Kunming Life
Trip Start
Sep 01, 2007
1
43
58
Trip End
Oct 22, 2007
Kunming,
China
Monday, October 15, 2007
While we were at the lake Jack asked us if we were particularly interested and knowledgeable in horticulture. We are not, we just like parks and lakes. We were thankful for the question as it turns out that the Expo is a modern area especially for horticulturists.
Instead we spent some time wandering around the lake watching people ballroom dancing al fresco, practice the ancient art of calligraphy or just do as we were, people watch.
From there Jack took us to his old university which was nearby.
Kunming Life - Dancing Al Fresco
It's a beautiful old university dating back to the Qing Dynasty with influence from an imported British architect. We wandered around the campus, drank great coffee and had veggie dumplings for lunch.Next we had a tour of the electronics shopping area which I found interesting but outrageously expensive. It is sad and bizarre that one of the world's largest manufacturing countries is also priced beyond the reach of most ordinary people. Conversely South Korea has managed to provide every home with a computer, has, relatively, the world's highest broadband and wireless coverage and is a hugely advanced and progressive technological country. We saw a program on this while in China and found it really fascinating. They are more mobile phone mad then anywhere, they have one junior school class which is being taught by a robot and they have started looking into using robots for menial labour!
While on my digression I want to write about the Chinese and their love of mobiles. When a Chinese mobile rings it MUST be answered, voicemail is not used. Even if they did have voicemail, no-one would leave a message, it is just not done. So, whether they are leading a tour, having a meal, partaking in a serious discussion, or a Monk walking to the Temple, life stops when a mobile rings
Kunming Life - Calligraphy
. Also, their ringtones are fabulous and, when phoning a mobile, rather than the person making the call hearing a ringing tone, it will often be singing to signify ringing. Brilliant!After all this we headed off for the airport with one final obligatory stop at the flower market. It seems that every coach, bus and car bound for the airport does the same. There are some wonderfully colourful displays of cut flower arrangements along with a GIANT shop filled with silk flowers, pot pourie, scented pillows, bags, trinkets, herbs, medicines and potions and anything else flower related you can think of. We spent an hour being fascinated by this before being dropped off at the airport for our flight to Guilin, amazingly our last flight we will take before we head for Hong Kong and home!
(Note to travellers in China: Kunming International Airport is awfully big, busy, dirty and oppressive so spend as little time there as you can :-)
