I didn't fancy the bus. I could have booked earlier, had I known the train wasn't possible, and got myself a front seat, but really, my legs are long, and this isn't a country that treats long legs kindly, particularly not on 6-hour stints. So I managed to get myself a discount flight instead - a bit of an extravagance, relatively speaking, but it was pretty cheap in the scheme of things. The airport is brand new, and apparently quite a 'technical' one, due to the combination of surrounding mountains and altitude. I turn up in a taxi who made the journey in what I sincerely hope was record time, meaning that I'm there and the airport's almost shut. You can go in, but there's no check-in or security just yet, these open 90 minutes before the flight. This is another China Southern flight, which will continue to Guangzhou. There's a Lucky Air flight to Xishuangbanna leaving at the same time, but that's pretty much it for this little airport.

Check in and security take seconds. The airport is very new, very shiny, and quite obviously built with future expansion in mind. There aren't really any shops to speak off, but rather an expanse of glass counters running the length of the departures hall, with people hovering over you as you peruse. There is also the ubiquitous overpriced, overegged restaurant and, thankfully, the cup noodle stall and hot water dispenser, of which I, and most of the others, avail ourselves. I'm quite early, and so rather grateful for the freely accessible wireless internet while I'm waiting. A few airports seem to have wireless, but only for China Telecom customers, and others have wireless, but only if you can input your national/immigrant ID number, so your online activities can be logged. Here, though, no such nonsense.

The plane, an A319, is a fresh as the previous CZ flight, and as spacious. Service is odd - it's a short flight (and, as I later learn, rather prone to turbulence), and so we're given food and drink before take-off. Iced green tea - very nice. An entire packet of crackers - unusual. Tasty enough. For the first few. The seating arrangements on this leg are rather odd, with peopel bunched up, and middle seats occupied when windows and aisles are free, but I assume this is due to the passengers due to join in Kunming for the Guangzhou leg. The fact that everybody has to disembark at Kunming may make this something of a moot point, but I'll go with it. The only annoyance on this flight (well, apart from, once again, quite a turbulent approach to Kunming) was some, shall we say 'little emperor' insisting on playing his DS at full volume, his parents oblivious to the various looks of daggers from around the cabin. Oh well.

Arrival at Kunming is slightly odd, as the continuing passengers to Guangzhou are walked off to a special transit building, which the rest of us are taken to a bus. Problem was, they only announced this to the last few passengers leaving the plane; cue general confusion, shouting and rearrangement. After all that, bags were waiting for us, and I made it through a surprising number of touts to the fast-moving taxi queue and finally, finally, triumph with my Badly Scrawled Chinese, as the driver speeds off and delivers me to the strangely-named Enjoying International Hotel, near the station. The airport really is quite close in to the city. It's high-rise and frenetic - quite a difference from the last week or so...