Myanmar/Burma March 2009

If you click on a photo it should enlarge.


This, for whatever reason, has decided to be at the beginning though it was part of the selection from the Yangon markets. Yes, this is how they sell rubber bands!!! Bloody big bags of them.

















And now hopefully back to how it should be.







Well, here we are back in beautiful Bagan in Central Myanmar/Burma, the topography of which is rather similar to Gemfields! That's if you don't notice the temples and pagoda etc!! This first is a view from our "sunset" pagoda Law-ka-ou-shaung. Just to set the scene. We feel very much at home here and roam the streets chatting to the everyone just like a local.


























And in another direction with That-byin-nyu in the distance, the tallest of all Bagan temples.

Yet another direction

and the final compass point. As you see there are temples, pagodas and stupas everywhere.

This Buddha is unusual as it has another Buddha image inside the other. Note the offering from a local worshipper.

Here we have the home of the family who make toddy from the palms, which we were forced to try - again and again and again! A typical but somewhat upmarket dwelling.

This guy chased us all the way from Dhamma-yan-gyi Pahto which you can see in the background, determined that we were desperate to buy his souvenirs. We weren't - and didn't!

Sunset from Law-ka-ou-shaung looking across to the Ayerawaddy with the temple on the other side which we visited last trip, in the haze. We didn't get a name for the pagoda you see on the left. Very slack I know.

As they say "and as the sun sinks slowly in the west", a frozen margharita would have been nice, but completely inappropriate while on a temple, so a wad of betel nut will suffice.

And finally disappears, outlining the distant temple briefly. We were the only people up on this temple, Law-ka-ou-shaung, apart from a seller of paintings (we bought a few) and a family who lived beside the compound and were keepers of the keys to the building. Yes, they do have keys to these shrines. We had to climb up narrow passages in the walls and, coming down after sunset, the very young kids had lit candles on the steps to show the way for us. AND of course the outstretched palms were NOT to make sure we got down safely!! Economic 'blackmail' starts early here. There we were all alone on this ancient building with the specracular sunset while behind us, about a quarter of a km away at the most popular 'sunset' pagaoda Shwe-san-daw. there were tourist coaches and hundreds of people all OOHing and AAHing with flashing cameras. TG we were looking away from them. Mass tourism at its ugliest!

That-byin-nyu is the tallest of all the Bagan temples, like so many, well restored after the earthquake in the 1990s.

The local soccer pitch at New Bagan. In 1990, New Bagan didn't exist. It was a dry waterless treeless spot. The Government in one of their more obscure moments decided to give all the residents of Old Bagan 1 week, yes 1 week to move everything to where New Bagan is approx 10km away. They got compensation (minimal) for their land but nothing for their dwellings etc, and no excuses were accepted. The residents have done a fantastic job planting trees etc and New Bagan is now a shady little town, but the people still resent their forced relocation. We still don't know why, and I they don't know either. Government resentment is very high - still.

Papier mache figure of nat U Min Kyaw which is used in festivals to celebrate the Nats or spirits who protect everything and must be kept happy. U Min Kyaw likes to have fun, drink lots, swear and do all the things that don't normally happen in 'respectable' society, and the people love him. This figure is kept undercover and brought out anually and redecorated for the occasion.

Inside the Ananda Wat, monks are leaving after devotions. Decided to take a photo of the light coming through the windows, just as 4 monks passed through the huge doors right on cue. fantastic.

The daily food market in New Bagan. No tourists and even less English language, so it was fun communicating.

Main Street, New Bagan. A family heads home from market, The kids get the seats on the bike. You don't see strollers here. This was about midday, the busy time. Main street is the only bitumen street in town.

This guy was walking home after collecting his water supply from the well.

And this lady was more upmarket. She has the local version of a wheelbarrow to move her water around.

And this is where it all comes from. The village well.

The whole family gets aboard for a trip. This lot must be quite affluent as the usual form of transport is the horsecart.

The Buddha image inside Law-ka-ou-shaung. The sheer size made for difficult photography. He has the most wonderfully serene look. As in almost all the temples and pagodas, there are flowers and other offerings from the locals.

Here's Brenton with the painter at Law-ka-ou-shaung. We had bought some earlier in the day but some of this chap's were a bit different so they followed us home too! We'll need extra walls in Rubyvale on our return :-) For centuries people at Bagan have specialised as painters and lacquerware makers for the Royal court and have maintained the traditions. When Bagan became a major tourist spot and there were lots of tourists, it was OK but at present with no tourists hardly, and no other source of income, things are tough. very tough.

Here we have the gate of the local constabulary spot. They had a group of young people marching and parading with wooden rifles when we passed by, so we were careful with taking the pic. . Didn't look good for the happiness of the general population in our eyes. Locals regard the police as bully-boys. Their words not ours, but we always found them friendly but obviously curious.

AND...Don't say the Burmese have no sense of humour!!! - or perhaps the Ironic. They all chuckled dryly when we mentioned that we thought it was perhaps just a little inappropriate!

This a memorial to someone or other. Can't recall whom, and we couldn't read Burmese. It's outside a very old temple complex near the river. Once again we had to seek out the keykeeper to get inside.

Heading into That-byin-nyu temple. The old gateway just takes the horsecart. You can see the horse's ears to prove we are really tripping around by 1 horsepower.

Here I am inside Sein-nyet-ama temple. The name means something to do with diamonds. Sein means diamond. The Buddha's hand position indicated giving blessings to the ground - well, it's one interpretation - and I hope some of them are pouring down on me.

This is our trusty horsecart driver and his family. They had invited us to dine with them on our last day. Well, we ate, along with Go Soe our horsecart driver whilst his parents served the food and sat away from the guests table. That's the Burmese way. The food was delicious. Beef, goat, chicken and fish curries and various vegetables and greens. I feel sure they went to lots and lots of trouble ( and expense) but it was delicious. Both sons had good commands of English, the parents didn't, so communication was interesting and we learnt some new words . Go Soe's father used to be a very good kick boxer in his younger days and is still a very fit man at the age of 64. I think Go Soe was a lucky driver as he had 3 full days of driving us around. We also enjoyed each others company which helped. Go Soe is in the red and his younger brother Go Kam in the green. No he doesn't have mumps, he's just contentedly chewing on a wad of betelnut - as so many do. That's the cart in the background and I'm wearing my shirt from traditionally woven Isaan (North-eastern Thailand) designed cotton.

and then it was on to Kyaitkityo (Chaik-it-yo). Also called Golden Rock about 4 hours bus from Rangoon. Then you get to the village at the foot of the mountains and it's a 45 minute drive at 70 degrees angle with multiple hairpin bends, up the mountain on the back of a truck with 50 other people. Vehicles are prohibited past that point so you must them either walk or get carried in a sedan chair for another 45 minutes up the mountain to the pagoda......we walked. Hard work, very hard, in fact I was well and truly stuffed, but well worth the effort. And what an experience at the end.

And here it is in all its glory, at night. Photos do not do it justice at all. The second holiest place in Buddhist Myanmar. It has the most amazing atmosphere, quite unlike the Schwedagon in Yangon( which also has an atmosphere indescribably wonderful - but different from here). Perhaps the pilgrims look like pilgrims here, whatever that may mean, as so many at the Schwedagon look like everyday Burmese!!

And YES, it's ALL gold - gold leaf that is.

Here is the Rock seen through the handle of one of the bells, which I find irresistable and HAVE to ring.

As mentioned, people can pay to be carried up in sedan chairs, but most only take that option if they physically can't do the climb or are too old. Some we saw were certainly not in a physical condition to walk up, but that appeared to be from living too well. We often saw elderly people being carried with their grandchildren(?) perched alongside them. Here the bearers, they're the guys in the blue shirts, are waiting for customers to carry back down. It takes 4 of these fellas to carry someone and the cost is approx $8 USD for a one way trip, so they get $2 USD each. It's also an unwritten agreement that they also are bought a cold drink at the end of the journey. I would hope so !!

This lady has been to the well and is carrying her biscuit tins of water down the mountainside to her home. I tried to get the impression of how steep it is. The buildings are all homes and shops some with corrugated iron rooves, some with canvas. Can't imagine what it's like in the monsoon!

The view across to the other side of the valley from Kyaiktiyo. It really is straight up and down. Nearly all the peaks have little villages and pagodas or stupa on them and there are walking trails everywhere. PERHAPS, if we go again, we could do some of them.

This is 'MY" Buddha. Each day of the week is a different one. Burmese have 8 days in the week with different animals ascribed to each. Why 8? Well, there's one for Wednesday morning (Elephant with tusks) and one for Wednesday afternoon (Elephant without tusks) and don't ask why because we don't know - yet! We did ask but no one could explain. There's also a day represented by a guinea pig!!! Back to my Buddha. You work on what day you were born. I was on a Saturday and that day is represented by a naga or a dragon or a cobra, all serpentish.

The legend has it that Buddha was meditating and a flood happened and he was unaware that he was to be washed away when a naga came along and wrapped his(?) body around where the Buddha was sitting and then spread his hood over him to protect him. Lovely story?? In Myanmar the cobra/naga is always a single headed one, but in Thailand it is usually seven headed. Here endeth the lesson!! B was born on a tuesday so his is a Chinte/Lion.

Legend also has it that Golden Rock was raised, magically of course, from the seabed and that it came up here on a boat. Plenty of mushrooms and green vegetable material around in these jungles I suspect. Anyhow, when the rock was put in place, the boat was put to the side and immediately, again magically, turned to stone. Here it is - mind you it's MUCH MUCH smaller than the Rock so how the raising happened is yet another miracle - and it is also covered in gold leaf. There is a stupa on it but it was being cleaned and regilded so was under cover and we couldn't see it. Shame eh! Still, I feel it places more emphasis on the 'boat',

One of those nats ( spirits ), which you have to keep happy or they'll be mischievious. They get as much attention as the Buddhas I think, and people certainly take them seriously. Even us!!!

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As the sun sets and darkens comes in, the rock changes colours and glows wonderfully. There are pilgrims there 24 hours a day. Many come and camp out on the platform around the roack and there's chanting and prayes and sermons all the time. Maybe it's sexist!! but only males can actually go on the rock and touch it. Females can worship from outside the railings.

This column is right in the middle of the platform and has a holy bird on the top. Not quite sure what the significance is. Must do some Buddhism research. The marble is always, even at midday, cool and feels great. Of course footwear of any kind is prohibited.

When you buy gold leaf to stick on the rock, or anywhere you chose, they give you little lapel badges with pics of The Buddha or the Rock on it. People 'donate' them to their favourite Buddha or Nat and you see images covered in the things. Here someone has left a rosary on a Buddha as well, usually made of sandalwood.

All around there are incence burners and in this one, someone, not us!, had obviously forgotten to blowout the flame after lighting their jossstick and the whole lot went up. Everyone just stood around and watched. Great fun!! No one made any effort to put it out. Things happen as they happen. Those aren't people in the background, they're offerings of flowers and bells etc for the temple. Shame about the rubbish bin in the photo.

Here's B doing his bit, sticking the gold leaf on the Rock. You should feel the surface. All smooth and almost oily and sometimes goldleaf comes off on your fingers and you look around for Shirley Bassey to burst into GoldFinger!! Seriously though, it is a marvellous place. Again, how can places crowded with thousands of people all making noise be so serene and peaceful? I was too busy taking photos. Perhaps I should have had one of me there too, for posterity. You can actually look under the Rock and see the daylight showing how balanced it is. We are told that it can be rocked, no pun intended, and that a thread can actually be pulled underneath it. Certainly when I was putting my goldleaf on, I felt as though it was alive.

A most incredible experience.

Looking up at the stupa on the top of the Rock. Heaven knows how much gold is on there.

Just on sunset and the crowds are gathering. It was very hazy so not a very spectacular one. The Rock is beginning to glow.

Another angle, trying to show how it just sits there defying gravity!

The have a firebrigade on Kyaiktiyto and here are the hoses laid out in the middle of the main throughfare........waiting for a fire perhaps.

and the firefighting equipment with nice red buckets.

and just in case you were a bit confused about what we are showing, here's the sign on the fire dept building, which doubles as a souvenir shop. Obviously not too many fires up this way.

My favourite nat, U Min Kyaw. He has a BIG celebration/festival in August just north of Mandalay which I would LOVE to go to, but........we will be back in Oz. Next time though !!! He's the fun one who is wicked as in naught, loves to drink strong spirits, sing lewd and loud songs, dance wildly and make all sorts of inappropriate suggestions to people, all of which is completely acceptable during his Festival. He had a largish one near Bagan the day we arrived but it wasn't possible to get to the village in time where it was happening. Here he is in his own shrine with his ogre and tiger for company. You have to keep him happy, or he'll get upset and bring you bad luck and more, so people bring him food and drink and give him presents. I gave him the orange scarf he is wearing. I think the colour suits him!!

This restaurant, well eaterie, was opposite where we stayed at Kyaiktito, and we weren't sure about the 80 days bit, but certainly the food WAS excellent. Loved the happy chef and the puppy dog. Mind you, in true Burmese style the power went off 4 times during the time we were there. That's par for the course. No one worried about the delay in food delivery. All the howls of protest indicated mssing some bit of the local soapie on tele! The Government does zilch about power supplies. New Bagan for example has no electricity. You have to have your own generator or do without.

Here is a gathering of nats. Can't imagoine what the collective noun would be. A National Party of Nats? A Nation of Nats? A Number of Nats will do.

and yet more. They're everywhere.

This is a place of respite for Monks only on the platform of Golden Rock but couldn't find anyone who spoke enough English to explain/translate for us.

This guy has a pannier on his back in which everything, luggage, merchandise etc etc is brought up from down the hill. He will empty this lot off and head off back down the half hour treck to hopefully get another job. And all for about a couple of dollars a time. Makes you wonder. The afore mentioned restaurant/eaterie is in the background. Very different?

Just so you don't forget what Golden Rock looks like!!!!!!!!

And I DID say EVERYTHING is carried up in the panniers on the backs of carriers???? Just to prove it, here's a couple of really little guys heading off downhill. This time it's 2 in one basket. The previous time we saw 2 little guys with one each. They were having a great time!! Certainly beats walking I'm sure!!! B's beard was also a great hit. Children wanted to play with it and old men smiled and said "very good".

Here we have a hermit monk. Sometimes they who lives out bush, in a cave or in a monastery for hermit monks. They are never spoken to, but you can silently give a donation of money or food to them. There are quite few hermits in these parts and they wear this most striking of hats. He walks along very slowly with eyes downcast. We saw a few of these at Kyaiktiyo but felt we were intruding by taking photos. This one was surreptitiously taken. Strange to say, we both thought he looked rather familiar and reminded us of someone we know on the Gemfields.

Another more distant view of Golden Rock hopefully giving an indication of the crowds and the general surroundings.

Nun pilgrims approaching the top of the climb up. Plus free advertising for where we stayed. All along the road/path are shops selling food, souvenirs, soft drinks and teas, and lots of herbal ointments and lotions. No doubt after climbing up the mountainside, most feel the need for some sort of embrocation! We did, bought a bottle from a stallholder brewing it in front of her shop from all sorts of bits of bark, herbs etc, and it worked!!! There are lots of these shops, so there has to be a steady demand for the product.

And once we were back down at the bottom of the hill, we were peckish, and perused the local delicacies.

Here we have deep fried crickets.

B negoitiates for some local fruits. mango with chilli, apples , mandarins etc The ladies all wear thanaka paste as sunscreen and beauty cream, made from the bark of the Thanaka tree grinded and made into a paste with some water.

There, were also chickens, but very very small ones, or possibly quail?? Each complete grilled chook cost 25 Khat, just over $1 and very tasty too.

Here we have pilgrims packed into the back of the trucks to go UP the mountainside to Kyaiktiyo. It cost more to get in the front airconditioned bit. We were cattle class - rather appropriate! and had complete strangers hanging on to all parts of the anatomy as we swung precariously round hairpin bends at 70 degrees upwards. The monks obviously got special treatment and wouldn't of course have to pay - not having any money, as good monks do. I felt the trucks invoked a certain feel one might have felt in a tumbril during the French Revolution. A la guillotine, or something like that.

Here we have a family? on the move in downtown Kinpun. Can we squeeze anything more in?

And as we were about to get on the bus back to Yangon, this load of pilgrims were arriving. Lots of music and laughter. AND YES! it is a garbage truck they are on the roof of. You should be able to see people in the scoop thing at the rear of the vehicle. The little jeep is made in the Shan State and is a 4x4 supposedly ATV. We thought they were very cute, and having travelled in one last visit found them very comfortable.

As we left Kinpun, this oxcart with wood trundled up the main street. The ladies in their traditional Mon outfits were so pretty.

As if to provide a break between country and city, I thought this one of pigeons in Yangon different enough. Avain flu or avian flew?? Certainly plenty of them in downtown Yangon.

So we go from beautiful interesting rural scenes to the hustle and bustle of urban life. Yangon is big and noisy and decrepit but utterly fascinating. We have tried to provide an overview of what is different and interssting - to us at least. It's not as bad a slide evening !!!!


These shops just caught the eye. One wonders where they get the names from, but we don't complain as they provide such interesting sights. Three? seasons?? Which one is missing???

Benhur concreting.

Now here a few from the Shwedagon, none of which can do any justice to the place. Superlatives about atmosphere, people, architecture, serenity etc etc etc are wasted. Magical possibly could apply. All round the complex the city and people roll and are noisy but as soon as you climb up and step on to the platform, all is peace and serenity. All worries and concerns seem to disappear.

This Buddha just said photograph me - so I did.

We were fortunate to go on the Full Moon night. Each month at the day of the Full Moon, it's a public holiday in Myanmar and everyone who can goes to the temples. Now, there's an excuse for a holiday Australians haven't cottoned onto yet! As to be expected, the Shwedagon being the most sacred site in Myanmar is the most popular spot for locals and pilgrtims from around the country. On Full Moon Night there are literally thousands of worshippers, and when we were there, hardly any foreigners.

Outside all the places of worship, people light candles and burn incence. This is just one of the lines of votive candles.

and people gain merit by pouring water over the statues of the Buddha and nats. Apparantly it cools their spirit and soul, or something like that. Me, I do anything to enhance my chances, so here I am do my water pouring bit. No one paid any attention to a foreigner participating. Just lots of smiles.

This is just one of the many shrines that surround the main stupa. Burmese have really taken to the neon halos around the Buddha, much more so than Thai. Everywhere you see the pulsating throbbing garish colours. If you have 3 or 4 Buddhas each will have a different coloured halo going at a different speed. Quite halucigenic I suppose, not that I'd know. This crowd was small in comparison to those at some shrines.

A general crowd scene showing, I hope, the atmosphere of the place, the incense, the candles, the crowds, only the sounds and smells are missing. You have to imagine that. It really is incredible.

And yet again with the great golden stupa rising at the right. Yes, again, it's gold, but this time gold in thick plates! Tons of it.

The main stupa of the Shwedagon. You can see it from all over the city. We stayed down the road from here and had a good view, albeit at an angle, of the whole complex from our room window.

They regild it competely every 4 years. The hti or umbrella at the very top has a 70 carat (hope that's right) diamond and thousands of jewels.

Hope you don't think we've gone all religious!!! but here we are at the main Chinese temple in downtown Yangon. The Keng Houk Keong is also thronged, but mainly in the mornings. Unlike the Shwedagon where things are basically peaceful and serene, here it's all bustle noise and smoke!! We have a small video which we are trying to get on this blog which is self explanatory!

Here we have the front courtyard where people are not getting rid of their rubbish!! They are burning offerings and presents for their dearly departed, just as they do at New Year. All to keep the departed happy in the next life. I'll have real problems as whisky doesn't burn, or does it!?

This is the main altar inside. All go go go. The huge pots as incence holders and all the offerings everywhere. There were hundreds of worshippers and outside even opportunistic Buddhist monks were waiting with their offering bowls for alms, as well as the ubiquitous beggars.

Another view of the main altar from the rear. Worshippers were too busy with their duties to worry about cameras, but again we got lots of welcoming smiles and yet again, we were the only westerners there. Look at the clouds of incence. the smells were incredible.

Outside doors in one of the courtyards. Very much a working environment. The temple is, naturally, in the middle of Chinatown right on the waterfront.

Just along the road on Merchant Street, (which was THE most elegant street architecture-wise back pre WW2, but is now completely dilapitated. Shame really but the Government won't do anything as not only is Yangon no longer the capital, but more to the point, the old buildings remind them of British Imperialism and Colonisation!!! True.) we came across this guy, actually there was a gang of them, cleaning out the gutters. One chap I would have liked to photograph had a very neat clean shirt on while he was up to his waist in the putrid black filth which they were removing by hand. Oh well, it's work I suppose and someone has to do it. We wondered if Myanmar has a caste of 'untouchables' who do all that type of work but decided that it didn't. That's the detritus piled up on the street behind him, though why he didn't put it in the wicker baskets beat us. Perhaps someone else had that job.

Here we have some of the older colonial buuildings on one of the main streets, Shwedagon Pagoda Road in Yangon. It's in a lot better condition than most.

This is also on the same street. As you can see., at street level it's an eclectic sight.

Here we have a musical instrument shop with things we've never seen before. Everything crammed in, and all, or most, at very reasonable, to us, prices though no doubt beyond the dreams and aspirations of the average Burmese citizen. See the violin with the sound trumpet attached at the right, and all the gongs and tubular bells.

and of course pride of place was given to this piece !!! Didn't think to ask how much they were asking.

This is in People's Park across the road from where we stayed in Yangon, Summit Parkview. It is so neglected it is tragic, but we gather that when the regime moved the capital lock stock and probably most importantly barrel, rifle ones that is, to the new city in the jungle - can't even recall the name! - they left behind all these huge, and often magnificent buildings, all empty and the grounds of which are no longer maintained. Yangon has this sad and very forlorn look. The story of the boat, we don't know, but it's completely rusted away. Obviously historical but if it has any connection with the British, it'll have been consigned literally to the scrapheap. B is doing his best "Ahoy Sailor!" impression.

We had heard about this eaterie , tucked away behind a hairdressing salon, so we searched for it and eventually located it. Obviously it is called The Silver Oak. Food was fantastic. Inexpensive and loads of it. They have live music every evening and had we not been heading back to Thailand very early the next morning we would have followed up lunch with dinner and a show. As with so many places, they had an over-abundance of friendly smiling helpful staff.

This is the intersection of MahaBandoola Road and Shwedagon Pagoda Road with a famous mosque. The scene hasn't changed much since the 1890s as we have a book of old photographs showing the same mosque on what was then called Mogul Street. The "highrose" is new but the pigeons seem very familiar.

Well, we weren't altogether sure of what this really was saying. It is open to various interpretations. Rather quaint, don't you think? Upon investigation, we discovered that since the government hospital is soooooo bad, the muslim community set up this hosptital to treat the poor for free.

This lady is selling rice, many varieties in her 'shop' in the main food market in downtown Yangon. She was bemused that I wanted a photograph!

YES, this iS the food market, and I did say it was the Fresh Food Market! And Woolies say THEY're the Fresh Food people. Well, we've got news for them. These ladies weren't impressed I was taking pics, or maybe they just didn't like obvious westerners. Who knows. I hope this gives a good impression of what the market is like, though there are streets and streets involved. It's, to us, what makes travelling especially in this part of the world so interesting and fascinating. This is the meat section.

This young lass is quite at home in her stall, or patch of street, chatting on the phone. Just loved her garland of jasmine flowers and the thanaka paste.

Eventually we came across the fish section. Lots were so fresh they were still flapping!

Then on to the poultry section. Again it's a shame there's no sense-orama for the sounds and smells. The colours too assault the senses. Just wonderful. And to think I don't think we saw another westerner. Just the way we like it.The ladies, and some of the guys, have fabulous hair and keep it beautiful and shiny by using a special local herbal based shampoo, which we bought and brought back to Thailand with us. Certainly makes the hair smooth and shiny.

We think this may have been the main telephone exchange in Shwedagon Pagoda Road as she has 3 telephones for public use. You look for a sign, usually hand painted of a telephone hanging on a tree, and there'll be someone with a phone plugged in somewhere, don't ask where. You give them the number you want to call and it's all done for you. Talk about a service industry. We even used it oursleves when in Mandalay.

Believe it or not, this is the brand of potoato crisps we found in Myanmar - and they are delicious. Couldn't find out any more details about them, but it reassuring that they are fit for all irrespective of nationalities and religions! Where else but Myanmar would you see something like that on a product!?

Well, this is a main alley in the Aung San Bogyoke Road market where you can anything imaginable. Yes, it is named after Aung San Suu Kyi's father. The market is perhaps not as big as the Jatajuk one in Bangkok but I think it has more character. Due to the economic downturn, supposed sanctions and the lack of tourists, it appears deserted. Normally it would be chockablock with people. The market extends on both sides and is 2 stories high. We looked at some lovely gems and silks here, but, there were also some poor quality stuff trying to be offloaded on the unsuspecting customer. We've learned to go with "If in doubt - don't", and it IS fun bargaining!!! This time, everyone was giving us little gifts, whether we bought something or not. All very nice , and very appreciated from these people that can ill afford to be giving things away. We also gave gifts of pens and pencils to children. They love to learn here and utensils are in short supply.

We saw this building while out one day and wondered what it was all about, and who was behind it, given the general economic situation in Myanmar.

As everyone in Myanmar seems to chew betelnut, it's only fair to have a photo of one of the sellers. In Bagan they had little stalls set up, but in the markets in Yangon, they went around selling from trays like old fashioned usherettes at the Cinema, for those of you old enough to remember that far back! This lad was as intrigued by us as we were about him. He mixes up the lime in a little pot, puts some on a betel vine leaf along with the shaved betelnut and wraps it up, puts it into, yes, you're right, little plastic bags with rubber bands, for the customers. I tried to get the seller to smile so you can see his red mouth, but no go. You can just see how red his lips are though. The buyer is lugging a bag of rice.

Hard to believe that this is right in the centre of Yangon, again on Shwedagon Pagoda Road. The pavements are thronged with stalls selling everything, beggars begging and people going about their daily routines. The guys longyiis come in all colours but mainly subdued and with quiet patterns, compared to those of the ladies. Shame you can't see the delapitated state of the pavement.

And see, we weren't taking any chances. We covered all our bases when we took out spiritual insurance!! This old synagogue was unfortunately locked and we couldn't find the keyholder. There is still a small ageing Jewish community of approx 50 people in Yangon.

There is certainly no problems here with Buddhists, Muslims, Christians, Jews, Hindus and various other religions living together. Why can't the rest of the world get it together?

This is a cinema and entertainment complex where one can play computer games and pinball. Yangon has many many cinemas many of which look like the old fleapits of when I was young. Going to the 'flicks' is a huge past time here.

Couldn't resist this one. Would you go to Snow Hit Dental Clinic? and wait to see how you get inside!!!

Yes, here's the stairs leading to the fang factory. I doubt even the 7 dwarves would enter here!!

Actually lots of the entrances to upper levels of buildings even on the busiest main streets are like this.

As I said earlier, it is a shame you culd not see the decrepit state of the footpaths so here's one of Merchant Street, once probably the main commerce part of the city. The footpaths were dangerous when I was here in the 70s and nothing has improved, It's a choice of watch the scenery, buildings and passing parade, or your feet. I missed lots by taking care of where I was walking. If you fell through the holes in the ground you'd never recover!! or be recovered probably.

The clocktower on Anawratha Road Yangon, I think. Built in traditional? Myanmar style but, as with all clocks in Yangon I'm told, it's not worked for years. Nice landmark though.

Another view of old colonial apartments, this lot on Aung Sang Bogoyke Road opposite the markets. Laundry all hung out on the front verandas give 'local colour'.

And that's all folks for this little sojourn in Myanmar. But we will return as there is so much more to see and we really like the people.

To all who opened their hearts and spent time talking to us about life in Myanmar, we say:

ce zu tin bah deh

In May 2009, Aung San Suu Kyi is supposed to be released from her current 6 year stint of house arrest. We await the outcome with much interest.


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