Myanmar (Burma)

Hello my lovelies! I know I am way behind on the blogfront, but most of my memory cards have gotten infected by viruses, so I've had a lot of picture stress lately. Anyway, I have pics from the end of my Myanmar trip still, so scroll down! 

The land of a thousand smiles! Never ever have a met a more genuinely nice people! This is where Buddhism is found in its purest form, and also the country where you find the highest MSG food contents in the world. But apart from the unimpressive cuisine, Myanmar had so much to offer and (for now) it still remains fairly untouched.

My journey in Myanmar (former Burma) started out in the most modern city, Yangon. Quickly you could pick up the characteristics of the Burmese: men in their skirts (longis), with deep red teeth from chewing Beetle Juice tobacco, and the women beautifully decorated in clay from the Tanaka tree for sun protection. And they all smile at you. All the time, every day. Just look at these lovely ladies:

Since there still is political turmoil in this country, I decided to join in on a group tour. The first leg of our journey took us through Bago to Kyaikto where the Golden Rock is. The Golden Rock is a spiritual rock covered in thick layers of gold leaves, that is said to be a petrified boat that once carried a piece of Buddha’s hair. Monks, pilgrims and Burmese travel from afar to see it. That day I had my picture taken with 60-70 different people on top of the mountain. It was a first for many of them to see a white, blonde girl. They are all so sweet and smiley, and let me take pictures of them as well, so I have enjoyed my two weeks of pretending to be a rockstar. 

Next up was the city Mandalay, where we visited oh so many pagodas (temples). We also came across an initiation ceremony for monks, where the prospective monks get dressed up and worshipped as ascending princes. Some will stay a monk for a week, some for a year and some for life. But every guy has to be a monk at least once in his life, as it gains merit for himself and his family. Monks fascinate me so much, I have loads of photos, but they are of course corrupted by silly viruses. I stared like an idiot every time I spotted a monk on the street (which was every other minute for two weeks).
 
The beautiful and sizzling hot city, Bagan, was next on our agenda. A city with over 4000 pagodas. Even thought you can get slightly pagoda sick, it can be quite nice to sit down by a pillar in a pagoda and have a few kids flock around you while a mother or a pruny granny come and hold your arm and sit together with you in peace and quiet. Get what I mean with them being nice and loving? Hardcore Buddhism at its best.

Kalaw was the next destination, a city up in the mountains, and a great place to trek. We made our way up a mountain to a village where they make tea, had a little fresh brew. Not too shabby. I was dehydrated, sleep deprived and struggling with my back, so Mellie was a slightly grumpy and antisocial bunny, but thinking back, Kalaw was truly beautiful.

A few days later we headed towards Nyaung Shwe, by Inle Lake, where we saw the unique floating villages and floating gardens during the day and experienced the phenomenal thunderstorms while drinking gin at night. After going to the local markets around the lake, I realize that I've only bought odd things here. I am now the proud owner of an ancient traditional opium pipe, a traditional tattoo needle, as well as an old Lara Croft'y knife. The latter purchase still confuses me.

There is so much more that happened in Myanmar, but there’s just too much to write down. It was all very cultural and spiritual. A fantastic experience ended where it began, in Yangon. 

Lots of love from the traveling road,

Merete // Mellie