Old Town, Lijiang I recently returned from a 3 week trip to the Yunnan province in southwest China. I flew from Auckland to Bangkok for a 1 night stopover, then onto the province capital Kunming the following day. The trip also included visits to Jinghong and Lijiang . China was certainly an interesting experience compared to other Asian countries I've visited, namely Singapore and Thailand. The first thing that struck me was the fact that most people don't speak any English at all. Smoking is also more common there among the men, especially when eating. Kunming was similar to Auckland, though with around 4 million more people. Jinghong was similar to Thailand, with palm trees and a very hot and humid climate. The temperature was around 40 degrees most days, forcing people to stay inside during the afternoon. The locals took this opportunity to sleep, which allowed them to stay out later in the evening. A Water Festival was being held to ce