Eithwe and I have been friends for more than a decade and I am glad to have played a small role in advancing the career of this young woman in the field of Travel and Tourism. She suggested that I draw out an itinerary of Pagodas I wish to visit on this day: Botataung, Lying Buddha, Shwedagon and a tour of Yangon in between, to stop for Le Paye the tea and Burmese Lunch.
Her husband was free this day and he would drive us around and make suggestions as well.
this turned out to be an excellent suggestion. To go to all the places I went on taxi or public transportation would have been next to IMPOSSIBLE and certainly would not have covered the scope of Yangon/Rangoon a city that I have always loved.
Preparation for the day began well with fortifications at the Breakfast table at the Best Western Hotel in Chinatown, I chose this hotel as a good introduction to people visiting Yangon as it is right in the middle of chaos and roadside markets and noise and commotion and reminded me of the travels I did as a child which might have left me behind in one of these cities.
Mohinga (spelt in many different ways) is the Burmese staple for breakfast and I have enjoyed it every day during my stay in Rangoon. This one was exceptionally tasty and I had the Fand B (food and beverages) manager bring an extra plate!
The world outside had already woken up.
the street side markets are hundreds of people congregated and selling small trays of necessities and from street to street the contents of their tray differ.
As I was going to visit Pagodas today, I wanted to dress as appropriately as possible and was happy to obtain a Longyi the long wrap around "sarong" most men wear in this country.
I had fun bargaining with the lady, who bubbled away in burmese while adding an additional discount to my already low price. She was very happy when i did the usual ritual with the first money the traders make for the day.
Eithwe's husband, Pyae, arrived promptly and we set off for a wonderful day, one of the nicest days I have spent in Yangon . It was full of
spiritual expressions in various pagodas surrounded by the devout burmese buddhists as well as some unruly chinese tourists
a nostalgic visit to the House of Memories (you can read The Glass Palace by Amitav Ghosh to get an idea) where my own blood father might have stayed or visited during his rebellious days in Burma.
A lovely burmese lunch at Khaing Khaing Kyaw where I had the chance to talk to a country girl of 15 so small and innocent and who had to leave the village near Magwe to come to town working in a menial job after completing 6th grade education
I decided to pray to special people in each of the first three pagodas
two of them health related issues
and another one with a bright and fantastic future
and then at Schwedagon
I prayed at each of the statues, the persons that came up to my mind spontaneously
friends from Vietnam, Cuba, Argentina, USA, Austria, Malaysia, Cambodia.. as they appeared in my mind. I wanted their lives to be free of conflict and move forward in contented fashion.
Thus the day began.. a lovely day in Rangoon..
Her husband was free this day and he would drive us around and make suggestions as well.
this turned out to be an excellent suggestion. To go to all the places I went on taxi or public transportation would have been next to IMPOSSIBLE and certainly would not have covered the scope of Yangon/Rangoon a city that I have always loved.
Preparation for the day began well with fortifications at the Breakfast table at the Best Western Hotel in Chinatown, I chose this hotel as a good introduction to people visiting Yangon as it is right in the middle of chaos and roadside markets and noise and commotion and reminded me of the travels I did as a child which might have left me behind in one of these cities.
the street side markets are hundreds of people congregated and selling small trays of necessities and from street to street the contents of their tray differ.
I had fun bargaining with the lady, who bubbled away in burmese while adding an additional discount to my already low price. She was very happy when i did the usual ritual with the first money the traders make for the day.
spiritual expressions in various pagodas surrounded by the devout burmese buddhists as well as some unruly chinese tourists
a nostalgic visit to the House of Memories (you can read The Glass Palace by Amitav Ghosh to get an idea) where my own blood father might have stayed or visited during his rebellious days in Burma.
A lovely burmese lunch at Khaing Khaing Kyaw where I had the chance to talk to a country girl of 15 so small and innocent and who had to leave the village near Magwe to come to town working in a menial job after completing 6th grade education
I decided to pray to special people in each of the first three pagodas
two of them health related issues
and another one with a bright and fantastic future
and then at Schwedagon
I prayed at each of the statues, the persons that came up to my mind spontaneously
friends from Vietnam, Cuba, Argentina, USA, Austria, Malaysia, Cambodia.. as they appeared in my mind. I wanted their lives to be free of conflict and move forward in contented fashion.
Thus the day began.. a lovely day in Rangoon..
