Kunming

Located in the furthest outreaches of Southwest China in the Province of Yunnan, the city of Kunming, at an elevation of 2000 m, offers a beautiful view of the West Mountain.  The temple complex of Huating and the Taihua Temple are popular excursion destinations. The Sanqing Pavillon and the Dragon’s Gate are directly carved in the sheer rock cliffs.  The journey up to see them leads over steep steps and narrow paths.  Currently however, there are two chair lifts available to bring tourists to the summit in a more comfortable manner.

The mild climate is perfect for tobacco farming which is the city’s main source of income. The climate also provides the city its name of “The City of Eternal Spring“. However, it is ill-rumored that Kunming is the main trans-shipment center for narcotics, since it is located close to the Golden Triangle – just 500 km from Vietnam and Laos and 700 km from Myanmar. Nonetheless, Kunming is an important transport junction and center for industry and trade.  Various ores are mined around the Kunming area as well.  On the way to the Stone Forrest, you pass a special narrow gauge railway built by the French over 100 years ago.

On your way, you can also enjoy eating a delicious Yiling Duck.

The children were proudly presented to us when we visited a typical village in the country.  It was interesting to see that every entrance door had a board above it with 10 stars.  Each star symbolizes a different characteristic of the person living in the house.  Depending on which star is marked, you can see whether the inhabitant is hardworking, lazy, modern or traditional etc. In China, the arm of the government reaches into even the smallest village. There is no other way to rule a country with   1.3 billion people.

In the autonomous district of Lunan which is home to the Yi nationality, the bizarre formations of the Stone Forrest stretch for 24,000 hectares.  80 hectares of it have been developed for tourists.  270 million years ago, sediment settled in the sea. The sediment was later lifted tectonically and soft layers were eroded by wind and weather. 

Back in the hotel we witnessed a wedding celebration.  The average cost for a wedding is around  € 4000.

If you think that Kunming is a mere city out in the middle of nowhere far removed from Peking, think again.  With a population of 3.5 million, with 1 million living in urban areas, with modern architecture and high-rises as far as the eye can see, Kunming is a large, modern city along the lines of Europe.  

21 national minority groups live in Yunnan.

In order to make the customs, traditions and living habits of these minorities accessible to a wider segment of the population, a Village of Nationalities was  built. Here, members of minority groups can present their way of life.  A wide variety of customs and traditions are explained. For instance, it was the custom among the Wa people that following a good harvest, it was requested that the head of a man with a long beard be placed at the village entrance.   Today a buffalo head is used instead.  Among the Bai peoples, houses were built facing east, whereas in the rest of China the custom was to build houses facing south.   Village squares were often built as a symbolic calendar.  In the Village of Nationalities, many folk dances and song presentations are offered.  For the Yi nationality, the tiger is sacred. This can be seen on hat coverings or the Yi’s main village square.

During the Ming Dynasty, unwanted people were banished to Yunnan. In vernacular speech, Yunnan is thus referred to as the “barbarian region”.