Lifestyle Of the Minorities
In the village of Menghun the quiet community accented with stilted wooden homes and a hilltop monastery overlooking the surrounding rice fields, the day's drizzly weather served to enhance the village's reticence. Menghun's relatively small marketplace, abounding with freshly slaughtered pig heads, brilliant fruits and vegetables, plugs of tobacco and a rainbow of textiles, became a veritable kaleidoscope of culture.
One minority group,the Dai, a 2000 year-old culture that fuses Hinayana Buddhism with elements of Thai. The Dai dress attractively in shimmering attire, but it is the younger Dai girls in their formfitting pastel sarongs who catch one's eye.
Akha people, also known as the Hani. Like a resplendent yet elusive jungle bird, the Akha appear from the deep lush hills only on market day, where they adorn themselves in heavy layers of black brilliantly highlighted with intricately embroidered patterns. Descendants of the nomadic Qiang from Tibet, each Hani subgroup wear a different colored headdress to signify their tribe, not unlike the plumage of a proud bird, and lavishly accessorize in silver-studded bracelets and leggings, patchwork satchels and antiqued coins stretching out their earlobes. Tumpline baskets around their heads and teeth stained red with betel nut are commonplace.
Food in Kunming
The most fabulous of all Yunnan food is Yunnan rice noodles (Guoqiao mixian, literally "Crossing the bridge rice noodles"). This tasty noodle dish made with chicken broth and super thin slices of meat is famous throughout all of China and you can try this typical Yunnan dish at the "Jixin Yunnan Flavor Restaurant" and the Guoqiaodu Restaurant. Other Yunnan treats to look for are the Yunnan Eight Pastries and also Xuanwei Ham (as a common Yunnan ingredient).
Kunming dishes are representative of Dian (Yunnan Province) cuisine, which combines cooking styles of other cities and nationalities outside Kunming in Yunnan Province.
Dian dishes
Dian dishes are moderately salty and spicy. To 'do in Rome as the Romans do', try the food specialties in Kunming. The unique delicacies from Kunming are famous throughout China; especially the fresh wild mushrooms. There is an edible wild mushroom family of over 200 varieties in Kunming, the tastes of which remain in mind. Some recommended Dian dishes include the following.
Examples of Dian dishes are: Steaming-Pot Chicken (Qiguo Ji), Braised Jizong (mushroom) in Soy Sauce (Hongshao Jizong) and Kunming Bittern Duck (Kunming Lu Ya).
Fruits in Kunming
As one of China's agricultural powerhouses, Yunnan province is a major producer of fruits. China's top fruit-producing province, Yunnan's geographical diversity and size allow it to grow large amounts of both temperate and tropical fruits. Locally grown fresh fruit is available throughout the province.
Yunnan also imports large amounts of fresh fruit from nearby Southeast Asian countries including Myanmar, Thailand, Laos and Vietnam. As a result, cities in Yunnan - especially Kunming - have a large selection of fruits year-round.
Examples of fruits available in Kunming are: apple, banana, bayberry, cantaloupe, dragonfruit, durian, grape, kiwi, lime, loquat, mango, mangosteen, orange, papaya, peach, pineapple, plum, pomelo, tangerine, watermelon, etc...
Sports in Kunming
Examples of sports in Kunming: GOLF, Badminton, Taekwondo, Rock Climbing, etc...
Rock Climbing in Kunming
Rock climbing is growing in popularity among Chinese who are looking for a way to break out of the routines of daily life and in Kunming there are places to practice one’s love of climbing in outdoor and indoor settings. Outside of the city there are a growing number of places for outdoor climbing and within the city there is a handful of climbing gyms.
Taken from: http://www.sinohotelguide.com/kunming/tour/dining.html
:http://www.chinamtours.com/china_guide/Yunnan/Kunming/index.html
:http://www.gokunming.com/en/guides/get_guide.php?guide_id=4
:http://www.chinaspringtour.com/guide/item.jsp?id=464
