Note: This was written around Feb. 22.
As I write this, I am sitting in Hotel No. 2 in Pyin U Lwin, formerly called Maymyo. There is no internet here, not even a business center, although the hotel is brand new and quite modern, so I will not be able to post until some future point, if ever here in Myanmar.
Yesterday morning we took off quite early from Yangon and flew to Mandalay International Airport. The gentleman who greeted us, and Nu Nu, joked that yes this really was an international airport even though our flight was the only flight at the moment and since the plane was more of a puddle jumper with stops in several cities, only about 30 people got off in Mandalay. It is new and modern, but we were the only people there. When was the last time you were in an airport with only 30 people?
We didn’t stay in Mandalay, but rather drove about 2 ½ hours to our next stop, Pyin U Lwin, a small but bustling town up in the mountains. Along the way we saw water buffalo working in the fields, village after village of bamboo houses, a herd of goats right on the road, and most surprising, poinsettias growing wild. I’ve only ever seen them in pots at Christmas time! About mid-way we stopped, not just for a potty stop, but so that the engine of the bus could be cooled. Although it wasn’t hot, the engine was taxed to its limit by the climb into the mountains and therefore had to be cooled off. To cool off the engine, they raise the hood and put a hose into the engine for ten minutes or so and that does it.
Not to get too graphic, the potty at the rest stop was, uh, rather primitive. Although I have seen worse in my travels, Nu Nu was very worried about whether we ladies could handle it and quite relieved when we all managed without fainting. I’m sure not all of her parties are as worldly as we.
Finally, we arrived in Pyin U Lwin, and much to everyone’s surprise, even Nu Nu’s, it was cold! We were all freezing in our lightweight wear, though I had worn a jacket and socks in anticipation of a freezing airplane, so I was probably best off. Poor Bob had dug a scarf, gloves and earmuffs out of his bag and was wearing all three along with both of his hats: a ball cap and a safari hat. We will from now on call him Monsieur Deux Chapeaux. The hotel is brand new, but the rooms are neither heated nor air conditioned, although there is a small space heater which was not adequate for yesterday’s cold spell. We dropped our things and then took off for a visit to a beautiful garden where we were driven around in a tram with stops at a separate orchid garden and the takin preserve. Last year in Bhutan we saw some takins, the odd looking animal that is kind of a cross between a moose and a cow with two-toed hooves and plaintiff eyes. So now we know they have them in Myanmar as well. In Bhutan, I believe, they are considered sacred, but not here. We fed leaves to one of the takins through the chain link fence and he rubbed his horns against the fence in appreciation.
Further on in the park there was an elephant chained to a tree. I wanted to get a closer look so the tram drove us up to him and we took pictures. There were about seven or eight young men around the elephant, the keepers I assumed, so I proceeded to chat them up and take pictures of each of them individually with the elephant. It turned out they were just guests in the garden like us, not mahouts, and they were in fact Nepali Gurkhas who live in the area. They spoke a little English, not much, but seemed delighted by the attention and loved seeing their pictures on the camera screen. Much smiling and waving when we drove away. The Gurkhas are famous for their fierce defense of the British Raj when the Brits occupied Burma. They all had red or black teeth from their betel nut habit, which is a shame because otherwise they were kind of cute. By then it had warmed up and the weather was beautiful.
Today we took a three hour train ride through the mountains along with hundreds of locals either going to work or to visit relatives or on some other mission. Although we were in the “first class” car, the train was pretty primitive, but it was truly a cultural experience and the most enjoyable so far in terms of getting to know the people. Everyone in our car, the other “high class peoples,“ smiled and bowed to us and offered us food and let us lean over them to take pictures if the view out their window was better. The train would stop every few miles to let someone on or off, no need to wait for a station, and we would lean out the window and take pictures and wave and smile at the folks. When we first boarded the train at Pyin U Lwin, there was about a fifteen minute delay while others got on or off and there was a young girl of about six with her baby brother in a sling over her back outside my window. I caught her eye and she smiled so sweetly, so I gestured is it okay and took her picture. For the next ten minutes I must have taken twenty picture of the two of them. She could make that baby smile just by tweaking his cheek, which she would do over and over and then they would both pose for the camera. Quite the little hams they were! They were so adorable, but I never did see the mother if there was one. I found out later she probably worked at the station and the kids just stand there and wait all day for her to be finished. Each time I took their picture, I would show it to them but they didn’t come too close to the train, just looked and smiled from about eight feet away. As we pulled out they both waved and waved.
By the end of the train ride I think I had finally figured out Myanmar. The folks at ATJ said it was their favorite country, which is what convinced us to come, but so far Tom and I had been scratching our heads and saying what is it that they like so much. Vietnam and China are much more beautiful as far as scenery goes, at least from what we’ve seen so far. Every other city we’ve been to has it all over Yangon which is dirty and dilapidated. The holy sites here are interesting but nothing to compare to Cambodia’s Angkor Wat or the Grand Palace in Bangkok. But now, after today’s train ride, I’ve got it figured out. Here, it is all about the people.
Maybe because they are relatively untouched by tourism, it is more like the Asia of many years ago and thus provides for us Westerners a glimpse into the past. Maybe it is the warm and welcoming attitude and the smiling faces that greet us everywhere we go. Some of it is just the fascination of watching the women carry huge loads of food or water balanced on their heads or twenty men crowded impossibly into small trucks like the old clowns in the phone booth routine.
In any case, the people are definitely different here. We have found the people friendly in every Asian country we’ve been to, but here they take friendliness to a new level. They seem so genuinely happy to see you and even the merchants, though persistent, never cop an attitude if you don’t buy anything.
That night we took a horse drawn carriage for a ride around the small town of Pyin U Lwin, stopping at Candacraig which is an old governor’s house from British days, now a government owned hotel. We were served tea there but there were no discernible guests and once again the beautiful old building is in a state of disrepair. I got some close-ups of the poinsettias though.
The horse drawn carriage was fun. Each holds two people and again we found ourselves fortunate to be on the short side in stature. The “carriage,” a bit like a Cinderella style carriage but rather less pretentious, is miniature to the point where I think larger people would be most uncomfortable. Still, it was a taste of local color and we enjoyed being squired about from the hotel to Candacraig to our restaurant for dinner before going back to the hotel and so to sleep.
As I write this, I am sitting in Hotel No. 2 in Pyin U Lwin, formerly called Maymyo. There is no internet here, not even a business center, although the hotel is brand new and quite modern, so I will not be able to post until some future point, if ever here in Myanmar.
Yesterday morning we took off quite early from Yangon and flew to Mandalay International Airport. The gentleman who greeted us, and Nu Nu, joked that yes this really was an international airport even though our flight was the only flight at the moment and since the plane was more of a puddle jumper with stops in several cities, only about 30 people got off in Mandalay. It is new and modern, but we were the only people there. When was the last time you were in an airport with only 30 people?
We didn’t stay in Mandalay, but rather drove about 2 ½ hours to our next stop, Pyin U Lwin, a small but bustling town up in the mountains. Along the way we saw water buffalo working in the fields, village after village of bamboo houses, a herd of goats right on the road, and most surprising, poinsettias growing wild. I’ve only ever seen them in pots at Christmas time! About mid-way we stopped, not just for a potty stop, but so that the engine of the bus could be cooled. Although it wasn’t hot, the engine was taxed to its limit by the climb into the mountains and therefore had to be cooled off. To cool off the engine, they raise the hood and put a hose into the engine for ten minutes or so and that does it.
Not to get too graphic, the potty at the rest stop was, uh, rather primitive. Although I have seen worse in my travels, Nu Nu was very worried about whether we ladies could handle it and quite relieved when we all managed without fainting. I’m sure not all of her parties are as worldly as we.
Finally, we arrived in Pyin U Lwin, and much to everyone’s surprise, even Nu Nu’s, it was cold! We were all freezing in our lightweight wear, though I had worn a jacket and socks in anticipation of a freezing airplane, so I was probably best off. Poor Bob had dug a scarf, gloves and earmuffs out of his bag and was wearing all three along with both of his hats: a ball cap and a safari hat. We will from now on call him Monsieur Deux Chapeaux. The hotel is brand new, but the rooms are neither heated nor air conditioned, although there is a small space heater which was not adequate for yesterday’s cold spell. We dropped our things and then took off for a visit to a beautiful garden where we were driven around in a tram with stops at a separate orchid garden and the takin preserve. Last year in Bhutan we saw some takins, the odd looking animal that is kind of a cross between a moose and a cow with two-toed hooves and plaintiff eyes. So now we know they have them in Myanmar as well. In Bhutan, I believe, they are considered sacred, but not here. We fed leaves to one of the takins through the chain link fence and he rubbed his horns against the fence in appreciation.
Further on in the park there was an elephant chained to a tree. I wanted to get a closer look so the tram drove us up to him and we took pictures. There were about seven or eight young men around the elephant, the keepers I assumed, so I proceeded to chat them up and take pictures of each of them individually with the elephant. It turned out they were just guests in the garden like us, not mahouts, and they were in fact Nepali Gurkhas who live in the area. They spoke a little English, not much, but seemed delighted by the attention and loved seeing their pictures on the camera screen. Much smiling and waving when we drove away. The Gurkhas are famous for their fierce defense of the British Raj when the Brits occupied Burma. They all had red or black teeth from their betel nut habit, which is a shame because otherwise they were kind of cute. By then it had warmed up and the weather was beautiful.
Today we took a three hour train ride through the mountains along with hundreds of locals either going to work or to visit relatives or on some other mission. Although we were in the “first class” car, the train was pretty primitive, but it was truly a cultural experience and the most enjoyable so far in terms of getting to know the people. Everyone in our car, the other “high class peoples,“ smiled and bowed to us and offered us food and let us lean over them to take pictures if the view out their window was better. The train would stop every few miles to let someone on or off, no need to wait for a station, and we would lean out the window and take pictures and wave and smile at the folks. When we first boarded the train at Pyin U Lwin, there was about a fifteen minute delay while others got on or off and there was a young girl of about six with her baby brother in a sling over her back outside my window. I caught her eye and she smiled so sweetly, so I gestured is it okay and took her picture. For the next ten minutes I must have taken twenty picture of the two of them. She could make that baby smile just by tweaking his cheek, which she would do over and over and then they would both pose for the camera. Quite the little hams they were! They were so adorable, but I never did see the mother if there was one. I found out later she probably worked at the station and the kids just stand there and wait all day for her to be finished. Each time I took their picture, I would show it to them but they didn’t come too close to the train, just looked and smiled from about eight feet away. As we pulled out they both waved and waved.
By the end of the train ride I think I had finally figured out Myanmar. The folks at ATJ said it was their favorite country, which is what convinced us to come, but so far Tom and I had been scratching our heads and saying what is it that they like so much. Vietnam and China are much more beautiful as far as scenery goes, at least from what we’ve seen so far. Every other city we’ve been to has it all over Yangon which is dirty and dilapidated. The holy sites here are interesting but nothing to compare to Cambodia’s Angkor Wat or the Grand Palace in Bangkok. But now, after today’s train ride, I’ve got it figured out. Here, it is all about the people.
Maybe because they are relatively untouched by tourism, it is more like the Asia of many years ago and thus provides for us Westerners a glimpse into the past. Maybe it is the warm and welcoming attitude and the smiling faces that greet us everywhere we go. Some of it is just the fascination of watching the women carry huge loads of food or water balanced on their heads or twenty men crowded impossibly into small trucks like the old clowns in the phone booth routine.
In any case, the people are definitely different here. We have found the people friendly in every Asian country we’ve been to, but here they take friendliness to a new level. They seem so genuinely happy to see you and even the merchants, though persistent, never cop an attitude if you don’t buy anything.
That night we took a horse drawn carriage for a ride around the small town of Pyin U Lwin, stopping at Candacraig which is an old governor’s house from British days, now a government owned hotel. We were served tea there but there were no discernible guests and once again the beautiful old building is in a state of disrepair. I got some close-ups of the poinsettias though.
The horse drawn carriage was fun. Each holds two people and again we found ourselves fortunate to be on the short side in stature. The “carriage,” a bit like a Cinderella style carriage but rather less pretentious, is miniature to the point where I think larger people would be most uncomfortable. Still, it was a taste of local color and we enjoyed being squired about from the hotel to Candacraig to our restaurant for dinner before going back to the hotel and so to sleep.
Let’s start a new entry.
1 comment:
WOW! Truly amazing! I know a couple of teenagers that could benefit greatly from the selfless attitudes like those of the three americans you met in Myanmar! :-) How inspiring are they! Glad you're back on-line! We were starting to get worried and we missed reading all of your newest adventures! Love to both you and Tom! -Kelly xo
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