Oops - I actually missed posting about this and it went unnoticed for just over 5 years, despite being something I talk about quite often.
I had a bit of a contrarian idea this year to spend the Christmas holidays somewhere where people don't celebrate and a bit off the beaten path, to get some budget-friendly quiet time. The place ended up being Yunnan, in the southwest of China, bordering Laos, Myanmar, Thailand and Vietnam.
It is China's most ethnically and culturally diverse province, and its most biodiverse as well. This translates into some of the most unique and memorable cuisine I've encountered in China - and honestly, once of the main reasons I came to visit. One other interesting tidbit of history is that the Thai people also came from this province (and presently known as the Dai people in Yunnan).
Kunming, the capital city of Yunnan, was the cleanest I've encountered in China - its high altitude, high electrification of vehicles, and distance from the major industrial parts made for constant blue skies and fresh air. The weather in December was quite moderate and I probably wouldn't want to be around in the summer.
Xishuangbanna, on the other hand, didn't even feel like a Chinese city, with its numerous temples that looked straight out of Thailand, the frequent use of a non-Chinese script that looked more Burmese.
The natural beauty of this province, the cultural diversity, and the amazing food makes it a place I would really like to go back to one day. Back in 2011 I visited the northern part of the province, and felt like a completely different place - more Tibetan.
Kunming and surrounding area
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