Just like any cities in China, Kunming has been experiencing the fast expansion and modernizing. I can't hardly recognise lots of streets and places though I go back every year, It's just changing too fast. The most obvious, lots of high rises spring up. NanPing street has changed completely as a pedestrian street with western style street cafe dotted, they are not that busy like most street cafe at the downtown in the west cities as they are very expensive, a small cup of cappuccino costs 28yuan, about £1.9, virtually UK price.
Certainly there are plenty things still cheap, especially when we arrive from HK. After spent 48HK$ for a bowl of Yunnan Rice noodle in some street noodle bar in HK, I would consider the restaurants (decent ones) in Kunming are still quite cheap. Some of the restaurants along the Green Lake are really good with Chinese garden and courtyard.
Things unchanged like Blue Bird, a western restaurant and 老知青 are still there, it's just price might be gone up. We had our shoes polished by the street-shoe-polish-people while drinking tea at 老知青 near Green lake and he charged us 5yuan each (Labour is really cheap in China. 5yuan is less than 35p in sterling). In my distant memory it was one yuan/each. Later when I talked this to my families, they said it is still one yuan, he just charged me the foreigner price as I was with Terry that time.
We bumped into a Canadian lady while watching the tea show in a tea shop in Green lake Park and I got into chatting with her. It turned out she came over Kunming for 3 months in a rented apartment to escape the harsh winter in Canada. She rented a apartment near green lake for less than 2000 yuan/month,Hehe, not too bad! Terry said we could consider this as well, working half year in the UK to earn money and spend the rest of year (winter half) not working in Kunming...haha, good idea...
As for Daniel, after this holiday he has accomplished the long list of his first-times, first long-haul flight, first holiday to HK, first trip to Kunming, first time to see his ground parents in China...
5 comments:
So good to read those familiar names of the streets and restaurants.
Kunming is indeed a great place to live. It has nice weather, is clean and cheap. I certainly believe it's the best city in China.
Just had an idea: you and I can catch up in Kunming one day with our husbands and kids. That would be great! But you have to be patient and wait for me as I don't plan to go back until quite a few years.
Great idea! Meeting up in kunming is better than meeting up here in London, hehe! thought you have been already put off by our blogs...
When are we going to do that?
PS. Have your Mum seen Isabel in person yet?
No my mom hasn't met Isabel yet. That's probably why I think she has much stronger feelings towards Isaac - after all she spent Isaac's first 10 and a half month with him. Unfortunately I don't think Isaac has any memory of her (perhaps it's a good thing, hehe).
I really have nobody and nowhere to go in Kunming. So there is no rush for us to visit. If we do go one day, it will be purely visiting a great city as tourists.
Would 10 years later sound too far away? :)
Hehe, Hope your mum not to see what you wrote here... :)
You sure in in 10 years' time you are still interested in visiting Kunming? ;)
haha, we truly think that it's good that Isaac doesn't remember my mom's screaming and shouting and scenes of abusing me... She was worse than a 2-year-old.
Mark hasn't been to Lijiang, Dali... And I want to show my kids the place I grew up. So yes, we will be visiting Kunming, definitely.
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