You'll find a lot of options for getting around in Myanmar, but only the most expensive offer any comfort. Most are crowded at best, like the pickup truck above on the streets of Mandalay, and downright painful at worst. I was stupid lucky enough to try just about all of them during my time in Myanmar and you can read about all the fun I had in the series of posts detailing my … [Read more...]
Yangon’s Black Market Money Changers
When I went to Myanmar in 2011, the official government exchange rate was around 7 kyats per US dollar. A bottle of water went for 200 to 300 kyats and a cheap restaurant meal was around 1000 to 2000. That would make this the most expensive country on earth. Luckily, I read up on Myanmar before going and knew not to exchange my money at banks or at the airport (avoiding … [Read more...]
Wine Tasting in Myanmar at Inle Lake’s Red Mountain Estate
The Inle Lake area of Myanmar was my favorite of all the places I visited during my month in the country. While there, you can take a boat out on the lake, bike around the lake, walk to the lake……ok, so it doesn't take too long to realize there's not much to do that doesn't somehow involve the lake. Yes, you can go trekking in the surrounding mountains, but then you have to … [Read more...]
Arrival at Indawgyi Military Base
The journey, as I mentioned, was horrible—over five hours of constant pain as we traversed boulders, got stuck in small lakes of mud, slid down muddy hillsides and forded numerous rivers—all features of the "road". At one point a bridge literally collapsed beneath us. Planks were dislodged and fell into the river below, leaving a gaping hole in the bridge in our wake. We got to … [Read more...]
Traditional Burmese Happy Meal
I took this over a year ago, but despite the picture, until this week, Myanmar was one of only three countries to not have coke. Thankfully, Coca Cola has decided to change this now that sanctions have been eased, providing the Burmese people with all the luxuries of the West, such as hyperactive kids and diabetes. … [Read more...]