Yangon, Myanmar (Burma): Monday, March 24 - Thursday, March 27

NOTE TO SELF:

1.  NEVER move to a country ruled by a dictator or military.

2.  Wake up every morning and thank our gracious God that we live in a country where we can
    worship God freely and openly declaring our love for Him.

Myanmar is one of the places that I have difficulty explaining.  One one hand, the people are incredibly welcoming, warm and gracious.  We are met on the streets and in shops with friendly greetings and smiles.  However, this remains a country with a VERY STRONG military presence and influence.  In the last couple of years there has been a change in the top leadership and the current "president" is trying to make some changes and promote a more democratic way of life. However, it remains very difficult and it still appears to be a very repressed society.  Before we arrived, our destination expert on board instructed us NOT to ask people, including our tour guides, any questions about their government or politics.  He said that you never know who is nearby listening to their response and if they give any information not approved by the government they could lose their job or even be sent to jail.  So, we needed to be on our very best, polite behavior while we are here.  None of us want to wind up in jail either!!!

So, right away I had an interesting experience.  I was sitting on a bench, resting for a moment while our group was gathering at one of the major tourist sites.  A very friendly young man sat down next to me and struck up a conversation.  It seems that he is a tour guide for another group visiting the same site  When he found out I was from the U.S. he sighed and had a very sad look on his face and said something like "you have freedom but we are very isolated in our country.  Sometimes we have very limited internet, often we have no access to it."  I was careful not to ask any questions but talk about the beautiful sites we had seen and how well we have been treated.  Again, he began to tell me how isolated it is in his country.  When one of his buddies saw that he was talking to an American one of them immediately shouted something at him and he excused himself immediately.  A few minutes later he tried to sit down next to me again but they made him leave instantly.  He said since the military came into power that most people in the country have been converted into agricultural workers.  He would like to travel but isn't able to do so.  My heart broke for him since he seemed so sad and hopeless.

Also this morning, as we were driving along on the coach Bob noticed the many "watch towers" located along side of the road.  There was always someone manning them, watching the surrounding area.  He asked our guide the purpose of the towers and he was told that they are just watching the bridges.  However, in some cases they were out in the middle of a field with no bridges to be seen.  Finally, another interesting aspect of our tour today was that we were accompanied the ENTIRE day (nine hours) by a police escort!  He was a motorcycle officer who led the way for our bus, siren blasting everywhere we went!!  When we asked why we warranted a police escort our guide told us that we were VIP's and smiled.  Now, I would like to believe that our tour group qualified as very important people, however, as the day rolled on it felt like perhaps he was sent to keep an eye on us! At any rate, as we passed people on the road they would try to sneak a peek inside our bus while waving and smiling, undoubtedly wondering who was on the bus.  It was quite an interesting experience.

The roads are not good here.  Our ship is docked about a 1-1/2 hour drive from the town so for every excursion we take we have to allow at least 3 extra hours for the rides back and forth to the ship!!  As we ride we are constantly being swayed and, in some cases, jolted out of our seats as the bus hits potholes and uneven pavement.  Good news is that some of the roads are paved.  Bad news is that they are still in TERRIBLE condition!  So, we just held on to the seat in front of us while we were moving and everyone was fine.

Now, on to the sites we have seen in Burma.  There are pagodas, temples and monks everywhere!!!  The first evening we visited the 2,500 year old Shwedagon Pagoda which dominates the city from its location on the hillside.  This pagoda welcomes tens of thousands of pilgrims and tourists each year.  This amazing site exudes a unique atmosphere, both serene and exciting, enhanced by the beautiful nighttime illumination.  Rising 300 feet to its blazing crest, this spiritual center is covered with 60 tons of gold leaf, gold, silvers, bells, rubies, sapphires, and topaz.  The site is meticulously maintained and Buddhists from far and wide come here to worship and pay respects to the "eight sacred hairs of Buddha" that are kept here.  I was very happy to be visiting the pagoda at night since in Myanmar we must remove our shoes AND socks before we enter any temple.  Some passengers came on a daytime tour of this magnificent pagoda and the tiles were so hot that a couple of people burned the bottom of their feet!  When we visited in the evening, about 6:30pm. the colored tiles were still warm - amazing.  It had been 104 degrees during the day so I can only imagine how hot the folks on the day tour must have been :(

After our visit and tour of the famous pagoda we reboarded our coach and drove to the Orient Express Governor's Residence, which is billed as Myanmar's finest boutique hotel.  The hotel was originally built in 1929 and was formerly a state guest house.  The stunning property has teak floors and furnishing, a tropical garden shaded by beautiful mature trees, a lotus pond, and a fan-shaped swimming pool.  In honor of our visit tables were set up on the grass in the middle of this beautiful setting where we had a lovely dinner.  To enhance the char and romantic ambiance of the evening there was traditional music and exquisitely graceful dancing by gorgeous young Burmese women.

Just before dinner was served we received instructions on how to wear the longyi, a brightly colored cloth that is fashioned into traditional skirt for both men and women.  After the demonstration each of us received our own longyi as a gift that we could wear during dinner if we chose.  The evening passed quickly and soon we were on our way back to the ship to get some rest before our early morning wake up call at 5:45a.m. for our nine-hour adventure tomorrow.

Early the next morning we boarded our coach to explore the major sites of this secretive city.  Once again we stopped at the Shwedagon Temple where Bob was able to take some additional photos.  The temple has a completely different feel during the day and it's not nearly as crowded as it was during the evening.  Visitors probably prefer to visit in the cooler night temperatures when the tiles are more comfortable on bare feet!

Our next stop was to see the Chaukhtat Gyi Pagoda, which is a huge reclining Buddha sculpture housed under a sheet metal roof.  The head of the Buddha reaches a height of about 2-1/2 stories.  Once again, this is a working shrine filled with people who stop by to pray as part of their daily routine.

After our two temple visits we went to the Strand Yangon Hotel for a delicious lunch.  We were served a traditional Myanmar cuisine with lots of spicy salads and vegetables served with curried chicken and fish.  This magnificent hotel was built in 1898 by the Sarkies brothers who also built the famous Raffles Hotel in Singapore (home to the original Singapore Sling).  During the time of British rule this hotel became a popular outpost for the British upper class in Burma.  After WWII the hotel was closed but was reopened in the 1990's after an extensive renovation project restored the grand dame to her original splendor and spirit.

After lunch we toured the Myanmar National Museum.  The pride of the museum is the 24 foot tall gilded lion throne from the royal palace at Mandalay.  There is also a collection of statues, carvings, Buddha carvings and statues, paintings, costumes and crafts.  Although there were some interesting exhibits in the four story building our visit was somewhat hampered by the hot temperatures inside the building.  I must admit that we breezed by some of the lesser interesting exhibits so we could return to the comfort of our air-conditioned coach.

We drove to the Bogyoke Market, often called by its British name Scott Market.  This 70 year old market has a huge selection of Burmese handicrafts under one roof.  Although Burma is known for its gemstones we were warned to be careful of fakes, along with the authentic fake Rolex watches and other knock offs.  Once again we found ourselves walking through narrow crowded aisles filled with thousands of souvenirs, clothing and jewelry however it was so hot inside the market that Bob and I scooted through it quickly without marking any purchases.

Our final stop of the day was to take photos at the beautiful National Park where there is a concrete reproduction of a royal barge setting at the edge of the lake.  It was a beautiful and peaceful setting and we were treated to refreshing cold drinks which tasted great in this 100-plus degree weather.

Finally, we began our long drive back to the ship for the night.  It was an exhausting but exhilarating day of sightseeing.  Today we focused on sites in or near the city of Yangon.  Tomorrow our focus will be to explore the moral rural countryside.  However, I am definitely ready for a good night's sleep.  On our return to the ship our wonderful and attentive butler had prepared a beautiful candlelight bubble bath for me.  Such a lovely way to end a full day in this fascinating country.

Once again I was up at 5:45a.m. to get an early start to our busy day of sightseeing.  Our first stop was to visit a morning market in the country town of Thanlyin.  The outdoor market was one of the largest we have seen and carried a huge variety of clothing, shoes, jewelry, fabric, genuine fake watches, and souvenirs  It also had a fresh food section with a wide variety of fruits and vegetables.  The description in the guidebook said we would experience the aromas of fresh fruit and flowers as we walked through the lovely market.  We certainly experience smells, but they were more like odors!  Fresh poultry and fish were displayed in the sun with no ice or covers to protect them and did not small good.  Also, the ever present smell of drains used as sewers were quite unpleasant in the hot weather.  Since Burma is primarily an agricultural society everyone has fresh food to sell.  Some of the vegetables were in stacks setting on the ground where everyone is walking.  There was also a variety of poultry, dried fish and fresh fish.  The issue was the FLIES everywhere on the food.  On one chicken there were so many flies I could barely see the chicken!  They didn't even try to keep them off the meats or freshly cut fruit.  I'm afraid it didn't look very appetizing.

After our tour of the market we hopped on a horse-drawn cart for a tour through the residential section of the village.  Once again I found myself hoisting myself up onto this rickety old cart that I was sure couldn't hold both Bob and I but somehow we managed to get in and hold on for dear life as we went bumping along the really poor country lanes.  As I looked at the countryside, the homes and the streets it seemed like there was a lot of depression, both psychologically and financially.  There is litter everywhere, people spitting on the streets, and just a general lack of pride in their neighborhoods.  In some of the countries we have visited people who exist on very sparse income yet it seems they have a sense of pride in their homes and communities.  Even if their floors are dirt I have seen them sweeping out the trash.  In this rural area it does not appear that people have the same sense of pride in their environment.  I sensed a lot of depression and a lack of hope  It was quite a sad feeling.

Our next activity was to take a quick boat ride to view the Kyaikhmaw Wun Island Pagoda.  This shrine is perched on a tiny island in the middle of the river.  It was erected in the third century B.C.  There were many local people and their families on the island, relaxing, praying, and feeding the many fish who looked like they were being fed 24/7 by visitors.  After spending some time on the island we hopped back on the boat (actually, stepped very carefully with lots of assistance) to return to our wonderful air-conditioned coach to continue our tour.

Our final stop of the day was to wander through a very quiet village that was tucked away in the countryside.  Unfortunately, it was now the middle of the afternoon and the sun was blazing down on us with very little cover.  We weren't prepared for the long walk through the dusty village trails.  However, it seemed important to our guide to show us how most of the people in the country live. As we walked we passed a covered clay pot on a stand with a cup on top.  He said the owner of the house fills the pot every day with water from the stream so people can stop and get a drink as they walk down the dusty path.  It's such a beautiful gesture.  I just wish the people had clean drinking water.  I find myself feeling quite sad at how many people in the world are drinking water that is brown from dirt and grime and infested with all sorts of disease causing bacteria.  Our guide told us this village is fortunate because they have electricity.  Many of the villages do not have power of any kind so they have no relief from the extreme heat.  The restrooms in this village remain the old fashioned outhouses which are situated sometimes very close to their water source so it further contaminates their drinking water.  By now we were all wilted so we returned to the coach for our return ride to the ship.

In the evening our ship had a huge barbecue buffet, followed by a local show onboard which consisted of a traditional Burmese band and dancers.  I am convinced that the Burmese people are the most graceful and beautiful dancers in the entire world.  We were told that the girls start dancing at age two years.  I was absolutely mesmerized by the performances of all the dancers we saw while visiting this fascinating country.  I have never witnessed such elegant grace and beauty.

Finally, it was time to retire to our cabin for the night.  It has been an extremely busy and exhausting three days in Burma but a time I will never forget.  The beautiful and hospitable Burmese people are an absolute delight. The children are precious and always eager to take photos with us or have us take photos of them.  They smile and break out into big giggles as they are being photographed.  Sometimes parents ask us if they can take a photo with us and their young children.  We get the feeling that they have little to no exposure to people outside their own country.  Some of the young people are hopeful that their circumstances will change in the future, especially with a hope of new leadership next year.  As we leave the port this morning I will continue to pray for the Burmese people.  Now, once again, thankfully we have a couple of sea days before we arrive in Sri Lanka.  Time to rest and recuperate from all the walking, stair climbing and HEAT!!!!