Mandarin Immersion (Part 27)

This entry is part 27 of 40 in the series Mandarin Immersion

June 10, 2023

Mandarin Immersion (Part 27)

By Simon J. Lau

For my last day in Kunming, I visited the Yunnan Railway Museum. Throughout much of its history, Yunnan has been isolated from the rest of China and the world due to its rugged terrain. Before the construction of the railway, travel to the region was arduous and challenging.

In 1910, everything changed when Yunnan welcomed a new era of railroad transport, facilitating increased trade with Southeast Asian countries. Over time, this railway connection also fostered greater integration with other regions of China. Overall, I find China’s railway system to be fascinating, serving as a testament to the country’s development and connectivity efforts.

For instance, China embarked on high-speed rail (HSR) development in the 2000s, and since then, it has matured rapidly. Today, China stands as the global leader in HSR infrastructure, boasting extensive coverage and high utilization rates. Having extensively utilized China’s HSR system myself, I can attest to its remarkable efficiency and convenience.

In the afternoon, I visited Yunnan University, an institution recognized for its significant role in the development of China’s western region. Designated as an important national university, it ranks among China’s elite academic institutions.

It’s worth noting that it’s the only college I’ve been permitted to visit since arriving in China. Due to COVID-19 restrictions, many Chinese universities have restricted access to outsiders. Therefore, I was pleased to finally receive permission to visit a Chinese university.

Finally, I had dinner with my friend, Huyue. She treated me to mushroom hotpot, a Yunnan delicacy. The restaurant has a very precise way of cooking these mushrooms; in fact, they don’t even allow customers to cook them on their own. They don’t provide chopsticks to customers until after the mushrooms have been cooked. If they did, there would be a risk that customers might undercook them, leading to a serious risk of mild food poisoning or worse, death.

I’ve been thinking about these mushrooms since I arrived in Yunnan. There would have been no way for me to figure out how to order them on my own, so I was very pleased to try them with a local! This was my favorite meal in Yunnan.