When S2 and I were in Southeast Asia in late 1988 – early
1989, we were eager to go to Myanmar, a country known as Burma at that time,
and a place where it was reputed to be impossible to buy a coke. That fall there was one of the many military
coups or crack-downs that included, among other things, changing the name of
the country to Myanmar. There is a long
colonial – independent – democracy history to the country (best left to the
Wikipedia page). Over the years, when
people have asked, “is there any country you want to go to that you haven’t
been to” … Myanmar/Burma is typically the first word out of my mouth. Suffice it to say, when the decision was
made to move to Vietnam, a visit to Myanmar was high on the priority list.
A Tet break, typically at least a 10-day vacation, seemed
like a perfect time. Not to mention,
leaving Vietnam during that particular break tends to be a good idea given how
much the country shuts down.
While in Cuenca last summer, we become friends with Margi, a
U.S. retiree doing the same thing we were doing – researching Ecuador as a
retirement destination. Margi, learning
that we had at least one more year in Vietnam, asked if she could use us as a
base for exploring Southeast Asia. She
timed her visit with our trip to Myanmar, so the three of us set out on a
direct flight to Yangon (previously known as Rangoon).
We immediately continued our journey within Myanmar by
connecting to a domestic flight to Heho, in the highlands. The Heho airport gave new meaning to the
definition of low-key as shown by
their control tower
and the – uh – baggage
carousel.
Our base, on Inle Lake, near the airport, was
Nyaungshwe. The developed tourist
industry was nothing like what would have been here in 1988. Indeed, the whole visit was a collection of
mind-boggling, well-developed, easy-to-access, tourist facilities and services,
coordinated by incredibly kind, gracious, helpful people.
The following morning, we set off on a sunrise boat ride on
the lake where we watched the traditional leg rowing fish catchers, followed by
a full-day tour of the floating villages, cottage industries, religious sites,
and relaxed way of life centered on this lake.
Initially, it seemed like the trips were advertised as a sunrise trip,
or a sunset trip, or both. Of course, we
went with both. The price all seemed to
be the same, and at 25,000 Burmese kyat (about $17.00) per person, it seemed
like a small price to pay.
It is one of those experiences that will forever be etched
in my mind as a gift. I watched
traditional silversmiths, who patiently answered all my questions. I witnessed a paper making industry with huge
sheets of gorgeous flower strewn paper all made by hand, where I was allowed to
pound my heart away at the reeds being mashed to make the paper. I marveled at weavers, boat carvers and even
the women hand rolling cheroot. There
were stops at temple complexes where Buddha statues had been touched so many
times, they were worn beyond recognition.
Then there was the sunset as we made our way back across the lake. An absolutely magical day!
There was some slight confusion as we settled
up with the owner of the boat. The price
we were quoted was not per person … but per boat. All of that for $17, plus the tip for the
driver.
Due to the poor infrastructure in Myanmar, we continued our
journey by flying to Mandalay, the second largest city in the country. I strolled along the U Bien Bridge, wistfully
watched spectators press gold leaf onto the Buddha statue at Mahamuni Temple, gasped
at the noise of young men goldbeating (making gold leaf), tried to understand
how the incredible detail of the teak Shwenandaw monastery could have been so
easily reassembled when it was moved in 1880, and ever-so-slowly climbed Mandalay
Hill for the sunset at Sataungpyei Temple.
It was here that a young monk tentatively approached me and asked if he could
practice his English with me. It was a
lovely chat as I tried to coach him through pronunciation and grammar as he
told me about his family and his life as a monk.
From Mandalay, it was a boat trip down the Ayeyarwady River
to Bagan. Yes, an air-conditioned
tourist boat with a roof-top restaurant and comfy seats, but a
human-held
handrail when getting on and off the boat.
Bagan is home to some 2,000 monasteries, temples, shrines and
stupas from what was once an imperial capital.
It lacks UNESCO designation because since 1990 the priority appears to
be “if-we-build-it-tourists-come.” Margi and I went for the
tuk-tuk driver/guide who took us to countless monasteries, temples, shrines and stupas.
It was the sunrise here that found me pondering my
willingness to huddle on a small mound with 180-200 people, wrapped in hotel
towels, jostling to get tripods in just the right place for the colorful sunrise
as a backdrop against the exotic stupas.
I have seen an amazing number of sunrises and sunsets in some of the
most amazing places in the world. Would
this one be the one that stays in my memory the longest? Is this the scene that grabs me and holds me
the hardest and the longest? I stepped
back and let others be on the front lines of the viewing. I had this sense of passing the torch to the
next generation.
From Bagan, it was an easy flight to Yangon, an easy hotel
employee that escorted us to a taxi, an easy retreat to the air-conditioned
room. How did Myanmar get so easy?
We spent a day walking between sites in the city. The most memorable for me was high tea at the
Strand Hotel – oh, so colonial - and the sunset walk at Shwedagon Pagoda –
the most revered place in Myanmar. While walking through the pagado, I
went on a htamein photo spree – the traditional women’s dress of Myanmar.
The final full day was spent in a taxi to Bago where I fell
in love with an amazing reclining Buddha. The camera on my phone could not capture all of him, so I focused on his amazing feet.
All in all, it was a trip that gave me more than I hoped for
as well as the ability to cross off that one last country that I wanted to
see. I guess it is time to retire.
