Back to Kunming
Trip Start
Jul 31, 2005
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74
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Trip End
Sep 05, 2007
Kunming,
China
Sunday, May 28, 2006
We chilled in Lijiang, strolled the streets, enjoyed excellent food and coffee in the small cafes, shopped and got ourselves some new trousers made for bargain prices!
This morning we took the 0830am bus to Kunming, we boarded the bus expecting a cramped journey - were we suprised or what?! It was like the coach had been modelled on a business class section of an aeroplane! We had loads of legroom (could even cross legs!), air con and leather reclining seats - it was fantastic
Matt at a reststop on the way to Kunming today
. We were also suprised to hear that although the overnight sleeper bus takes 12 hours, during the day its only 9.We wound up and down the narrow mountain pass, ears popping and nerves trembling at times with the sheer drops at the side of us! But all in all the road was very good, and the journey was smooth and comfortable. We made regular stops at places to use the toilets and buy refreshments - oh - must mention todays toilets! China has a reputation for its loo's, so far we have been lucky and the ones we have encountered havent been so bad, once you get used to the fact that the Chinese have no concept about privacy in the loo, and so many times have I innocently walked in the public toilets and been greeted by a lady squatted over a hole in the ground, trousers at the ankles gossiping on her mobile! No todays, beat all of them...there were no doors...at all...just little cubby holes with a hole that you squat over where everyone in the queue can give you an evil if you are taking too long, not that with a huge queue of women staring at me having a pee I would take longer than needed!! Thank goodness Matt warned me before I went in what the gents were like!! The first one I came too was right by the exit, I waited until one of the others was free, I needent have bothered really, because as soon as I was in the second one along a queue formed right in front of my doorless cubicle
Ali this morning on the way to Kunming
!Despite the interesting toilet scenario we passed through some absolutley spectacular scenery, the mountains were high and the views were hazy, we were in the clouds, then out of them travelling through remote villages, winding our way through the narrow fast lanes, soon enough we were in Kunming and we took a taxi to where we are now in our hostel.
So, we tommorow we must sort out our bus to the border town of Hekou which is about 12 hours bus journey, we shall take that journey on Tuesday night, arrive there on Wednesday morning and cross the border. Once in Vietnam we will probably spend the night in the mountains at a town called Sapa before making our way to the capital Hanoi later in the week.
Hugs and Kisses
Ali and Matt
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