Took a nice long week to take a break and travel to Yunan province and explore more of China.
Left Ningbo by train last friday morning to travel to Shanghai before flying off to Kuniming for a weeks holiday in Yunan province.
Had a nice train journey up to Shanghai – sitting next to another fellow ‘laowai’ (foreigner in Chinese) and University lecturer, discussing our experiences of China, Chinese culture, experiences of our teaching here etc. I must say it made a 4 hour train journey pass a lot quicker than usual and it was nice to share and gain some insights into experiences of someone who works at a state run University here in Ningbo.
Arrived at Shanghai station at around 2pm and after checking into the hotel I met up with friends to have a late lunch at ‘Paul’ before heading off on a bit of a treasure hunt to find a very special, highly recommended CD shop, which is one of the best in Shanghai for Jazz. With a hand drawn map and a bit of luck I finally found the entrance to what can only be described as a very thin alley of a shop, jam packed with Jazz and Japanese import CD’s. Very bijoux! It is the existence, diversity and uniqueness of these small shops which fascinates and makes Shanghai so alluring to me. And there are quite a few shops like these here selling anything from clothes, to furniture to CDs. Walking back to the hotel along Changle Lu we couldn’t resist stopping for a glass of wine in a small wine bar, sitting outside in a very relaxed evening atmosphere, enjoying one of the many gems that Shanghai has to offer. I can’t really put my finger on what it is that exactly that makes Shanghai so attractive, apart from the charm, the architectural mix of colonial buildings and new skyscrapers, the many tree alleys and the care free life which seems to transpire here… I guess it’s a combination of all, and I love it.
Flew out from Shanghai airport to Kunming at around 8.40am on Saturday morning and arrived in Kunming 4 hours later. Spent the rest of the afternoon exploring the city and generally taking it slow. Thankfully my traveling companion was in need of a relaxing holiday just as much as I and so we felt no need to rush and see all the temples and pagodas all in one day.
I must admit that Kunming, as far as traveling destinations go, was not the most exciting place to be. We had a great time lounging about one afternoon drinking tea and eating sweet dumplings in milk whilst watching the world go by and reading our books, also immensely enjoyed sitting at ‘Green Lake’ listening old men playing traditional Chinese music on traditional instruments. We also discovered, along a little side street, a heaving, deliciously smelling street full of restaurants and street vendors selling food straight from the BBQ. Couldn’t resist sitting down and having dinner.
The spicy tofu was particularly lethal, and the chicken dish with chili was fabulously spicy also. It had 2/3 chili, star anise, spring onion, bags of cumin and a mystery spice, which I have brought back with me for identification. Also bought some delicious egg tarts as part of the local culinary experience. Still warm … straight from the oven.
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