Already at the airport we were blown away by some very noticeable things: all men wear longyis (skirts, basically), most people have sawdust-based make up on their faces, and betel nut chewing is rampant. Because of the trade embargo, you almost never see a car newer than a model 1988 Toyota Camry on the streets. These factors, combined with the fact that the Burmese keep their capital pretty neat and tidy otherwise, made our arrival to Yangon feel like we had just traveled through time.

Transports: if you’re going to Myanmar, expect to spend a lot of your time on transports. The trains are slow, the buses slower, and the boats are the slowest (not counting ox-carts, which you sometimes will have to resort to). There is signs of improvement on this front – the Chinese are investing a lot of money into Burmese roads these days.

The Destinations: Even though we had made up our mind to avoid most of the ‘Big Four’ attractions, we still ended up at all of them (Yangon, Bagan, Mandalay and Inle Lake). Why? Because the government won’t allow you to travel to the really cool places without a permit. That, and the aforementioned slowness of travel.

We did enjoy Bagan a lot – the obvious comparison to Cambodia’s Angkor Wat is tempting, but I hate to put two such interesting destinations next to each other just to compare which one is the best. Bagan is really worth it, especially if you go off the main drag and hit up the small stuff. There are places out there where you can feel like you’re an archeologist, mapping out a lost world of stupas and payas.

Mandalay was a surprise, although it’s not the first time we’ve gone to a place with a non-stellar reputation and found it to be perfectly enjoyable. It is a nice town with cool people and fun quirks. There are a bunch of ‘must-do’ sights and attractions around it, but I have to say that they fell a bit on the bland side, especially since we had just come up from Bagan.

We did try to escape the big four by going up to Myitkyina. We found the place to be interesting, if not perhaps the most charming town in the world. I also found that I am not immune to stomach bugs, surprise, surprise.

Both Bhamo and Katha seemed to be nice places to relax and engage with the local people. Unfortunately we hurried through them because . . . transport is slow.

Kalaw also falls outside the big four, but it did not impress us as much as it did some of our fellow travelers. Perhaps our expectations were tuned up way too high? We certainly hit it in the wrong season, because I’m still finding Kalaw dust all over my gear here in Kolkata.

Inle Lake was nice and picturesque, even beautiful. Again, the season was wrong – not a lot of water in the lake.

I also have to say a thing on tourism in Myanmar: you hardly ever see any other independent travelers, just package tourists being carted around in luxury vehicles. While I’m sure this is nice, I do (and I have) have to say that it is not our style. Perhaps we will feel different one day, but not now.

Another, more sinister aspect, is the political situation in Myanmar. Did you know that a Burmese person can get five to ten years in prison for calling the country ‘Burma’? Myanmar habitually finds itself among the five worst on the planet when it comes to human rights abuses. As a traveler, you see nothing of this going on, of course, but then more than 70% of the country is off limits. Locals rarely approach you to discuss these matters, and if they do they risk repression and harsh penalties. All through our visit, I had a nagging feeling that something was not right with the people, and it took me a while to figure out what it was. I think that they are unhappy, and they deserve better.

Would I recommend going to Myanmar? Yes. I think that the Burmese people should not be isolated, even though sanctions rip into their economy. They are an interesting lot that conduct themselves with grace and dignity through trying times, and they should not feel that they are alone. Do go, but for god’s sake don’t go with a group tour.

Related posts:

1. Inle Lake – One of Myanmar’s Big Four Tourism in Myanmar tends to focus on the Big Four...
2. Kalaw to Inle Lake Trek in Photos Martin already gave a fantastic breakdown of our trek from...
3. Trekking Report: Kalaw to Inle Lake In order to get at least one trek done, we...

Related posts brought to you by Yet Another Related Posts Plugin.

The picture above shows a Dagon beer station. Dagon is the new, upstart brand in Myanmar. They produce a light, slightly fruity lager that’s best enjoyed on tap. We found it to be a bit on the watery side, but refreshing and pleasant, if a bit uninspiring.

Mandalay Beer is the nation’s #2, a position it holds because it’s cheaper than the other beers. It is faintly metallic in taste, with a rough-ish edge. I don’t have too much good to say about it, but it is certainly drinkable when there’s nothing else around.

Our winner is Myanmar Beer, the premium brand and the biggest seller. It is basically an anonymous, balanced lager that wins because it is the most pleasant to drink. If I have anything negative to say about it, it is that it’s a bit sweet. It is available in bottles, cans and on tap, and is best enjoyed cold.

There are also a few strong-beer variants: a Mandalay red that has close to 7% alcohol, and a Myanmar “double strength” that packs a whopping 10% ethanol. They both taste like beer with a shot of vodka: unpleasant.

So, not the best beer in the world, but perfectly enjoyable!

Related posts:

1. Nepal Beer Review   I know what you’re thinking – FINALLY an important...
2. Inle Lake – One of Myanmar’s Big Four Tourism in Myanmar tends to focus on the Big Four...
3. Bathing in Myanmar For those of us that are used to luxurious items,...

Related posts brought to you by Yet Another Related Posts Plugin.

Just when we start to feel that we’re street-vendor-food-ordering-pros, we’re served this: boiled pig intestine noodle soup.

In retrospect, a few things would have tipped us off that this was not our kind of lunch spot – had we ANY wits about us when we were ordering.

1. There was absolutely no one eating at their food stall.

2. The woman we ordered from laughed really hard at us.

What does 10 months of traveling do for a nasty situation like this? It helps you scoot those intestine slices to the side to get to the noodles – which is exactly what we did.

Related posts:

1. A Day in the Life of a Bangkok Eater If I had one suggestion to give someone going to...
2. Spicy and Humid, Not a Good Look Figuring we’d gained a tolerance for spicy food in India...
3. Travel Dining: A Tale of Wanting What I Can’t Have I love food. It’s as simple as that. Catch me...

Related posts brought to you by Yet Another Related Posts Plugin.

Ah, the utter joy of having wireless internet again.

We flew from Yangon this afternoon to Bangkok – which means good food, a comfortable bed and internet that finally works properly. Sorry Myanmar, you’re amazing in many ways but your internet really stinks.

Youtube is a no-go there, so we weren’t able to post any videos. Well, we’ve left the frustrating internet behind & are now sitting in our hotel in Bangkok, furiously trying to catch up on photo and video uploads.

You can check out two of our favorites from Bagan below

Related posts:

1. Catching the Best Photo of Bagan Because the Bagan area is so flat, the best views...
2. The Temples of Bagan This is Bagan: more than four thousand four hundred temples,...
3. My favorite Stupa in Bagan With over 4,000 to choose from, it’s not terribly difficult...

Related posts brought to you by Yet Another Related Posts Plugin.

We like to think of ourselves as more of the off-the-beaten-trail kind of travelers. So, did we end up hitting the Big Four along with the rest of ‘em?

You bet your @ss we did. To our credit, we really did try to avoid at least one of them (Inle Lake), but we found ourselves there in the end anyway. The Book called it a MUST SEE and we had a few days to kill before we had to catch a flight out of Yangon. So, to the lake we went.

Was it amazing?

Well, yes and no. It was picturesque, for sure (check out the photo gallery below as proof). It was also the wrong season for it (the water level was very low) and swarming with package tour groups (yuck yuck yuck). Actually, there really wasn’t much to do there other than be part of a package tour (again, yuck, yuck and more yuck). We got the heck out of Dodge a day after arriving.

OK! Enough with the Negative Nelly tourism talk. Let’s enjoy some photos!

inle-lake-stilt-town-4

◄ Back

Next ►

Picture 1 of 9

Related posts:

1. Kalaw to Inle Lake Trek in Photos Martin already gave a fantastic breakdown of our trek from...
2. Trekking Report: Kalaw to Inle Lake In order to get at least one trek done, we...
3. Myanmar First Impressions We touched down yesterday in Myanmar, which is just the...

Related posts brought to you by Yet Another Related Posts Plugin.

Again, it was the wrong time of year, well, century for that matter, to take this trek. Just fifty years ago these bone-dry hills were covered in forest. And not just any ol’ forest, but one that was home to Bengal tigers, Asian bears and oh so many (now very unfortunate) creatures.

As it were, red dust and monasteries were this trek’s theme – as you can see in the photo gallery below.

[View with PicLens]

Related posts:

1. Trekking Report: Kalaw to Inle Lake In order to get at least one trek done, we...
2. Kalaw – Quaint, Comfortable and Completely Deforested curiously timed bus ride (we left in the afternoon and...
3. Jomsom Area and Annapurna Sanctuary Trek – Day 7 Our seventh day walking was an easy one, relatively speaking....

Related posts brought to you by Yet Another Related Posts Plugin.

After a short taxi ride from Kalaw, we arrived at the trailhead – a dusty ox-cart track in a remote-ish Pao village. It soon became evident that we were doing the trek in the wrong season. Dust, dry heat and a persistent wind all conspired to turn the walk into a hot sand-in-between-the-teeth kind of affair. The day was made interesting by our guide, a guy that definitely knows a lot about a lot of things. As we walked he gave us a run-down on the customs of the local tribespeople, about local medicinal plants and about the agriculture of the area.

At the end of the day, we arrived at a Buddhist monastery, where the Abbot graciously allows trekkers and other wanderers to spend the night (donation greatly appreciated). After dinner, we retired early to mattresses spread out in the main prayer hall. We awoke at five thirty to the chants of little novice monks calling down the blessings on the land and the village. For us, this was probably the most memorable moment of the whole outing.

Day two saw us plod through more dust and dirt, as we descended from a low ridge towards the Inle Lake. It took us about four hours to reach the boat dock, where we boarded a riverboat to Nyangshwe.

I guess that any trek we’d do after the outrageously good trekking we had in Nepal was bound to be a letdown. One thing is certain: the trek must be far better in October, after the rains make the land green and lush again. Credit also goes to Robin the guide, without whom the walk would have been far less interesting.

Conclusion: Research your treks before you go to Myanmar and have your permits ready. The best trekking is in the restricted parts.

Related posts:

1. Kalaw – Quaint, Comfortable and Completely Deforested curiously timed bus ride (we left in the afternoon and...
2. Trekking Update   We’re hitting the road again in less than a...
3. Trekking Report: Gunung Sinabung Both the tourist information and the Lonely Planet Guidebook stated...

Related posts brought to you by Yet Another Related Posts Plugin.

We did however make an exception for Kalaw’s Buddha cave: a natural cave that has been enlarged and filled from floor to ceiling with Buddha statues and fairy lights. I can’t help but wonder what spiritual function these hundreds of Buddhas fill, and what the fascination with cheap neon lightning is all about.

Thankfully, there’s no foot wearing allowed in there, so they do have that going for them.

Related posts:

1. Sagaing A few weeks ago, while I was waiting in line...
2. Seriously, How Old Are You? I married an older man. I’m OK with that –...
3. Sound Advice From a Fool A strange thing happens around day three of touring amazing...

Related posts brought to you by Yet Another Related Posts Plugin.

Kalaw is, unfortunately, the only place in Myanmar where you can just show up and trek – there’s no need to spend time and money on acquiring various permits. The area, which was deforested already fifty years ago, is home to a handful of minority peoples, each with their own beliefs and traditions.

We will use Kalaw as our base for a short trek towards Inle Lake. Ideally we’d spend more time here, but we are running low on time. Expect a full trekking report as soon as we’re back!

Related posts:

1. An Inwa Daytrip For four hundred years, this dusty island was the capital...
2. And the Winner is: the Designer Trek Instead of going off on a ready-made, mapped out trek...
3. Hello There, Myitkyina We’ve reached Myitkyina, the capital of the Kachin province of...

Related posts brought to you by Yet Another Related Posts Plugin.

Here’s how it goes: tourist agencies book group tours to local villages with promises to see “real village life.” Their tours may seem like the real deal but it’s usually just a construction of the tourism powers-that-be. The villagers play the part because they need to make a living. So they weave, or spin cotton or pose for photos all day. What do they get in exchange? The hope that some of this photo snapping will lead to a purchase from their gift shop.

Our boat trip through Inle Lake gave us the perfect example of this phenomenon. Our guide had asked if we wanted to see the Karen people (aka the long-neck women). Figuring we wouldn’t get another chance to see them, we agreed – without thinking about where we would find them. A few minutes later our boat pulled into a riverside landing that led to a huge gift shop. Flanking the window to this shop were the Karen women.

Karen women

Embarrassed to even be apart of this situation, Martin and I did a quick walk-through of the shop and headed toward the boat. Our departure was delayed by the arrival of a huge group tour, each person more happy than the next to snap photos of the Karen and/or of their neck rings. More than likely none of them bought a single souvenir, leaving the woman to wait for the next tour group and round of photos.

It’s just sad. A zoo where the main attraction are human.

Really, really sad.

Related posts:

1. Not Exactly Our Style We recently spoke to a local trishaw driver that confirmed...
2. Bhamo, We Hardly Knew Ya’ We only have an afternoon and a night to spend...
3. Bracelets and Butt-Aches Just when you think you’re going to scream from claustrophobia...

Related posts brought to you by Yet Another Related Posts Plugin.