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Myanmar
  • Shahnavaz Mehta
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tammik. 2019 – syysk. 2025

Myanmar

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    Shahnavaz MehtaMyanmarMatkaaja

    Good Morning Yangon

    12. helmikuuta 2019, Myanmar ⋅ ☀️ 33 °C

    At 2am we arrived at Yangon Bus Station which is far from the city center. As we couldn't check into our dorm bed anyway we decided to sleep in the bus operators waiting room. Will went to the loo and the bus driver said I could go upstairs and sleep, I waited for Will and then we went up. When trying to go upstairs the guy started speaking Burmese at me and showing a poster written in Burmese. I honestly didn't have a clue what he was saying until I went upstairs. It was clearly for ladies and children only! Exhausted Will didn't care and just found a spot anyway on the lino floor. I wouldn't say it was the best sleep but it was better than none. At 7am we got up to an empty room and headed to our hostel.

    We got the local bus to the hostel and it was sooo packed but I love travelling with the locals. They are sooo smiley here it makes me so happy. On the way from the bus we stopped at a local Tea house for breakfast of dumplings, somosa, puri and lots of tea. The streets were packed with locals as it was independence day. The main street was flowing with market stalls and hundreds of Burmese. Luckily when we arrived at the hostel we were able to check in so after a quick shower I felt normal again.

    It was our last day so we were determined to enjoy it! Luckily it wasn't as hot as in Hpa An so walking around wasn't as difficult. We had a fab noodle soup for lunch, had a few goodies from the bakery and walked around the colonial area of Yangon. Of all South East Asian cities, Yangon has the highest number of colonial era buildings. Hundreds of late 19th century structures remain on an area of several square miles in the downtown area. It was really interesting but by about 3pm the heat and tiredness were hitting me hard. Will found a barbers so had a quick hair cut and his first clean shave which gave me time to have a rest. We then jumped in a taxi and went to our last tourist stop for the day, bogyoke market famous for its textiles and where we were hoping to by the last few presents we wanted. Annoyingly the taxi driver didn't actually tell us it was closed until he took us there and we were leaving the car. Quite annoyed and in need of a sit down we went to the near by glamorous shopping mall and had a coffee.

    For a while myself and Will have been eyeing up Xaomi Products. We have the Xaomi MI Band 2, but I lost mine in India and Will's has broken slowly over the last few months. The mall had a Xaomi Store! We were like kids in a candy store looking at all the cool gadgets. We aren't one to buy things generally but when we got home we were planning on getting new bands and I was actually going to get the brand new Amazefit watch for Will's birthday but I didn't have enough time. After A LOOOONG time in the shop going back and forth we bought the watch. In the UK its £80 and it was only £40 so we couldn't resist the bargain. So we are now proud owners of the Amazefit!! We were both very excited. We were honestly in the shop for 1.5 hours trying it on, deciding whether we really wanted it and finally setting it up.

    To celebrate our last night we went to the top of Sakura Tower, enjoyed a £2.50 Singapore Sling and the gorgeous view of Yangon City. At that moment in time nothing could have ruined how perfect it was. Or so I thought... As you know we booked our flight home but the cheapest was to fly direct to Milan and then go to Manchester. As we are going via Milan we decided to book 3 nights in Milan to enjoy a holiday within the holiday but we are massively low on funds so we booked quite a cheap airbnb. Guess what... While enjoying our night of cocktails I recieved an email from the host saying he is booked up and can't host us. This booking was an instant book and so the payment had already gone through! Basically it turns out he has 2 listings of the property and hasn't actually updated the sexond/ isn't aware of Instant Booking. We instantly started looking for an alternative but everything was looking to be €50 a night. Now for the normal Jo reading this you're probably thinking, that's what I would expect. It was giving us a heart attack thinking about it. We got on the phone to airbnb and they said they need to talk to the host before they can help us, they said they would be in contact in 2 hours. It was now 7pm in Yangon. Having slept on a lino floor last night the plan was to go to the hostel soon and have an early night. At 9pm obviously they didn't call back and so I messaged on the support app. I was then quoted 4 hours. This would take us to 1am Yangon time. We were getting very panicky and unfortunately we really let it get to us and it did ruin the very end of the night for us.

    Anyway looong story short I couldn't sleep a wink and at 3am a couch surfer got in touch and said if we are still desperate for a place to stay he can host for one night. Relief!! I then reduced the search for just 2 nights stay and found a room for £80 for 2 nights and just went ahead with it. At 5am Will woke up saying he couldn't sleep and I was able to tell him the good news that all was sorted! Proud of my nights work but absolutely exhausted I attempted to sleep. We had made plans to go to the Market in the morning before the flight but there was no way we were in a fit state.    Lue lisää

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  • Shahnavaz MehtaMyanmarMatkaaja

    Day of Relaxing?? Nah!!!

    11. helmikuuta 2019, Myanmar ⋅ ☀️ 34 °C

    After yesterday's epic hike to the top of Mount Zwegabin our calves were in agony. We had a slow start to the morning packing our bags, checking out and attempting to find couch surfing hosts or affordable accommodation in Milan which will be our very last stop before heading home on the 16th. We messaged a lot of hosts and fingers crossed we find someone as accomodation is ludicrously priced!

    Once all the admin was done we jumped on the motorbike for our last ride. First stop was Kaw Ka Taung. We were both really hot and hungry when we arrived so we sat and It was a small cave with lots of Buddhas inside and surrounding. What was very different about this cave were the small embossed Buddha silhouettes that pertruded from the cave walls. Above the caves were pagodas exposed on enormous high rocks. Hpa An has some really beautiful scenery very similar to that of Phong nhã and Tầm Coc in Vietnam and it brought back some really happy memories. We decided to walk up to the top and see the views. Why is everything here vertical steep steps!! Our calves screamed in paid the whole way, but it was worth it. There was absolutely no one at the top and we had the complete rock to ourselves. I think we went a bit delirious with the heat as we found a broom and had what I now call an Ellia Moment. I rode my nimbus 2000 in the air and Will swept up the top of the pagoda haha

    Next we drove to see Kyauk Ka Lat Pagoda another very impressive sight. Again the pagoda was built on a huge exposed rock but this time in the middle of a lake. Again the climb up involved steep stone steps but luckily it wasn't so high. At the top was a very tiny area where locals were being blessed by the Monk and it was a memorable sight to see.

    Our next and final stop was Hpa Pu Hill for sunset. It took quite a while to get there and on the way we drove through local villages and were greeted by lots of small children ecstatic to see foreigners but the road was a dusty red sandy dirt track. When we arrived were covered head to toe in red sand! We were both very tired by this time and really achy but that never stops us, so up we went. It was a painful one hour vertical steep staircase up. Along the way we passed some tourists on their way down and they said unfortunately access to to the top isn't possible as the last part of the climb was broken bamboo ladders. Once we got there Will was keen to see if it was possible. I can confirm it was possible, but and this is a very big but, with a high risk of catastrophic collapse. I was proud to get to the top and vey relieved that it didn't collapse under us and I must admit it was worth the terrifying state going up. We even asked Ellia and Karin if they went up when they came and they said "What you went up there, you're crazy!".

    The view was perfect for our final evening in Hpa An and due to it being so crazy looking it stopped others coming up resulting in us having the top to ourselves.

    The day so far was definitely the calm before the storm as what came next was quite stressful. The plan for the rest of the evening was to quickly get down, ride back to town, grab a quick dinner from the night market and then go back to the hotel to pick up our bags before jumping on our final night bus of the trip back to Yangon. That was the plan...

    We stayed up a bit longer than expected and had to walk very quickly just making the bottom before it was fully dark. We jumped on the bike and the lights had stopped working. This was our worst nightmare and what came next is something we said we would never do. We had to drive back with no lights. It was our last trip on the bike, we had been riding for 13 months and we had never had an accident. You're probably thinking why didn't we just phone the hotel and get them to come and pick us up but by the time they would have come and then brought us back we would have been late for the bus so we just jumped on, I put on my head torch and shone it with my phone in front of Will to ensure people in front could see him and off we went. . We drove very slowly, stopped a few times and eventually got to the night market which was 1 minute from the hotel. Phew!! It was the stupidest risk we have taken on the trip but luckily we were safe. We enjoyed chicken nuggets, sweet and sour noodle soup, a banana and strawberry milkshake and a coconut pancake to celebrate our survival.

    When we got back to the hotel the owners were very nice and let us have a quick shower in a spare room and even took us to the end of the road to catch our bus.

    As I mentioned this was our last night bus and I must admit in terms of its comfort and features it was by far the best. It was like being in the presidents airplane from House of Cards with huge leather seats with plenty of leg room and even an individual media centre with films on! I was like a kid at Christmas. Although exhausted I couldn't get to sleep so I watched Escape plan with Sylvester Stallone and Arnold Schwarzenegger in. It was actually a really good gripping and easy watch film. I didn't sleep perfectly but I think I got a few naps.    Lue lisää

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  • Shahnavaz MehtaMyanmarMatkaaja

    Hpa An

    9. helmikuuta 2019, Myanmar ⋅ ☀️ 33 °C

    For once we arrived at the more sensible hour of 9am, but once again we got little to no sleep. On the way to the hotel we stopped for tea and naan with lentils. Along the way to the hotel I was getting a really friendly vibe from all the locals, even more than normal! Everyone was saying hello and was super smiley, it was like being in the country side up north 😊 We were too early to check in so we just chilled out in the lobby for a while reading our books until we could. The rest of the afternoon was spent relaxing and doing our laundry.

    In the evening we went to a cute little cafe for a salad and milkshake, walked around the local lake to watch sunset and finished in the night market. Unlike a lot of nightmarkets we have been to this one was really good with lots of freshly cooked food and all very tasty. We had an amazing sweet and sour chicken noodle soup, some freshly cooked chip shop type chips, a couple of meat skewers, some very stinky Tofu stuffed with tea leaf salad (bleugh) and a strawberry milkshake yum yum yum.

    The next day we got up early and were feeling adventurous. As it was early and not as hot as midday (only 33 degrees 😢) we climbed up Mount Zwegabin. We've done a lot of hiking on this trip and to be honest as we've been ill a lot our fitness level isn't as good as it was but somehow this hike felt impossible the entire way up. The hike was vertically up steps for 2 hours with little relief in terrain and it was scorching hot and humidity levels were rocket high. We were drenched head to toe. We were hoping it would take us less time but it was impossible in this heat and humidity. Towards the top we met a lot of college students who were all litter picking. They were so proud to be looking after the enviroment and really helped our mood for the final half an hour push.

    Once at the top we came to the pagoda and sat and rested for a while. A lot of locals were also at the top in tour groups. They were a good laugh and even offered us chicken bread. Now chicken bread isn't quite what you think it is. It's a very sweet croissant type bread stuffed with sweet oily hairy chicken strands. No it doesn't sound appealing and it wasn't great but we can't be rude about it. Although Will was sat there sniffing it for quite a a long time. All the ladies were giggling at him as if he was about to eat an alien.

    The hike down was just as tough to be honest, slightly quicker, but long, hot and very steep. By the time we finished the hike it was definitely time for lunch but we decided to wait till our next stop for lunch.

    Our next stop was Saddan Cave famous for its size in the area and when you exit the other side it leads to a lake where you can get a boat through caves, along the canal and through rice fields. It was unexpectedly really beautiful and very relaxing. For lunch we ate bamboo sticky rice and an avocado. I must admit I just can't get enough avocado!

    Everything took much longer than expected today so our final stop for the day was the famous bat cave. We arrived over an hour before sunset and were the only ones there. You can't actually go into the cavern of the cave, but it is famous for being a viewing point where you watch millions of bat's leave the cave after sunset fly all the way to Mawlalmyine to feed and come back every morning. When the bats start flying out, they start beating drums (actually jerry cans) and using brooms to make a swishing sweeping noise so that the bats make interesting patterns in flight. We even joined in making the sweeping noise with our mouths once the ladies stopped as it was just fascinating to watch. It is an incredible sight! I wish I could upload the videos! If you are interested just let me know and I'll send it to you on fb or WhatsApp. Its beautiful to watch.

    For dinner we went to Wadee Restaurant which is full of tourists but although very very slow it provides incredibly tasting local dishes. We sat with Simon who we met at the Saddan Cave and had a really good chat about travelling. I'm going to really miss meeting like minded people so easily. As we are getting to the end me and Will went all out and feasted like royalty. We had Prawn Curry, Chicken and Potato Curry (just like my mums at home), tea leaf salad, 2 banana milkshakes and a beer to share. We finally won a free beer too, it was a great day. I wish England had this beer game it so fun. Basically you have the chance to win cash or free beer by looking on the inside of the bottle lid.    Lue lisää

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  • Shahnavaz MehtaMyanmarMatkaaja

    A Day Of Real R&R Shared With Friends

    7. helmikuuta 2019, Myanmar ⋅ ☀️ 26 °C

    Today we all decided to have a day of real R&R. We had a very lazy morning reading our books over breakfast. Then I went for a leg wax while the others chilled out in a garden. The waxing was the strangest one I've ever had. They had clearly never waxed an Indian person and they were just fascinated by our thick hair haha But I must admit it was thorough! The girl even had another girl next to her to check no hairs were left. In addition to the oos and aaahs coming from them while waxing once they got a bit more comfortable they began taking selfies with me! Definitely the most bizarre time to take a selfie but it was fun and they did an amazing job. The only thing is that they took FOREVER!! Normally it takes 30-45 mins. They took an hour and half.

    Eventually I went to meet the others and then we went to the local market for veggie shan noodles. It felt like 100 degrees in the market so we were gasping for juice and so went in search of specifically strawberry milkshake. It was super tasty!!

    Then we planned to go for a well deserved massage but this time at Gemini's. Will and I had bikes so we went to pick them up while Ellia walked. When we got to the bikes Will's had gone! Luckily a lady from the waxing salon came to help and Ostello Bello had CTV. Unfortunately they couldn't see the face clearly but could see that 3 foreigners had taken 3 bikes one of which was Will's. The odd thing was that Will had put the lock on so they wouldn't have been able to use the back wheel. Eventually we got to the masseuse and were given unlimited biscuits, tea and snacks. Yum!! The grandfather that welcomed us was a very sweet old man that spoke basic English and was very proud of showing off his family. He was 73 years old, he had 9 children and 14 grandchildren and 4 houses for his family all next to each other.

    For me the massage wasn't great to be honest and Venus was 100x better. There were some good bits but it was mostly too soft. When finished they gave us avocado shakes, more biscuits, snacks, fruit and water.

    Karin was suddenly feeling very sick so her and Ellia got a lift back to their hostel and Will and I went back to ours for a freshen up. For dinner we went to Ostello Bello so that we could see Karin and Ellia to say our goodbyes. I can honestly say we've made 2 fantastic friends here and we can't wait to visit them in Switzerland!

    The next day me and Will had another chill day before getting the sleeper bus in the evening to Hpa An, our final new destination. We had a slow morning and read our books over breakfast. Checked out at 12pm and went straight for our Venus Massage. I'm so glad we went back there as the massage was the best I'd ever had. I think I fell asleep at points because I was so relaxed!

    For a late lunch we had the famous Burmese Rice which comes with various rice toppings including chilli soya beans, dried anchovies with dried onions and dried shrimp paste. It sounds crazy but it was tasty!

    We then jumped on our sleeper bus by 4pm and were on our way. It was going to be a looong night... 16 hours bus 😭    Lue lisää

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  • Shahnavaz MehtaMyanmarMatkaaja
    1

    Boat Trip Around Inle Lake

    6. helmikuuta 2019, Myanmar ⋅ ☀️ 27 °C

    After such a lovely boat trip after the walk and talking to the Canadian couple we decided to team up with Ellia and Karin on an whole day boat trip. At 7am we went for breakfast and then jumped on the bikes to the ferry port. I must admit my bum was still hurting from cycling yesterday so I'm looking forward to sitting and relaxing on the boat.

    First stop was the Ywama village which is famous for silver making. Ellia and me even bought ourselves some new earrings.

    Next we spent an hour at the market at Phuang Daw Oo Pagoda where we bought a few goodies to bring home, ate Shan noodles and drank endless amounts of tea.

    Next was a stop at Inn Paw Kon Village where they make lotus Silk. The stems of the lotus flowers produce a fine web like thread which is then woven into thread for garments such as ladies scarves or robes for the monks. It was really amazing.

    Then we stopped at Nan Pa Village where boats and cigars are made. Why the combination I have no idea. Ellia, Karin and Will tried the sweet, banana and strong tobacco cigars. It was weird sitting around them while smoking and smelling the soft scent of banana around me.

    After lunch by the river we walked to Shwe Inn Dein Pagoda which was surrounded in small stupas, almost like a mini Bagan. The site is believed to date back to the days of the Indian emperor Ashoka, who sent out monks in the 3rd century BC across Asia to spread Buddhism. Centuries later two Kings of the Bagan empire, Narapatisithu and Anawrahta built pagodas at the site. The site contains hundreds of pagodas, collectively known as the Shwe Inn Thein pagodas. Most are from the 17th and 18th century; the earliest one with an inscription dates to the 14th century. We were all hot and slightly delirious by this point. We were constantly giggling, hiding behind stupas and jumping out, Ellia even found a broom and randomly started clearing up the leaves and then pretending it was a nimbus 2000. I can't explain why we suddenly went crazy but it happened haha

    After what must have been a good 2 hours we headed back to the boat and had a quick stop to see the long neck ladies. Honestly I don't know why they still make this a stop on the tour because I don't think I've met any tourists that like it. Its like going to a human zoo and its all faked for tourists. Long necks in this area don't really exist and the ones that do don't wear the necklace all the time anymore and can take them off. Or so I've been told. One of the ladies made us hold the necklace claiming it was 8 kg. It was barely 2kg!!

    The next and final stop for the day was the Nga Hpa Kyaung also known as the Jumping Cat Monastery. In the past it was famous for its active cats that would jump through hoops during scripture readings but now the cats are much more lazy and do as all cats do and just lie around in the sun. I can't remember if I've said previously but we always carry balloons and give them out when we see tiny children. As the monastery wasn't that impressive while wandering around we gave some children balloons. They were sooo excited and jusr ran round the outside of the monastery screaming with enjoyment. It was sooo cute!!

    Our tour was supposed to be finished by 4pm but we must have been very slow at each of the stops because it was now 5:15pm. So we asked our boat driver of he would go slowly so we could watch sunset and he happily did so! He also slowed down everytime we went past the iconic one legged fishermen so that we could take pictures with sunset. It was a really picturesque and relaxing end to the day.

    When we arrived we went to Ellia and Karin's hostel Ostello Bello's roof top bar where me and Will played a quick game of the Burmese version of Caram and then we sat and chatted to a few other tourists. I had a really yummy strawberry mojito or so I thought initially. After a few sips my mouth was suddenly full of glass bits so I quickly took it back!! Luckily no harm was done!

    For dinner we went back to the local restaurant for grilled fish, fish steamed in banana leaf and tea leaf salad. It was the best dinner I've had in Myanmar. Cooked to perfection. Absolutely loving our time hanging round with these guys they are fun, funny and so down to earth. Hopefully we can go meet them in Switzerland!!    Lue lisää

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  • Shahnavaz MehtaMyanmarMatkaaja

    Massage and Wine!

    5. helmikuuta 2019, Myanmar ⋅ ⛅ 23 °C

    All I can say is after 5 days trekking I think we deserved today. We had a very lazy start to the morning of Avocado's and egg on toast, banana and honey pancakes and lots of tea and coffee for breakfast while chatting to a canadian couple till about 12ish. Then we had a massage at Venus and would 100% recommend it as your are greeted by the sweetest ladies and given endless tea, biscuits and snacks at the beginning and end. The massage was just what we needed and we felt great afterwards.

    We then went to pick up our laundry. I was so excited to have clean clothes again! For lunch we met up with Karin and Ellia at Pancake Kingdom before heading on the bikes to Red Mountain Vineyard. My bike was awful with zero suspension or gears and the 45 min ride felt like it took hours. I was in pain when we arrived but it was soo worth it. The views were just beautiful. We did the wine tasting and there is a reason you've never heard of Burmese Wine haha We watched the start of sunset and then cycled back.

    For dinner we had fresh grilled fish, avocado salad, tea leaf salad, stir fried vegetables and rice. Yum yum yum.    Lue lisää

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  • Shahnavaz MehtaMyanmarMatkaaja

    Tea, Great Company and a Boat Ride!

    4. helmikuuta 2019, Myanmar ⋅ ☀️ 27 °C

    At 4am all the villagers entered the monastery to give offerings to the monks. Had we known this happens it wouldn't have been so annoying. However, to wake up to the clanging of metal plates, cutlery, very loud talking and the smell of food at 4am was just mind boggling and how some people around us slept through the whole thing I will never know!

    At 6am we all went for breakfast and let's just just say there wasn't quite the spring in our step there had been on previous days. Ellia had hurt her ankle, everyone had quite a disturbed sleep and Pauline had sun stroke from the day before so had been sick all night. It wasn't a great start!

    By 7:30am we were on the road again with the end in sight. Today we have about 4 hours to walk, then lunch and an hours boat ride. After about half an hour of walking Pauline decided she was too ill and jumped on a motorbike for the remaining journey to the boat.

    Today's walk went through even more chilli farms, through tiny villages with more adorable children, down a steep rocky path along what would be a river in rainy season and a red gorge. I think by the time we got to the gorge we were slightly dilerious as we came up with a story about it. We decided the colour of the Gorge was due to a tourist long long ago getting too nea the edge falling in and splattering their blood and staining the soil. In addition the size and shape was due to a battle of dragons and one was defeated and fell straight into the ground making the shape of the gorge. As I said... I think the heat got to our heads!

    Unfortunately this walk only had one tea stop but we powered through knowing we would get our tea at the end! After entering a final village we soon came to the end of our walking and were definitely ready for our lunch. Lunch was definitely one of my favourites. We had avocado salad, tea leaf salad, wilted watercress, peanut curry and rice with a fried egg and a celebratory beer. It was super tasty.

    After a relaxing hour Pauline joined us and we jumped on our boat and this was possibly my favourite part of the whole trip. For some reason I expected a really rubbish and short trip but it was sooo nice sitting on the boat in the sun, gliding down the still deltas towards the lake and seeing all the villagers going about their day to day lives. Once we got on the lake we saw the famous one legged fishermen which was a unexpected highlight. When we arrived we were all very relaxed and up for a celebration so we went to a local restaurant for another celebratory beer.

    At about 4pm we all got quite sleepy and were in dying need of a shower, it's now been 4 days since I've had one, so we all parted ways to our respective hotels.

    I jumped straight into a steaming hot shower and was in absolute heaven!! So much so that I probably stayed in a bit too long and ended up using all the hot water. Will was not a happy bunny. For the first time in 3 months we put took all our clothes to a laundrette to be washed properly and then went to meet everyone for Dim Sum Dinner.

    When we got back to the hotel we sat and watched Chris Tarrants show about trains in Vietnam and it brought back so many amazing memories. Thanks Ed Avern who is the Assistant Producer who contacted us and asked for some tips and then for sending it to us. A perfect end to the day.    Lue lisää

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  • Shahnavaz MehtaMyanmarMatkaaja
    1

    It's All About The Tea

    3. helmikuuta 2019, Myanmar ⋅ ☀️ 24 °C

    I slept like a baby! It was possibly the best sleep I've had for ages. I got up early, watched sunrise and got back into my smelly clothes. I've not showered for 2 days... Eek!

    For breakfast we had Indian Puris, pumpkin curry, guacamole, melon, oranges, coffee and of course more tea. By 8:30am we were all packed up and on our way.

    The morning was spent walking through more villages farming chilli's with the first stop at about 11am for... Guess what?!... Yes some more tea!

    Pyu thought we were barking mad but happily gave us endless amounts of tea at each stop. During the break everyone tried beetlenut Catechu. We had already tried Paan in India so didn't partake and I'm so glad we didn't. It just looked ghastly. At one point Ellia was just spitting out what looked like yellow bile. Why everyone is so obsessed with it here I will never know!

    The next 2 hours were tough because of the heat and longing for a break and lunch. There wasn't much in terms of scenery to entertain either and for the first time we saw other tourists. They did not look like they were having fun at all compared to our constantly laughing group.

    Lunch was quite a let down to be honest compared to the other days, probably because there were quite a few groups. Again we were the noisy laughing group compared to the solem and barely talking ones. So glad we had such a fun group as it really makes a difference to the experience.

    After lunch and tea we had an easy 40 mins hike to the next stop at the river where Pyu, Ellia and Karin went for a dip and the rest of us just chilled in the shade.

    The last part of the day was definitely the best in terms of scenery but worst in terms of heat and feeling sluggish. But Pyu knows exactly how to make us happy and after hiking up for a while and seeing a beautiful view we stopped for Tea. The little shop where we stopped had a fab selection of snacks so we all sat on sun loungers, in the shade eating snacks and drinking plenty of tea while listening to Pyu sing and play the guitar.

    From there we had about half an hour left of walking before reaching the monastery. When we arrived there were quite a few groups and so we weren't expecting such a quiet and comfortable night as before. As soon as we arrived we freshened up, grabbed some beers and headed up to watch sunset before dinner again. We ate, had tea and got told a new bedtime story from Pyu and got to bed for 9pm ready for our early morning start of 6:30am tomorrow.    Lue lisää

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  • Shahnavaz MehtaMyanmarMatkaaja
    1

    Who Needs Sleep When You Can Hike??!

    2. helmikuuta 2019, Myanmar ⋅ ☀️ 24 °C

    As I mentioned we arrived at 2:30am. Now, normal people would have booked a room already in hope they could check in and get a good night sleep and rest the next day. We aren't normal people. As we felt like we were running out of time we decided to skip the sleep and a day off and hoped we could sign up to a 3 day hike to Inle Lake. A bus would take 2 hours but that wouldn't be so fun would it?!

    Jungle King Trekking office didn't open till 7am so we had quite a few hours to kill. So we took refuge on a freezing tiled floor in the reception of a hotel. At the time it felt like the worst decision we had made this trip. It was so miserably cold I felt like I wanted to cry and obviously I didn't sleep a wink, just felt miserable. Finally at 6:30am we got up and went in search of breakfast. It was warmer outside than in!! We had egg pancakes and talked to locals about football and then sat outside Jungle King waiting for them to open. Luckily we were able to sign up to the trek for today and our morning sleeping on the floor worked out!

    We had 2 hours before the trek started so we went to visit the local market, ate some breakfast and freshened up.

    At 9am we met the 4 others that would be in our group and Pyu our guide. 3 Swiss, 2 Brits and a French on a 3 day adventure. Within seconds we were all laughing, making jokes and bonding. I think it's going to be a great group!!

    The morning hike took us up through villages and along pathways leading upwards towards the hills. It was a straight forward start. We took a short break while a heard of water buffalo's headed down the hill. We were even entertained to a bull fight to which I quickly hid behind Pyu just in case!

    At one point Will's mi band fell off so we both went back to search for it. Luckily we soon found it and then went back to find the group. Now the next thing that happened was the start of a regular event for our group. The group were waiting for us in a little village and had somehow been invited for tea by a little old couple!! We sat for about half a hour drinking lots of tea and chatting to the old couple using our guide as a translator. It was such a unique experience!

    After about another hour or so we stopped for lunch and wow what a spread!! We had guacamole, veggie noodles with a fried egg, tomato salad, watermelon and oranges. Oh and green tea! Yum!!!

    The afternoon was definitely my favourite part. We walked along the top of the hills through hundreds of fields growing beautiful red scarlet chilli's and you could see the valleys far below on both sides. It was really gorgeous.

    When we arrived at the village where we were staying myself, Pauline and Will soon started to feel the effects of not sleeping but we powered through by having a well deserved beer, sunflower seeds and watching sunset as a group.

    For dinner we had another incredible feast by candlelight of aubergine, morning glory, catfish curry, beans and rice. Oh and more green tea! There was a gorgeous little kitten in the home that would just wouldn't leave Will alone. The evening was finished off with a bedtime story about the Dragon and the Prince of Myanmar from Pyu.

    We were all tucked up in bed at 9pm. What an incredible day.    Lue lisää

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  • Shahnavaz MehtaMyanmarMatkaaja
    1

    Gokteik Viaduct

    1. helmikuuta 2019, Myanmar ⋅ ☀️ 26 °C

    As I said before we are really keen on taking the most famous train ride in Myanmar, the Gokteik Viaduct from Hsipaw to Pyin Oo Lwin and the day has come. I must admit I was pretty terrified of the ordeal after hearing it commonly derails and can take twice as long to get there. Unfortunately we have planned quite a tight schedule and booked a night bus to Kalaw which leaves an hour after the trains arrival time so fingers crossed all goes well!

    We arrived at the station with plenty of time to spare and we were soon on the train. As soon as the engine started the nightmare reality soon began. I have never been on a train that rocks so much!!! It was absolutely crazy (seriously Google YouTube videos), I'm not surprised it derails so often. Within about 10 mins you soon got used to the rocking and all the tourists on the train were having a blast attempting to stand and walk around this rickety train.

    There were various stops along the way giving us time to grab snacks and stretch our legs. It wasn't till around lunchtime when the highlight of the trip appeared and wow was it fun! The viaduct is 689m long and approximately 102m high. Everyone was hanging out the windows and doors to get photos and honestly if this was England it would be a health and safety nightmare but it was great fun!!

    After the viaduct the train passed through more farm land, villages and temples and it was a perfect time to read our books. The train was now very quiet with some reading and others sleeping until we finally arrived in Pyin Oo Lwin surprisingly on time!

    Andrew kindly picked us up from the train station and took us straight to the bus agency and it was all very smooth. For dinner we had the apiciest noodle soup I've ever had and we soon got on the night bus. After the last night bus I was very worried about not getting sleep but surprisingly I did and at 2:30am we were in Kalaw!    Lue lisää

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  • Shahnavaz MehtaMyanmarMatkaaja

    Tree House Sunrise? Yes Please!

    31. tammikuuta 2019, Myanmar ⋅ ☀️ 25 °C

    With very little sleep in the treehouse we crawled out of bed at 6am but it was so worth it. The sun peeping over the misty mountains was just beautiful. We all then drank plenty of coffee and tea, ate a feast for breakfast and were soon off to finish the rest of the hike. Today the hike was mostly down but very very steep down a slippy, dry soil jungle route. In fact so slippy that at one point Will was very carefully attempting to go down when he completely lost control of his feet, slipped along the path, looked like he'd stopped and gained control, clearly hadn't and summersaulted off the path and down the hill breaking a tree with his bum to save his fall!! I was behind and just watched the whole thing in slow motion. We were all really worried but I must admit I was so scared of doing the same thing that it took me a while to rescue him! Luckily he was OK on the end just a scratch on the bum and a hole in his underpants! Phew.

    After the crazy slippery downhill slope things got a lot better and we just walked along the river and it was really pretty.

    For lunch we stopped in a little village and were again presented with a feast of food but unfortunately my stomach was playing up a bit again so I kept it very light.

    The final section was rather long and tedious over fields in the burning sun with very little sun but the group were good fun so time soon passed and it was soon over!

    When we arrived in town we decided decided to stay out and go straight for dinner and a shake before checking in again.

    The evening was spent trying to plan the adventure from Hsipaw to Kalaw via the Gokteik Viaduct train ride to Pyin Oo Lwin which all the locals seemed to say was impossible to do in a day without going all the way to Mandalay. Luckily on the hike we met some tourists who simply said "Contact Andrew in Pyin Oo Lwin." To which we asked, how??! They said just Google it and it comes up. Well they were right!!! So we rang "Andrew from Pyin Oo Lwin" and he was able to sort out everything! It's going to be a looong day tomorrow.    Lue lisää

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  • Shahnavaz MehtaMyanmarMatkaaja

    1 day ill so shall we sign up to a hike?

    29. tammikuuta 2019, Myanmar ⋅ ☀️ 26 °C

    Of course!!

    So Tuesday we spent in bed until about 4pm when we left for dinner. We just went back to Mr Shakes and I had Chinese Egg and tofu noodles. Just what I needed, plain food.

    Then we signed up for a 2 day 1 night trek. Some would say we are barking mad and maybe we are but are fed up of feeling ill and want to be in nature and around other people to get us out of feeling sorry for ourselves.

    The next morning we packed up, checked out, had breakfast and got a pickup to Mr Bike to begin our hike. Within 10 minutes we were all chatting and having a laugh on the pickup truck. There were 13 of us, 6 Brits, 3 Germans, 2 Dutch, 1 isreali, 1 Irish and 2 guides (Mr Forest and Mr Candy). No I'm not starting a joke 😂

    The walk started off quite leisurely and to be honest I was feeling pretty good. We walked through local Shan villages, stopped for tea and lunch, which was fantastic, but then the climb began. We started at 400m and went to 1400m above sea level through a hot sweaty jungle. Normally in England if doing such a climb it would be quite gradual but this was up the whole way. It was tough in the 28 degree heat. We were all drenched in sweat!! It was quite tough and although I was at the start to begin with I soon moved back beginning to feel quite unwell. But I pushed through and we got to our Tree House, where we were staying for the night, at about 4pm. It quickly got cold and luckily me and Will were fully prepared with layers, coat and our hats from Rishikesh, unlike others who were just starting out on their backpacking trip and were shocked it was cold in SEA.

    It was a really fun evening of drinking lots of tea to warm up, then having a feast for dinner and finishing off with Burmese Rice Wine around a fire.    Lue lisää

  • Shahnavaz MehtaMyanmarMatkaaja

    Hsipaw

    27. tammikuuta 2019, Myanmar ⋅ ☀️ 26 °C

    It's time to move on! Sure we aren't feeling 100%,more like 60% but it's time to get out of Mandalay. And to add to the stomach pains I've also got huge swelled burning rashes on the back of my thigh... I have no idea what they are...

    Luckily we were able to have quite a slow morning of having breakfast, reading our books and showering as check out wasn't till 12pm. We then sat in the lobby for another half an hour before getting a taxi to the bus station and we were soon on our way. Luckily the bus was much better than previous ones but by the 5th hour my swollen legs were in agony. We soon arrived in Hsipaw at about 9pm and checked straight in. We hadn't eaten lunch but were still feeling ill so just went straight to bed. Food can be tomorrow's problem.

    The next morning I woke up, went downstairs to the loo and wow what a temperature difference. It was freezing and foggy! Uh oh what have we done. We went for breakfast and were greeted to a huge buffet. Feast time!!! And that I did 😊 omelette, potatoes, vegetables, pancake, custard and a muffin. I was hungry what can I say!

    Feeling a bit better we showered, did our washing (I honestly can't wait to not have to do bucket washing anymore). By the time we were ready the glorious sun was out!

    Ready and with no proper plan we headed out in search of some trails to go for a leisurely walk. We first walked to Little Bagan which had a few ruined temples which was quite cute and then we headed out into the rice fields and farm land. It was so peaceful! We walked and we walked having lots of rests for water along the way and eventually came to a hot spring. The spring was full of men bathing so we decided to wait until it clears and had our jam sandwiches (which we made at the breakfast buffet). It took quite a while but eventually the men cleared out and women and children went in. I ended up playing with two little girls and it was great fun! They were so adorable.

    Our next destination was to walk to a waterfall which would make the walk a circular route. Quite a few locals said there wasn't really a waterfall as it wasn't wet season but we went for it anyway. We had a quick look on Google maps and saw from the satellite View that there were a couple of direct paths which would save us an good hour of walking, assuming they exist. As it was already 3pm we quickly got going. The route took us through rice fields and gorgeous wild flowers growing across the fields. It was so peaceful and beautiful. When we arrived at the waterfall I was so glad we went, it was really picturesque. The waterfall was like strands of long hair spread across a mountainside.

    We then walked back as quick as we could as it was getting very late. We walked through more farmland, even an aubergine farm but once we got up a hill we saw a devastating sight of huge piles of rubbish being burned. It was horrific. Just as sunset was beginning we got to the top and it could have been a veutiful view had it not been for the choking burning scene of plastic. We arrived back just before nightfall and arrived in front of Mr Shakes which is renowned for its shakes in the area. Well we were starving and thirsty so it was perfect. We both had a green vegetable curry with rice and a pineapple, passionfruit, coconut and rum shake. The curry was super spicy and the shake was sooo strong with rum. Wups, probably not great for our stomachs. We sat and chatted with two other travellers and are getting so sad to be going home. Well I am looking forward to going home but wish it was just for a month to recuperate! Will was starving still so we ordered fried dumplings and a coconut, oreo and banana shake. I think that tipped us over the edge. Let's just say I didn't have a great stomach in the night... But I must say it was a great day out.    Lue lisää

  • Shahnavaz MehtaMyanmarMatkaaja

    1 day ill, 1 day scootering, 1 day ill

    24. tammikuuta 2019, Myanmar ⋅ ☀️ 27 °C

    I'm not sure if our immune system is just trashed from India or what but I ended up spending Thursday in bed in agony with my stomach. It was a day of eat, sleep, eat, sleep, eat and sleep. In the late afternoon we went to Man Myo Taw and i attempted to eat a Pork Bao and Will ate a Bao and Kyae Oh (pork noodle soup). Then I had to go straight back to the room and had another nap. For dinner we found a hip new roadside pop up restaurant and I ate a bit of bolognese while Will had smoked pork ribs. They were yummy but I couldn't eat much.

    The next day I was a little better and I was sick of being in the room so we went on an explore. To be honest I probably did a bit too much but hey it was a great day at the time. We hired the bike and headed straight to Mandalay Hill. I must admit we didn't do the 45 mins walk to the top and instead rode the bike up as I don't think I could have handled the heat. Then we went to see Sandamuni Temple, Shwenandaw Temple and Kuthodaw Pagoda and although quite templed out each one was very interesting and different and very photographic!

    On the way to Inwa, an ancient city, we stopped at a local restaurant that enticed us in by their freshly cooked dough bread sticks. I had tea leaf rice salad and Will had Shan noodles. The bread sticks were sooo tasty we bought 3!

    It was then quite a long ride to Inwa but it was really cute. It was like a mini Bagan and although completely out of the way definitely worth the trip.

    Our final stop for the day was the beautiful and famous U Bein Bridge. We had bought ourselves a present in Bagan of a sand painting of the U Bein Bridge and so my hopes were quite high of seeing it in person! And I wasn't disappointed. We got there quite early so was able to walk from one end to the other and half way we chatted to a very friendly Monk. Then we sat and waited for the spectacular picturesque sunset. Sure there were a lot of tourists but it was really lovely.

    It was then a long journey back to the bike rental and as the train station was only next to it we planned to walk to the station after to pick up our tickets for tomorrow to Hsipaw. When we arrived at the rental place he offered to take us to our hotel! Gutted... That would have saved us the 30 min walk back... Ah well we needed to go to the station anyway so off we went. Upsettingly it was a lot further than we thought and the ticket desk was closed. The train to Hsipaw only goes once a day and is at 4am. The ticket office opens at 3am and we have heard it can be very busy. Defeated and very upset that we now have to get up at 2am we wandered back. Will went to get some noodles for himself for dinner while I went in search of some snacks for the looong journey ahead of us. All set and packed we jumped into bed dreading the journey ahead. You're probably thinking, well if you dread it that much why are you bothering. The train ride is supposed to be incredibly scenic, we want ton experience some longer Burmese train journeys and goes over what was the largest viaduct in the world at the time of its construction in 1901. Well that was the plan...

    I'm not going beat around the bush here so please turn if away if you're squeamish. At about 11pm Will had a crazy fear and couldn't get comfortable. We were both up from 12 and decided the train would be a terrible idea and so I booked another night in the hotel. At about 2pm he projectile vomited everywhere (well into the toilet but it was violent!). At about 7pm I was then being sick everywhere. It was not a good sight. We didn't bother going for breakfast and just spent till about 2pm in bed napping and feeling sorry for ourselves. By this point we were feeling slightly more human and decided it was time to move from Mandalay and so we booked a bus for the next day to Hsipaw instead of the train as it leaves at 2pm instead of 4am and only takes 6 hours instead of a minimum 12!

    We decided to go for lunch at the grilled fish place but it was closed so we ended up at Ned Kelly's and had a veggie burger and veggie panni. As it was a nice change from our hotel room we decided to stay and even felt well enough for a quick came of pool. Haha one day I might actually learn how to play this game 😂 I'm shockingly terrible, but it was good fun and raised our spirits again. At about 7pm we headed back with supplies of crisp and croissants for dinner. Gosh we live a fun life!! Fingers crossed we are better tomorrow for the journey.    Lue lisää

  • Shahnavaz MehtaMyanmarMatkaaja

    Oh the road to Mandalay...

    23. tammikuuta 2019, Myanmar ⋅ ☀️ 27 °C

    "Oh the road to Mandalay Where the flyin'-fishes play An' the dawn comes up like thunder outer China 'crost the Bay!" - by Rudyard Kipling

    I must admit after the last bus I was not looking forward to this journey but it was completely different. The bus was a mini bus and had zero room for moving and honestly that was way more comfortable for me! By 1:30pm we were in Mandalay and even got dropped off at our hotel.

    I was exhausted still from the previous journey and had to take the afternoon to catch up on sleep and I'm so glad I did. I woke up really refreshed!

    It was now early evening and we hadn't eaten since breakfast and we decided to make the most of having a long evening and have a date night. We had dinner at a street stall selling steak and fresh fish, it was soooo tasty. Then we went to a nearby rooftop bar that happened to have happy hour for the next two hours. Woohoo £1.50 cocktails and beer, well I won't say no! At first the place was completely empty but then we met Molly and Chrissi from Essex and it was a really lovely evening. I'm going to miss meeting other travellers and just exchanging amazing stories of people's journeys. It's so interesting. We got a bit carried away with the happy hour and then ended up ordering dinner at the bar too. Guess what was on the menu?! A PIE!!! I knew it might not be the best but I had to try it. I must admit it was definitely more of a pasty than a pie but it was tasty 😊

    Another fantastic memory in Myanmar. This country is just full of highlights.    Lue lisää

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  • Shahnavaz MehtaMyanmarMatkaaja

    A More Relaxed Day in Bagan

    22. tammikuuta 2019, Myanmar ⋅ ☀️ 26 °C

    As yesterday was rather hectic today is going to be a lot slower.

    We woke up pretty early as breakfast was served above our room and it got quite noisy from 5am onwards. After a slow breakfast, we got ready and then began planning our next steps. It was time to move onto the next city tomorrow so we booked our bus and accomodation and was finally done around 2pm and was in need of lunch again! We tried finding a local market but it didn't sell cooked food as it was too late in the day so we went to a recommended restaurant. I had aubergine and shrimp curry and it was yummy!

    The rest of the afternoon was spent scootering around more temples and a local village. For sunset we found another hidden temple which we climbed to the top of and the view was just stunning.

    For dinner we went back to the night market for Myanmar dosa and noodles.    Lue lisää

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  • Shahnavaz MehtaMyanmarMatkaaja
    2

    Bagan in a day!

    21. tammikuuta 2019, Myanmar ⋅ ☀️ 26 °C

    OK I probably say this for a lot of things but I think that was the worst night bus experience I'd ever had. Even for the really bad ones I've generally been able to nap even for 20 minutes but last night I got a grand total of zero sleep and I mean zero. We paid extra for the luxury reclining VIP seats and sure the seats were big but every ergonomic feature in the chair, from the head rest to the feet rest, were in completely in the wrong place for me. I was in agony. I couldn't reach the foot rest, I couldn't cross my legs, I couldn't sit up, I couldn't slouch, I tried even putting my legs vertically against the window. It just couldn't work, so I ended up just talking to all my friends in England via WhatsApp to keep me company. At 4am the bus pulled up, an hour early, and the hoards of taxi drivers came to the door. Obviously they were charging double the price and as our hotel was only an hour way and we had nothing else to do we had a quick free coffee at the bus stop and then headed off walking. Within 1 min a taxi driver offered to drop us off at the price of K6,000. We happily jumped in and the hotel staff were already up. We had another coffee, dropped off our bags and hired an ebike for the day and went off to watch sunrise! Well we might as well.

    Bagan's temples aren't as accessible as they once were and they now have a few dedicated sunset and sunrise mounds. However, being the rebels we are we wanted the old authentic experience so we found an old ruined temple, climbed to the top and waited for sunset with a few other tourists who found the spot. Wow wow wow!!! I can see why people come here. When the black night curtain revealed the red crescent sky over the iconic thousands of temples it was just a dream and then just when you thought it couldn't get better hot air balloons rose into the air and joined the beautiful picture. Peaceful heaven.

    After sitting for a couple of hours, making and eating our avocado sandwiches we set off in hunt of more temples. As I've said before we have seen a lot of temples but I'm not sure if it was the coffee or what but we were super on it we must have seen over 50 and gone into 20 and for once we were actually willing and happy to pay the K25, 000 but not a single person asked us to. At first we thought it very odd but there had been a 3 day festival and we think all the staff were on holiday too! Well it was a great day for us. It was so fun going in and around the temples. Although at about 3pm my steam began to run out so we sat and drank and ate the best coconut I've had in a long time!!

    Going back to us driving an electric scooter. The idea we love but the execution is not great, it is undersized and back heavy resulting in a very unsteady and unbalanced vehicle. Generally we were OK but Bagan is very sandy and when going anywhere off the beaten path it was less than ideal. We had a couple of nearmisses including when Will took the corner too tight and ended up driving up a sandy Bank to which I had to quickly jump off and hold the bike otherwise we both would have been thrown off. Luckily we were going slow and all was well.

    Outside one of the temples we met a really sweet lady who was proudly selling her husbands sand paintings. So far on this trip we've barely bought any souvenirs for ourselves or others but these were so beautiful I couldn't resist. We then went to the temple she said her husbands workshop was at and met him in person and he signed our paintings for us. He was unbelievably humble and sweet, so we took a picture together.

    On the way to even more temples we went through a market and picked up a Myanmar version of a Dosa which was delicious and via some more temples headed to our sunset point. Again we were able to find a very quiet spot on top of temple and it was so so so beautiful.

    For dinner we headed back to the market and ate tasty pork noodles.

    When we finally got home it was 8:30pm. The staff at the hotel were so shocked we had been out all day and quickly showed us our room, gave us hot water and said we must go to bed now and after a gorgeously hot shower to get rid of all the sandy muck I did.    Lue lisää

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  • Shahnavaz MehtaMyanmarMatkaaja

    The Not So Circular Train and Night Bus

    20. tammikuuta 2019, Myanmar ⋅ ⛅ 30 °C

    We booked our first night bus for Bagan for tonight so today was about getting rest and planning around getting to the bus station which is pretty far from town.

    We had quite a lazy morning having breakfast, chatting to the other guests in the youth hostel and sharing ideas. It got to about 11am and we still hadn't showered or packed to check out, so we quickly did. By this time it was now time for lunch so we joined a German guy for Shan Noodles (it's like an Asian bolognese, seriously delicious).

    After lunch we picked up our bags and headed off to the circle line. Now we were prewarned, it's not actually a circle anymore but it was more beneficial this was anyway as it took us half way to our bus station for our night bus.

    For the first half an hour the journey was quite fun and the train wasn't too crowded but after it got very crowded, hot and stuffy. It was just one sweaty mess. The locals were very sweet though and there were some adorable tiny babies. One watched Will in amazement while he was eating an orange and then took a segment. He was adorable! Would I recommend the journey to others? It's an interesting way of watching locals go about their day but if you have been to any other SEA Country then no you don't need to do this. It was about 2 hours long and that wasn't even the whole way.

    We arrived at Insein Station pretty early so we stopped for an overpriced stir fry veg but the owner was really pleasant and chatted to us for a while and instead of getting a taxi recommended that we get a bus all the way to the station. Perfect! Even though pretty early we jumped on the bus and that was much more comfortable.

    We arrived at the station with plenty of time so sat and read our books waiting for our bus. When it came it looked super luxurious and fancy... But looks can be deceiving...    Lue lisää

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  • Shahnavaz MehtaMyanmarMatkaaja

    Country Number 13 - It Feels Like Home

    19. tammikuuta 2019, Myanmar ⋅ ☀️ 31 °C

    Unfortunately we had to book a dorm room as Yangon is pretty pricey for accomodation. The guy above me decided to get up and pee every half an hour, so sleep wasn't on the cards for me last night.

    In the morning we had Burmese paratha with green lentils for breakfast and sat chatting to other guests in the hostel. It was nice to be back in a social atmosphere. We jumped in the shower and wow we had proper towels, free shampoo and shower gel and hot water and proper toilets. Heaven heaven heaven!!

    Very refreshed and raring to go we left the aircon into the steamy streets. Wowzer, it was hot! Its was hot in India but this is super humid and muggy again. Back to the life of sweating continuously again haha As soon as we stepped on the streets we both breathed in really hard and smiled. We looked at each other and both felt like we were back home in South East Asia. There were street sellers everywhere selling fruit, veg you name it. I grabbed a watermelon as soon as I could. Then we did our usual of sitting on tiny stools, pointing at people's food and asking for 2. The food is so fresh, light and tasty again. Yey!!! We were the only tourist enjoying the local life and sitting in the market watching the locals go about the day. Locals were so happy and smiley here it was so nice. They'd all wave and giggle at us as we passed.

    Along the way we got a new screen cover for my phone, got a custard volovant from a bakery and then went to visit Sule Pagoda, which was really beautiful inside.

    We wandered to the independence monument and then to Kandawgi Park. There was a flower market on at the park and it was so beautiful to see all the orchids and array of Myanmar flowers arranged around the market. We carried on walking to a viewpoint and finally got there just in time for sunset to watch the lights of the Shwegadon Pagoda glow in all its golden glory over the lake. We then walked to the Pagoda, had a delicious Bein Mont (a delicious sweet pancake made from rice flour) and saw the pagoda from the outside and wow it was impressive but we decided not to go in this time. To be honest we must admit we are a bit Pagoda'd out...

    For dinner we went to Aung Mingalar Shan Noodles and it was just a perfect end to the day. The food was fantastic, the waitress was super sweet and funny and we had our first Myanmar Beer. Well you can't beat that.

    I'm not sure what it is about South East Asia countries but we feel so at home in any of the countries. The food is always so umami, the people are always so happy to see you and help, we love going to the little ladies with their one dish pots and pointing and gesturing two, we love a good old haggle, even the humidity although absolutely killer and makes us sweat throughout the day doesn't make us hate it. It just makes us so happy and homely. We just can't put our finger on it. It's amazing to be back and I feel so honoured to be spending my last month in such an exciting country.    Lue lisää

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    Matkan aloitus
    18. tammikuuta 2019
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