Postcard from Kunming
Taking the bus from Luang Phrabang in Laos to Kunming in China was definitely an experience. The bus ride was 40 hours long but was a sleeper bus which made it bearable. The four of us attempted the trip and were greeted the first night by northern Laos roads. By roads I mean a patch of potholed land that a good vehicle can probably pass over. Trying to sleep while passing over these roads was like playing football and sleeping at the same time, where you are the football. We were jostled left, then right, then up, then down constantly.
It was all great fun. During the next day we crossed into China without too much difficulty although I was questioned a bit after I couldn't provide any ID besides my passport and scuba certification. The border agent wanted something issued in the US to which I explained repeatedly that I didn't live there so I didn't need certification beyond my passport. He eventually gave up and let me through. The next day and night were much better as the roads were actually passable if not a little curvy. We arrived safely and groggily in Kunming.
Our time in Kunming was lots of fun as we toured around the city looking at cool stuff. We went to some ponds with nice parks around them and tried out tea which is very famous from this region of China.
For fun one day we did a photo scavenger hunt and set of as couples to see how many of a list of items we could find. This is the result of the most disgusting food.
Doing the scavenger hunt turned out to be lots of fun and a way for us to explore places in Kunming that we wouldn't have otherwise seen. China was definitely interesting. As Katie put it, "it's like a really big Chinatown."
Also in the market we stumbled across this fruit that we had no idea what it is. It smelled a bit like a lemon or orange but was solid on the inside like an apple but without a lot of meat.
Our last day in Kunming we went down to Shilin, which is the stone forest. It is basically limestone rocks that have been weathered into huge pillars in really odd shapes and sizes. Some are quite spectacular and the highest reach nearly 30 meters (close to 100 feet). For anyone planning on visiting Shilin, the entrance price has been raised to almost $20 so I hope you really like rocks.
Finally, the next day we tearfully said goodbye to Ryanna and Katie and dropped them off at the airport for their flight back to the US. We then boarded the train to Chengdu.
We're only staying in Chengdu for the night and then will head out near Tibet for a while. It may be a while before we get back to internet again but I'll post when we do.
It was all great fun. During the next day we crossed into China without too much difficulty although I was questioned a bit after I couldn't provide any ID besides my passport and scuba certification. The border agent wanted something issued in the US to which I explained repeatedly that I didn't live there so I didn't need certification beyond my passport. He eventually gave up and let me through. The next day and night were much better as the roads were actually passable if not a little curvy. We arrived safely and groggily in Kunming.
Our time in Kunming was lots of fun as we toured around the city looking at cool stuff. We went to some ponds with nice parks around them and tried out tea which is very famous from this region of China.
For fun one day we did a photo scavenger hunt and set of as couples to see how many of a list of items we could find. This is the result of the most disgusting food.
Doing the scavenger hunt turned out to be lots of fun and a way for us to explore places in Kunming that we wouldn't have otherwise seen. China was definitely interesting. As Katie put it, "it's like a really big Chinatown."
Also in the market we stumbled across this fruit that we had no idea what it is. It smelled a bit like a lemon or orange but was solid on the inside like an apple but without a lot of meat.
Our last day in Kunming we went down to Shilin, which is the stone forest. It is basically limestone rocks that have been weathered into huge pillars in really odd shapes and sizes. Some are quite spectacular and the highest reach nearly 30 meters (close to 100 feet). For anyone planning on visiting Shilin, the entrance price has been raised to almost $20 so I hope you really like rocks.
Finally, the next day we tearfully said goodbye to Ryanna and Katie and dropped them off at the airport for their flight back to the US. We then boarded the train to Chengdu.
We're only staying in Chengdu for the night and then will head out near Tibet for a while. It may be a while before we get back to internet again but I'll post when we do.
posted by Randall Knutson at
5:44 PM
0 Comments:
Post a Comment
<< Home