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August 20, 2006
Chaos on the Road
LOCATION: Dali, Yunnan Province, China
SEE WHERE WE ARE!
Longitude: N: 25.93741°
Latitude: E: 100.14094°
Miles from Singapore: 2937
I'm actually in the provincial capital of Kunming at the moment, having backtracked to get the rear wheel of the bike fixed and a bunch of other things that can't be done in Dali. This is the last major pit stop before....India? Lhasa is the next big city, 2000 kms from here over some very rough roads/tracks and several 5,000+ metre mountain passes. I even have tea bags on the list of things to get. Not sure how long the novelty for yak butter tea will last.
Kunming fits the 'new' image of China that everyone's been banging on about; the economic growth explosion associated with the country joining the world stage as an emerging mass consumer culture. Walking around downtown Kunming one might as well be in Singapore, or any American or European city. Most of the shops have catchy, trendy English names (yet very few of the staff inside will speak any English) and sell everything from the latest authentic Paris fashions to double mocha flavoured frappuccinos. And it's all presented with a designers flare for colour, slick lighting and the right dance music to lure the customers in.
Which gets me thinking, what has been the first two weeks since crossing the border been all about? The wretched roads ankle deep in mud. The backward attitude of some the locals in the small towns towards outsiders and the frightening hygiene standards in the local hospitals? It's hard to reconcile the two. There is clearly an enormous disparity developing between the haves and have nots in China, with one developing so quickly there seems little chance of the other ever catching up. I know nothing about the economic development of countries, but I can't help feeling there are big problems down the road for China if the lessening of this gap isn't a somehow a part of the longterm plan.
Like an idiot I broke the golden rule of traveling and didn't being a camera with me, so I'm afraid I don't have a vlog to show you of Kunming. I do however have a sequence shot on the last day before arriving into Dali of the road in total chaos with vehicles, water buffalo, cyclists, pedestrians, dogs and kids on homemade skateboards melded together in one giant muddle. Actually its rather poignant. The image of a herd of water buffalo calmly meandering down the spotless mainstreet of Kunming bringing traffic to a standstill might remind people of how very different life is just a few miles away in the country.
jason
Posted on August 20, 2006 3:36 PM