JS › Kunming

May 2, 2020

Kunming

Utilizing a layover to see the capital city of Yunnan province.

The east shore of Kunming's Xishan district.

Kunming is Yunnan's largest city, and so it happened that while visiting the province, I was passing through. Arriving in the afternoon, I took a walk in the outskirts between the airport and the city.

I find these neighbourhoods exciting to walk through. The thing about most modern city centres is that they all look similar, no matter the continent. Not to say it is wrong, and some districts can bring in amazing architecture that can't be seen elsewhere. However, after seeing a few, one gets a sense of familiarity with them, and with their strict rules and regulations, they can feel a bit detached. On the other hand, these outskirts, away from the main construction boom, often have a more authentic feel.

Facades of raw concrete and tiles, rather than modern glass and aluminum plates, are brightened by Neon lights of saturated hues, and the amount of convoluted overhead cables and wires is mad. Surfaces are uneven; some streets aren't even paved. And locals interact with each other much more than in clinical business districts.

For the following day, I was suggested visiting the Yunnan Ethnic Village, a theme park showcasing the architecture and folklore of the province's 26 nationality groups. However, it had a relatively steep entrance fee, and since I spent a bit more than I anticipated while touring the region, I decided to skip any paid attractions here. I've been saying for ages that travelling on a modest budget is the best way to see the world, so I thought to better stick to my words and fix that earlier misalignment.

I saw some of the local parks and the campus of Yunnan University, also with neat gardens.

Prolonging the time in green spaces, I then went to Xishan Forest Park, located on a hill west of the city, which was supposed to feature good outlooks. The common ways to get there are either by bus or cable car, but there is also a walking trail that sounded nice and was free. On the way, there was another cultivated garden, where I took a break.

Strolling through the tangle of paths, it started raining. No worries, I thought, getting a jacket from my backpack. When the rain intensified into a decent downpour, I took cover under a tall tree with thick leaves and waited.

The air got better, the woods around were pretty, but the cloudburst showed no signs of stopping. The tree I was hiding under got quickly soaked and couldn't hold water anymore. While it was a warm day, I didn't feel like taking a cold shower while dressed up. So, I left to look for shelter elsewhere. Luckily, I found a building with an overhanging roof nearby, which did the trick. Here, looking at a weather map, I saw that I am just at the edge of the storm.

I did not complain, as the deluge of rain that washed me down the Yellow Mountain two years ago was something I could live without repeating. Thankfully, the wind blew in the right direction, taking the storm away. And I continued to see the Huating Temple:

Mahavira Hall.

There were multiple neat Buddhist temples on the hill. I saw another, Taihua, Further up:

Daxiong hall

Both of them were pleasant stops. And the walking path itself was enjoyable as well.

However, there were no distant views. The trees opened up every now and then, but instead of the city, they revealed only more vegetation and the road below.

Meanwhile, there were other things to see besides the greenery. One of which was the omnipresent Chinese surveillance system. Yep, you are tracked even in the forest.

Another artificial element next to the trail was this sign, full of bullet holes.

I get practising shooting on target, but I don't understand this habit of trashing public signs. It feels lazy, disrespectful, and it lowers the perceived safety of the place. Shouldn't all the cameras around prevent people from shooting around? Weird. I wondered what the sign said, but there was nobody to ask. So I kept going and eventually reached the top of the hill.

After the forest journey, I was eager to see some panorama. However, I found that one has to pay to get closer to the edge and see the view. It made me appreciate the countries that allow people to enjoy the land for free. The "People's Republic," unfortunately, is not one of them, as the national parks and most of the reasonably accessible natural viewpoints are reachable only after paying a fee. But I was determined to fulfil my quest for a free view here, and after exploring some alternatives, I eventually scored.

Going down, I decided to follow the road, as it is faster. Somewhere halfway down was a nice bonus: a freshwater spring. As with land access, drinking water is another commodity that is easily taken for granted until you are in a country where the tap is non-potable, like in China. So, joining locals and refilling my water bottle felt pretty great.

Once down from the hills, I got on the subway back to downtown. Scanning a map revealed a cluster of skyscrapers around Beijing Road, so I wanted to check it out.

Starting a few blocks from the North Railway Station and heading south, it proved to be an interesting area to visit.

After passing Dongfeng Square, I saw this cathedral:

As Christian structures are rather scarce in this part of the world, it took me by surprise. It is the building of the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Kunming, and it made me curious about the topic. So I looked up some other churches in China, and it turned out the oldest was built before any church in the continental US. Every day is a learning day!

About a block from here, I met a friendly guy from Israel, and we spent the dusk watching the city from above, chatting about our experiences from China and beyond.