OK
– I know that it is still early in the trip to call a favorite country… but I
am doing it anyway… Myanmar is my
favorite. And it’s on my list of top 3
South East Asian countries…up there with India (who owns my heart) and Nepal.
It’s really that great. The biggest question is how will the new influx of
tourists that are expected in the next year (now that the UN travel sanctions
have been lifted) change this spectacularly untouched and magical country. It is currently a real WOW!!!! I’ll try and
upload my blog for this leg over the next day or so. We are heading now to Sri Lanka (another
internet wasteland) so not sure how easy
it is going to be to get my blog out.. but I will try.
We
started off Day 1 - of our 4 Days in Burma / Myanmar – in Yangon (or
Rangoon). Our hotel was AMAZING.. one of those
take-your-breathe-away places. All I
wanted to do was sink into the beautiful pool and nap under the umbrellas ..
but no.. there were scavenges to do and points to get… so off we went. We ended
up spending less than 2 hours of awake-time at this oasis – very sad!!
Yangon
is a big, bustling city but with more character than most and some great
Pagodas. We spent most of the first
afternoon going to a market to buy soccer balls and school supplies and taking
them to a Boy’s School (euphemism for orphanage of abandoned children). We played with the kids (Angel organized a
complete soccer game with teams and rules and everything) and then handed out
the school supplies - one by one - to a group of the 5 and 6 year olds. The
look on the kids’ faces, as we gave them a lined notepad and single pen, was
like we handed them a bag of candy. The administrator of the home told us that their allocated budget is 12 cents each
day for each kid… TWELVE CENTS..!!!!... It breaks your heart.
My
favorite part of Yangon? It’s where "The Lady" lives. We – of course - had to go and take a picture
in front of her house. I’m totally impressed with Aung San Suu Kyi and really
wanted to jump the fence and just shake her hand. Everywhere we went in Myanmar, there were pictures
of her and kids wearing T-shirts with her face.
She is clearly beloved by the Burmese people.
Here’s
the biggest problem with Myanmar. The
country is dirt poor and they are apparently determined to make everyone who
visits fully experience that condition. How do they accomplish this? They make
it impossible to spend money. First, there are no ATMs. Second, there are no credit card facilities.
Third, the little bit of cash that you have scrounged together before you enter
Myanmar is consistently rejected because you have committed the cardinal sin of
“breaking the face” by folding the bill in half. Lest you laugh, let me assure me that I am
deadly serious. Every US bill (whether
$1 or $100) is carefully inspected to make sure that there is no crease, mark,
writing, tear or – worse of all – a fold down the center of the face of the
person on the bill. Any “broken face bill” is summarily rejected. And rejected.
And rejected. So you enter Myanmar with
what you believe is enough cash for your time there. Then 2/3rds of your money
is rejected. And suddenly… you are
ordering street food and seriously considering whether you can actually afford
that bottle of water that could save you from complete dehydration.
2 comments:
...You got to the Lake!!! DId you put some of the "cooling makeup" on your face? It's WONDERFUL! Oh Zo! I KNEW you'd like it! You make me SO happy to just read along with you.
When I was there my guide could only whisper "the lady" in the quietest terms when we were talking about her. Her street was barricaded off and closed to all traffic. Things are changing and for the better!
YEA! (Hugs to the Booths!)
I hope you get a charger because I sure enjoy seeing the world through your eyes...
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