Before we ever moved here, I heard from Chinese people in America that Kunming was the famed "Spring City." Upon actually becoming residents, we were told this same information at least once a week, and usually even more frequently. At first I would smile politely and say that yes, I'd heard that before, but after a while, I would smile politely and then say, "Yes, this is the 388th time I've heard that." I told John the real reason we had to return to the United States was because hearing this cliche for the 500th time would drive me insane. Back in the States, however, new Chinese acquaintances who had never actually lived in Kunming themselves, upon hearing of where we had lived eagerly asked me, "Did you know that Kunming is the Spring City?"
This, by the way, shows how little value the Chinese place upon originality.
So, you wonder, is it true? Are four seasons in Kunming really all like spring? They are indeed, if you consider what March can be like in Boston, or the fact that spring temperatures can certainly reach 80. This is not to say that the climate isn't exceptionally pleasant, but there are definitely days when it is cold and rainy.
Yesterday was one of them. As my classmates and I sat in our Chinese class, shivering slightly in the damp cold, our teacher wrote the four characters that mean "four seasons like spring" on the board. I rolled my eyes. But then she continued to write a second half of the saying that I had never once heard before: "As soon as it rains, it becomes winter." No kidding! No wonder the tourist brochures fail to mention the punch line! No wonder the rainy month of May is much colder than sunny March or October!
John and I are continually surprised by the Chinese attitude toward keeping warm. Even in Kunming's generally mild climate, people consider retaining body heat essential to maintaining good health. They wear long underwear and sweaters on days when we just wear long sleeve shirts. On one beautiful summery day, when I comfortably wore a short-sleeved cotton blouse, one of my colleagues showed me that under her suit jacket and light woolen sweater she was wearing a long-sleeved undershirt. I would have fainted from the heat had I been dressed that way! Shopkeepers and colleagues regularly chide me for not being dressed warmly enough until I inform them that my hometown in America is "leng si le" (cold to death) and I am used to it. Then they tell me that my health must be excellent to withstand the cold. The "cold" in question is usually about 65 F.
However, when it comes to heating rooms, the tables turn. John and I have not adopted the Chinese custom of wearing winter coats inside our own home. We have a portable electric heater and on cold days, we use it. Upon stepping into our heated apartment, our Chinese friends never fail to exclaim, "It's so warm in here!" and we're never sure if that is a good thing or a bad one. When we visit our friends in winter, we have no choice but to adopt the coat-on-indoors custom because no matter how cold it is outdoors, our friends will have at least one window wide open for fresh air.
Classrooms are unheated and having been on both sides of the teacher's podium, I can tell you that sitting still as a student makes one feel the cold more intensely than walking around and gesturing expressively does. The students keep their jackets on all during class, and when it's really chilly, quite a few wear gloves without fingers. I usually arrive to find every window in the classroom flung open and then have to proceed to close them. Fortunately, China is not a democracy, or majority rule would require me to keep the windows open, but here, under a totalitarian government, the teacher rules: the windows are closed and unless it's extremely cold, I take off my coat. The first chilly morning when I arrived, unzipped, and then removed my jacket, I felt the startled gaze of forty students on me. I don't think they could have been more shocked had I proceeded with a complete strip tease.
When it's not cold and rainy in Kunming, it's comfortably warm and the sun is blazing. Imagine a good-sized Rocky Mountain transplanted to Key West, stand on the peak, and you can get some idea of the intensity of the sun here. Sunburn is a very legitimate concern and people wear hats, or if you are one of the growing number of fashionable women, carry a pastel-colored parasol.
It's said that in Kunming, you should always take an umbrella with you regardless of the weather. That's not because the weather here is so capricious, but rather because we have only two kinds of weather: intensely sunny or else rainy, and for both, an umbrella is indispensable. In fact, if I'm ever asked to develop a new moniker for Kunming, it's going to be "Umbrella City."
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