an appetite.
After
dinner, there was still a couple of hours before our
9:30 pm bus departure, so we took a long, winding
walking tour of Kunming. En route, we found one
of China's many knock-off DVD stores, where David and
Neil were able to load up on enough movies to last them
a lifetime. Neil even jumped for the BBC and National
Geographic documentary series (30 DVD sets), which are
priced at only 4 yuan ($0.50)/DVD. I felt better after
this because China now seemed a hell of a lot better to
them after the tough start to our travels through the
country.