Kunming
Kunming is the largest city in Yunnan Province, in southwest China. I flew here solely because it was a part of China I had never seen before. And since Yunnan borders Tibet, I knew I would be in for some good mountain scenery as well. The city sits at over 6,000 feet above sea level, so it was a good place to base myself for a couple days to acclimatize before going on to higher elevations.
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One of the many attractions of Yunnan Province is the colorful terraced rice fields. They're a few hours outside the city for those wanting to visit in person, but I got a great bird's eye view from my plane window instead.
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"Welcome to Yunnan" sign outside Kunming's airport. The massive multi-lane highway in the background leads straight into the city.
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My home in the city for a few days, the Kunming Jinjiang Hotel.
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Yuantong Temple, the most famous Buddhist temple in Yunnan, dating from the late 8th Century.
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Touring the Yuantong Temple grounds. Along both sides of the main hall are covered corridors running beside clear pools. This structure of a Buddhist hall surrounded by water is unique in China.
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As with most temples in China, taking pictures of the Buddha images is strictly forbidden. I managed to squeeze off this one shot before being seen and pleading ignorance.
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A couple more shots of the Yuantong Temple grounds.
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The biggest attraction in the region, the Stone Forest National Park. Lying a couple hours outside of Kunming, these ancient limestone formations look like gigantic petrified trees. Locals have a lot of fun trying to imagine all sorts of images in each cluster.
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Giant's Footprint on the left, Elephant Rock on the right.
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Climbing up to Peak View Pavilion for a good overview of Stone Forest National Park.
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The park is actually divided into two distinct areas, Big Stone Forest (where the previous pictures were taken), and Little Stone Forest (the three picture below), which is much greener and more pleasing to the eye. It was here that I got a good lesson in how to deal with Chinese tour groups. Patience. A lovely photo spot swarming with teeming masses of Chinese photo enthusiasts will be completely deserted and peaceful if you can wait just a few minutes for the crowds to clear and move on.
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Back in Kunming City for a look around the city's most famous public park, Green Lake Park.
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It was during some pre-trip research that I learned that the award-winning dance show "Dynamic Yunnan" was the #1 attraction in Kunming. With a recommendation like that, I had to check it out for myself. It was as awesome as described! Officially both photography and video were prohibited in the theatre, but I noticed a few people sneaking pictures with their cellphones so it didn't take long before I busted my camera out of hiding as well.
For a couple video clips I shot during the show, please click here and here .
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Visiting the Yunnan Nationalities Village in Kunming. Yunnan Province is home to half of China's ethnic minority groups, and they have become a big draw for curious tourists from all over the country. Each ethnic group is housed in its own "village" setting where tourists can sample the architecture, dress, and cuisine of each group.
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Porcelain exhibit at Yunnan Provincial Museum.
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Kunming's signature dish: Crossing the Bridge Noodles. The name is said to come from a legend about a guy who was studying hard for his imperial exams. His wife, who would bring him food, found that by the time she had crossed the bridge to the where he was studying, the soup would be cold and the noodles soggy. She then decided to load a large earthen pot with boiling broth with a layer of oil on top that would act as insulation and keep the broth warm. The noodles and other ingredients were kept in separate containers, and when she arrived she mixed the two containers together for a warm soup.
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A month before I arrived, Kunming Rail Station was the site of a vicious terror attack in which several people were killed. Though I was traveling by air, I wanted to stop by the train station to see if there were any memorials to the people and how security was now. Overall I found the grounds to be beautiful and the atmosphere relaxed.
