Yunnan Spring Greetings (X)
These afterthoughts on the Yunnan journey bring together what stayed with me after returning from China: warm encounters, everyday technology, cultural contrasts and the pleasure of observing without rushing to judge. This is the tenth part of my Yunnan Spring Greetings series.
I intended to write two or three more articles, but kept starting and stopping. China is too vast a subject for this format. I feel that Western perceptions often distort it, yet I do not want my affection for the country to be mistaken for unconditional approval. The photographs reflect that mixture of curiosity, reflection and humour.
My affinity for China does not prevent me from noticing its downsides. Wherever I travel, I encounter rules and customs that may resemble those at home or differ sharply from them.
I try not to judge circumstances I understand only partly from a position of assumed superiority. I am more interested in learning, observing and reflecting.
Wherever I travel, I am a guest and try to behave accordingly. If someone invited us to dinner at home, we would not begin by criticising an interior that did not suit our taste. For me, that same courtesy makes travelling together more relaxed.
Shared Stories and Human Moments
As mentioned before, we met so many nice people and we learned so much. Here, a friendly local tells us wonderful stories [1] about the local wells in Ping An (Jianshui).
At another time, in a good restaurant, our nice, young but inquisitive waitress asked, after a few sentences of small talk made it clear we were a couple: “Aha, I see! Now I’d like to know—did you pick her up, or did she pick you up?” Even the neighboring table laughed heartily.
For me, it holds true that all of us—the overwhelming majority of the world’s population—have the same goals and dreams: we want to lead a happy life, a fulfilling partnership or family, we want our children to fare better one day, and we want to be able to pay our bills without problems or, better still, to be able to set aside money for rainy days…
…or simply that our pets are doing well.
The Great Togetherness
This and everything else in our living conditions is largely determined by forces that the individual can hardly change, regardless of whether we live in a country where one can cast a ballot or not. By “forces,” I don’t mean a specific political power, but rather global corporations, major investors, or other global players who move a lot of money and thus wield considerable power. Action leads to reaction, pressure creates counter-pressure—everything is interconnected.
Particularly—and too often neglected today—our respective history, tradition, and culture determine our perspectives. [2] We may try to suppress them or replace them with other topics, but they live on in our subconscious through literature, legends, and artifacts. If it is claimed we learn nothing from history, that may apply to certain societal actions, but history is deeply embedded in our collective consciousness and continues to shape society. For better or for worse. This becomes particularly clear when ancient statements attributed to gods I regard as fictional are used to justify destructive actions in a modern world shaped by globalization and technology.
Endless Misunderstandings
These factors help explain some of the misunderstandings between societies. In my own conversations in China, I have often encountered admiration for American economic success. Those encounters are personal impressions, not a measure of Chinese public opinion. Equally, a survey about views of China should not be read as a measure of hostility towards Chinese people. [3]
Independent travel, taxis and mobile payments
Outside Kunming and Pu’er, we encountered very few visibly foreign visitors on this trip. My experience twenty years earlier had been different. Travelling independently also felt more dependent on being able to read Chinese and use local apps. These are observations from our itinerary, rather than a description of every traveller’s experience.
Take taxis, for example:
- The Process: Open app, enter destination, select a car (with transparent pricing), provide a code upon entry to prevent “taxi-snatching,” and get off at the destination.
- Payment: Handled entirely via app—immediately or days later. If you get out early, the difference is refunded instantly. As long as one has not paid, one cannot order another taxi.
Tipping: We generally encountered no expectation of a tip in taxis or restaurants. I appreciated the clear pricing, especially compared with situations where a substantial tip is assumed.
We covered more than 3,000 km by taxi, apart from the high-speed train journey from Kunming to Dali. Short city rides cost us roughly US$2–4; our longest journey, 478 km, cost about US$200 including tolls. These were the fares we paid on this trip, not fixed prices for future journeys.
Those prices were convenient for us, but they also made me think about drivers’ earnings after platform fees, fuel, insurance and other costs. A cheap ride for the passenger does not necessarily mean a good income for the driver.
Mobile payments dominated our everyday transactions, including in remote places. In practice, using the available apps mattered more than I had expected.
As a Central European, I find the prospect of losing cash appalling: to me, it would mean giving up a cornerstone of freedom. The convenience of digital payments does not remove my concern about the traceability of every transaction.
People, landscapes and food in Yunnan
Yunnan remains a province of extraordinary diversity—from its many ethnic minority groups to its flora and fauna, landscapes, and food.
Yunnan cuisine brought its own surprises, including forest ingredients and a salad made with shuhua (树花), often called “tree flowers”. These edible lichens are distinct from moss. [5]
Regarding tea: Pu’er is famous for its tea, and rare aged cakes belong to a collectors’ market with extraordinary auction prices. Those prices should not be confused with the cost of an ordinary cup. [6] Less familiar to many visitors is Pu’er’s role as a coffee-growing centre. Even “Starsucks” has a presence here. [7]
Planning and Logistics
Planning mattered on a trip with so many stops and specific questions. A paid AI tool helped us find information, prepare Chinese place names for taxi journeys and work through practical details—even the controls on a Chinese remote control.
For the remote places on our route, I found conventional guidebooks less useful than detailed questions and local information. I remain comfortable using AI as a research aid, while treating practical arrangements as something to check locally.
In a way, this stay in Yunnan was a journey through time: a trip into the future in terms of technology, and far into the past in other respects—making the journey unforgettable.
Some Extra Fun
Notes and sources
[1] The conversation about the wells was one of the small encounters that made the journey memorable. Jianshui’s old wells are also closely connected with everyday life and tofu-making; see ChinaCulture’s account of Jianshui’s ancient wells.
[2] Rosaliene Bacchus writes excellent articles on her highly recommended blog Three Worlds One Vision about the view of the world from an indigenous perspective.
[3] Pew Research Center’s survey of US adults, conducted March 23–29, 2026, found 71% held an unfavourable view of China and 27% a favourable view, compared with 77% and 21% in 2025. The survey concerns China as a country; it does not establish attitudes towards individual Chinese people or provide a matching survey of Chinese views of Americans. See Americans’ views of China more positive again in 2026.
[4] Another “time travel” moment: traditional streets and wells stood close to young people in elaborate costumes. The cosplayers photographed in Kunming offered a playful contrast with the historic surroundings.
[5] Edible lichens have a documented place in regional food traditions. For context, see Ethnolichenology: The Use of Lichens in the Himalayas and Southwestern Parts of China. Yunnan is also known for edible mushrooms—but that would be another article.
[6] As a concrete example of the collectors’ market, L&H Auction reported a sale price of HK$21,355,000 for a stack of Song Pin Hao Pu-er tea cakes dated 1917–1930 at its November 2025 auction. That is the price of a particular lot, not a standard price per kilogram or per infusion. See L&H’s 2025 autumn auction results.
[7] Starbucks opened its Yunnan Farmer Support Center in Pu’er in 2012. Its account of coffee growing in Yunnan describes work with local growers. The province of Yunnan and the city of Pu’er should not be treated as interchangeable when discussing production figures.
More Yunnan Spring Greetings: Part I – Spring Greetings · Part II – Just Shaxi · Part III – Density, Depth, Tradition and Authenticity · Part IV – Every Day an Adventure · Part V – Pure Dao · Part VI – Along the Tea Road · Part VII – South of the Clouds · Part VIII – Customs, Traditions and Religion · Part IX – Buddha’s Light · Part X – Afterthoughts on the Yunnan Journey
Related articles: The Silk Road: Personal Reflections | Petra and Sharm El Sheikh | Dao in Chinese Poetry
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