A snippet of the countries travelled between 2014 and 2016

Argentina, Bolivia, Peru, Ecuador, Colombia, USA, Thailand, Sri Lanka, Maldives, India, Nepal, Georgia, Armenia, Nagorno-Karabakh, Turkey, Cyprus, Slovenia, Austria, Slovakia, Germany, Canada, Hawaii.

Fast Forward in 2017. We travelled around Australia, Chile, Argentina and currently in Paraguay… New travel blogs are coming soon on 2018! Stay tuned and Subscribe to veryitchyfeet.com – A LifeTime of Travel Detours; to receive travel updates on your email.

I want that Barbie t-shirt!

We had a mission in Bangkok !  To eat good food and shop! Whilst the food in Myanmar was palatable and at times even delicious (particularly the veggie dishes), it really had nothing on Thai food.  Bangkok has, in many ways, become a home away from home, as we now know where to stay, where to shop and what to buy!

We had a mission, and we were going to accomplish eat … eat well and shop! We only had a couple of days, but our mission was clear!

I have written about Bangkok ad nauseum in other posts, so this one will tell the story with photos (more than usual, anyway).

Enjoy!

Ombi

“The world will not be destroyed by those who do evil, but by those who watch them without doing anything”. – Albert Einstein

Thailand wants democracy, and they want it now!

The Bangkok protests.

The people of Thailand speak out.

There ain’t a revolution without technology!

The people of Thailand want to be heard!

Not what I’d call my accessory store.

Face book thongs in Khao San Rd.

A bit of shopping … a bit of coconut ice-cream.

Rattanakosin Festival. Bangkok.

Rattanakosin Festival. Bangkok.

Rattanakosin Festival. Bangkok.

Holding up the fort, Bangkok.

My kinda t-shirt!

Face cream!!??

Takeaway Pad Thai at Bangkok Airport … till we meet again.

Shopping at Chatachuk.

We had been told not to go to Mandalay; that it was dusty anddirty and nothing more than a big town!  It was, however, the last royal capital of Burma, and I personally felt compelled to go there. We loved it!  Yes, it was dusty and dirty, but if you took the time to explore it really did contain some veritable treasures. We spent a great few days there, exploring both on foot and on the back of a motorbike. We stayed at the Rich Queen Guest House!  Nothing like a rich queen, hey! It was quiet and comfortable, yet right in the centre of Mandalay, near the central market.

Smack bang in the centre of town, our guest house was virtually on top of the central market, which was abuzz with action from the early hours of the morning until dusk. We wandered around there several times in the course of our stay doing everything from eating, observing and buying. The natural focus of the city is an abrupt hill, rising above a vast moated and walled square. Once upon a time it contained a sprawling royal city but nowadays it is the reconstructed Mandalay Palace. Mostly an out-of-bounds area of military encampments, we certainly were not prepared to hand over some of our money to the Burmese government to see a smidgeon (of what they wanted us to see!) of the inside. We were quite happy to hire some bikes and go around the outside, observing daily life, the sunset and some other great temples surrounding it.

Mahamuni Pagoda

Our Mandalay highlight, without a doubt, was the day that we both spent on the back of a motorbike taking in the many spectacular sights around the city. Myaung and Pho Se were just the best tour guides, not only taking us around but giving an amazing commentary everywhere we went.  They both had a great sense of humour and had us laughing the whole way. We started at 8.00am and finished at 7.00pm.  We came ‘home’ exhausted but satisfied!  First off was the Mahamuni Pagoda, one of Myanmar’s most famous. Even in the early hours people were scuttling about, praying and observing.  Alex had a chance to see the famous and highly venerated 13 foot high Buddha image, which many locals believe is 2000 years old. Over the years so much gold leaf has been applied by the (male only!) faithful that the figure is now entirely covered in a knobbly six inch layer of pure gold!

Mahamuni Pagoda.

Mandalay stone carvers.

Close by was the marble stone carving.  It was amazing to watch so many people chip, blast and polish away in order to create Buddha images of all shapes and sizes, but I could not help but wonder what the fine dust was doing to their lungs!  OH & S … what’s that! We then continued on to the bronze casting area, which was basically the bronze version of the marble version!  All done by hand too. We then visited a couple of monasteries and even a nunnery. They were all very interesting and the number of rules they adhere to is quite impressive (if that’s the word). Not the life for me, I must say! But then I am not really one for rules, am I?

Mandalay sits on the Ayeyarawady River, and as you cross over it you cannot help but be blown away by the visual impact of Sagaing’s uncountable white and gold stupas. They shimmer alluringly on a series of hills that

Saigang as seen on the back of a motorbike.

rise above the almost flat town centre of Mandalay behind. A steep walk up to the top of one of the pagodas (not for the faint or the weak hearted!) provided us with an amazing view over the sparkling pagodas, which apart from being an assault on the senses, looked like a highly polished 22 carat gold necklace. Sagaing is also known as the ‘Buddhist Land’ or ‘Religious City’ due to the many stupas in a relatively small area.

The infamous U-Bein Bridge.

Our guides also took us to a number of less-known attractions as we not only wanted to see the path less travelled, but we did not want to pay money to the government by going in to the main attractions. Often, we were the only ones there! We did, however, go to Amarapura, which is famous for U Bein Bridge, the world’s longest teak footbridge. It gently curves around the shallow Taungthaman Lake, creating one of Myanmar’s most photographed sites.  It is said that the best time to visit is just after sunrise when hundreds of villagers and monks commute back and forth across it.  We, however, went for the sunset.  It was absolutely chockers and thronging with tourists. Our guides, however, took us underneath it, and showed us a different side … fishermen, people having wedding photos taken, kids swimming. They managed to make a touristy experience into a not so touristy one.  They had certainly worked us out! Tourists aside, it was impressive indeed!

Our Muslim roti hangout in Mandalay.

And so our day on the back of a motorbike was coming to an end.  As we made our way home, I contemplated life, with the wind blowing through my hair, or was that over my helmet and into my face! How lucky I am to be able to live the life I live! I felt at peace and I felt happy! We arrived back at the guest house exhausted, and thanked our guides profusely. I am not sure who was happier and more stoked … them or us! We were hungry so we went out to find a bite to eat. We had previously found a Muslim set-up on the road (quite literally!) that made cheap rotis and curries, and made our way over for a quick meal.  Small tables and even smaller chairs by the side of the road, we shovelled the yummy food in.

Our last day in Mandalay was spent seeing a few more of the local sights and meeting some new fun people, like Teresia and Fred from Swaustralia (is that what you call Swedes that have lived in Australia for ten years?) and their friend Jenni from Scotland. They would be going on to Bagan and so would we.  Maybe we would see them there.

Mandalay Palace.

Time was flying. Bagan would be our last stop and the place where we would spend our New Year.

Horses, carts and temples of Bagan.

I said a Bagan New Year not a bogan one! Whilst our bus ride from Hsipaw from Bagan was Winner Guest House. The owner is obviously very used to these ridiculous-o-clock arrivals, and so greeted us with a  smile, a cup of tea and lit a fire by the roadside for us.  Minties moment!
comfortable, we did indeed arrive at ridiculous-o-clock, just before 3am!  There were a number of horse and carts (famous in Bagan) and other forms of transport ready to take people to their hotels. Let’s face it, what are the other options at 3am? We knew that we were only a couple of kilometres away and so Alex and I decided to walk it.  Myanmar is generally an extremely safe country and the centre of Bagan not that big at all. The walk was quiet and peaceful and some of the temples were lit up, so it all looked very impressive and felt rather overwhelming. It was another one of those travellers’ moments where I not only felt so very grateful to be alive bit so honoured and thankful that we were able to do this!  I constantly remind myself of how fortunate I am able to be able to travel to the places I do, and see things that the very locals I visit cannot. In no time at all we arrived at

Sunrise over Bagan.

Famous for both its sunrises and sunsets we decided to do both, not initially in one day, but that’s how it turned out! After a relaxing hour at Winner we decided to take a horse and cart and go and see the sunrise; so off we went in the early hours of the morning to Shwesandaw Pagoda.  The tourists were arriving in throngs, with the same aim as us, to take some photos from a spot that is renowned for both its sunrises and sunsets. This pagoda  not only offers mind-blowing views of the many temples that fill the surrounding valleys, but it’s also a spectacular spot to view the hot-air balloons that set off very close by.  Balloons over Bagan is possibly one of the most exotic hot air balloon experiences in the world.  If that’s your gig book well in advance and start saving your pennies! Alex and I were content with seeing them and not being in them … this time!

Out and about in Bagan.

We came back to Winner hungry but feeling exhilarated. After some brekkie and a shower, and feeling somewhat reinvigorated, we set off by bike to see what we’d come here for … temples, temples and more temples in a place that can only be described as a temple wonderland! Over the next few days we would see these countless temples on foot, bicycle and electric bike too. Beside highways and rickety train tracks amble ox carts through rice fields and rolling plains, all rimmed by the Shan Mountains to the east and the Ayeyarwady (Irrawaddy) River to the west, conjuring up scenes that hark back centuries.  There were big temples, small temples, hidden temples, fancy temples, discreet temples, crumbling temples, all having something to offer. We often found that the hidden, more discreet ones were the most fascinating, as the local gatekeepers would come out, unlock them and tell us a story. On our first night we ended up back at the Shwensandaw Pagoda, along with throngs of tourists, viewing the sunset. Different, but equally as spectacular as the sunrise.  Needless to say, that night we were buggered and slept like babies!

Laquerware factory in Bagan.

Whilst in Bagan we also visited a couple of lacquerware factories and shops.  The way in which they cut and weave the bamboo and then lacquer it is amazing. It’s quite an intricate process and to watch the several steps involved is very interesting.  From tiny bowls to huge vases, we saw them ply away at their craft. Found a coffee-shop-stop at the Black Bamboo; great coffee but overpriced and overrated food. Of course, we didn’t eat the food, we just wanted a good coffee!

With the Swaustralians and others on New Year’s.

The New Year was approaching … we had bumped into Teresia, Fred and Jenni again, and we decided to meet up at a place called Aroma 2.  The night started with some drinks a few doors down (as they were cheaper!) and then ended up at Aroma. There was a fire going in the middle and the music was pumping.  We all got into it and had a dance. Into the groove … and not the fire that is!  Met some really good fun people that night as well as bumping into others that we had met in the weeks before and so had a really enjoyable night.  The countdown was on …
10,9,8, 7,6,5,4,3,2,1 … Happy New Year!!!! And the fire crackers went off! Dangerous?!  Not any more so than people dancing around (and not falling into) a fire!!! By 1.00am we were virtually being pushed out and told to leave!  Keep in mind that the surrounding places had long closed and that the New Year is not particularly significant nor celebrate in Myanmar. The taxi drivers were asking for an obscene amount to drive the short distance to our guest house, so Alex and I decided to walk; coupled with the fact that we were totally sober and that Myanmar is generally safe at all hours, we felt comfortable doing so. Arrived safely and went straight to bed.

The things you find in temples!

Our last day in Bagan was perhaps a bit more cruisy than the others. We would be taking an overnight bus to Yangon, and our flight back to Bangkok would be leaving the next night. Our bus would leave at 4.00am and be getting into Yangon at ridiculous-o-clock (yet again). On the bus we bumped into our French friend Fabian; he’d been in Bagan too but we had not seen him. The bus ride was comfortable enough, and low and behold, there we were at the Yangon bus station just before 5.00am the next morning.  Despite it being very early morning, the bus station was thronging with people. Fabien was going to Bangkok on the same flight as us, so we all negotiated a ride to the airport in a songthaew  (passenger pick up). We decided that it simply would not have been worth going into the centre of Yangon, finding a place to store our bags and then coming back to the airport; the centre was an hour away from the bus station whilst the airport was reasonably close to the bus station.

Eating up before we fly out of Yangon.

OMG!  I thought I was going to die! Seriously!  Our driver was driving like a psycho!  We all concurred that he was either drug or alcohol affected.  We asked him to slow down but he seemed to laugh it off!  I am the most easy going passenger but this time I wondered if we were going to make it to the airport alive!  Every minute seemed like an hour and that ten minute ride had felt like the longest ten minutes of my life! We got off that passenger truck and I was shaking. We handed over our money, ‘thanked’ the driver and walked off. Big breath in, big breath out.  I was standing and I was alive!

Goodbye Yangon and Myanmar!

That day at the airport was a very long and boring one.  With only a couple of places to buy coffee and only one to buy food, we just sat down, relaxed, chatted and walked around the very small airport … several times. An exercise in how to occupy yourself indeed! Finally, it was time to fly. Bangkok here we come!

Ombi

“Love is joy. Don’t convince yourself that suffering is part of it. ” – Paulo Coelho

Next: Last few days dining and shopping in Bangkok.

Bronze casting.

Inside a monastery.

International Buddhist University School.

Lacquerware.

Thet Kyadi Thay nunnery.

Mandalay central market.

Monks.

View from the top of Saigang Hill.

Around Saigang.

One of the lesser seen temples around Mandalay.

Life beneath the U-Bein Bridge.

Our tour guides, Myaung and Pho Se.

Tranquility at a lesser viewed temple.

Locals hanging around the temples.

How some of the others live …children in Mandalay.

Mandalay Palace.

Alex with the local kids, by the river in Mandalay.

The many temples of Mandalay.

Sunrise at the infamous Shwesandaw Pagoda.

Back again … sunset at the Shwesandaw Pagoda.

Inside one of the many temples of Bagan.

Burmese chime.

Selfies with the locals of Bagan.

Bagan.

Taung Paw Teik Pagoda.

Praying at the temple, Bagan.

The many faces of Bagan.

Partying with the lovely Fabienne from Switzerland!

Umbrella making.

Flying over central Australia en route to Bangkok, via KL.

With only a couple of months behind me since I’d been to Thailand, oops, I was doing it again! Well, actually, Alex and I would do a few days in Bangkok, followed by a little over two weeks Myanmar (Burma) followed by a final last few days in Bangkok (read … I really wanted to make sure I got to the infamous Chatachuk market). Myanmar or Burma?  That would require a post (or two) unto itself!

Ombi, Thai coffee and Nu Deang.

Having just secured a new job, and with both Alex and I having a couple of weeks off over Christmas, we decided to get away. What better way to spend our ‘free time’ than travelling? Around the festive season there is no such thing as a cheap ticket, so we did our best by buying a Melbourne-Bangkok return and a Bangkok-Yangon (capital of Myanmar) return with Air Asia. To be frank (would you expect anything less from me?); I love bypassing the festive debacle. As much as I love my family, I love ‘missing out on’ the presents, the hype, the commercialism, and a tradition I find overwhelmingly outdated. I secretly, well perhaps not so secretly, wish that we could make a bigger effort with people between New Year and Christmas and not just the few days between Christmas and the New Year! Slap! That was me slapping me off my bandwagon! Oh yes, back to the trip!

Loaded with two weeks worth of a brilliant handover notes at my new job, I jumped onto the plane exhausted.  I had spent most of the last week trying to get ready inbetween trying to take in lots of new information. Does it come as any surprise that I fell asleep before take-off?

With Link’s family and baby Sean.

Thailand is easy for both Alex and I; we have done it so many times that it really has become second nature.  We would both be going to Pong and Link’s house together, for a couple of days. These are the gorgeous friends I stayed with when I was here on my last trip.  Land, pick up bags, go through passport control, grab a taxi, go to Pong and Link’s.  The roads have improved considerably in the last couple of decades, and especially when it’s not peak hour, getting around Bangkok is a breeze. We were there in no time at all, with Pong, Link and Nu Deang there to greet us with open arms.  Nu Deang came out and gave me a big hug; she  remembered me as I had been there only recently.  She recognised Alex too as we had spoken to him several times on skype. Nu Deang took me to see her baby brother Sean; he had most certainly grown in only a couple of months.  What a cutie!

Bangkok haircut!

The next couple of days really were lots of fun!  Good times and good food with Pong, Link and both of their families. Alex and I would not make it to Kanchanaburi to visit Pong’s parents this time, but they came to us. I also managed to fit in a haircut with the lady that I had it cut by last time I was here. Ten minutes and done!  I love it!  I am one of those ‘cut my hair and let me get out’ kinda gals!  Don’t want to hear your problems, or your whingeing, just cut my hair and let me leave!

December is a lovely time to be in Bangkok as the humidity is low and the temperature pleasant. Pity I did not do my homework on Myanmar though … more on that later! Loaded with tummies full of great food, and hearts and minds full of good times, we were off to Myanmar. After hugs all around we jumped into a taxi and were on our way to the airport. A new adventure awaited us! Myanmar here we come!

On the way from the Yangon Airport to Downtown.

As I mentioned, we had barely done any research, with only a Myanmar Lonely Planet in tow. All I knew was that tourism was booming and that the accommodation, and  many other prices, were also outdated. Oh well, I had the right clothes (!!) with me and we were used to wingin’ it. So, here goes. The flight to Yangon was short and painless and after a little over an hour we found ourselves in Yangon.  Let the journey begin!

In practice this was my second trip to Myanmar, in theory my first.  In the mid 90s I remember doing a ‘half day tour’ from somewhere in the south of Thailand, because … well, it was not really the done thing then, and well, I could!  All I remember was that it rained and rained, the temples looked different and that the people seemed very poor!  Having said that Thailand too was very different back then. With some fleeting memories, I wondered how Myanmar would stack up in 2013!

Burmese vendor with the infamous Thanaka on her face.

We had at least booked our first few nights in Yangon and would be staying at the Hninn Si Budget Inn. We had organised this from Australia, including a free pick up from the airport. Samsun, our driver, was there to meet us, and in the 30 minutes or so it took to drive us in, we learnt some basic Burmese. Mingalaba (hello) and Gesu ve (thank you) would be used many, many times over on this trip. This was exciting! I felt like a little kid, as I stared at the surroundings as Samsun taught us Burmese and explained what we were looking at. Very different to Thailand.  Most definitely poorer. My appreciation of Myanmar after our two week stay would be ‘it’s what Thailand was like 20 years ago’.

Myanmar street food.

We arrived at the hotel, and settled in; very basic, but very clean. The number of visitors to Myanmar is comparatively small compared to her neighbours, which is primarily due to its current political situation. After the military junta transferred power to a civilian government in 2011, the tourism sector saw a massive increase and in 2012, for the first time in the history of the nation, tourists numbered more than a million.  It is believed that this more than doubled in 2013. So, we were living the change. One side effect of this lightning speed growth and change is that prices for things such as accommodation, transport and tour services have more than doubled in a period one to two years. We had also read that ATMs were virtually non-existent and that only crisp, off-the-press US dollar notes would be accepted. Not that we felt overly comfortable carrying a wad of US dollars, but it did not seem like we had much choice.  Once there, we found that although not common, it was not impossible to find the odd ATM. As I mentioned, we were living the change that is occurring in Myanmar right now!

Holding up the Sule Pagoda.

We spent a couple of days in Yangon, taking in some amazing sights, such as the Sule and Shwedagon pagodas. The former is a spectacular temple which was within walking distance of our accommodation. Surrounded by government buildings and commercial shops, it’s not every city whose primary traffic circle is occupied by a 2000-year-old golden temple. It is particularly beautiful at dusk and indeed very atmospheric.  We did not actually go inside as we had to pay … and considering the way in which the country spends its money, Alex and I were very cautious about paying out!  Whilst Myanmar is a geographically beautiful country, populated by gentle people, it is also notorious for its human rights abuses, so we wanted to ensure that as little of our money as possible was going to the government, via things such as entry fees to temples! I almost lost my marbles when we were told that we had to pay USD $8.00 to get into the Shwedagon Pagoda. Whilst it is the ‘Burmese Mecca’ and arguably the most famous and impressive religious structure in the entire country, I was incensed at the thought of where my money would possibly go. In a country where wages are around USD $40-$50 per month, I found the $8.00 entry fee ludicrous! Come in ‘toursist’ spinner! Breathe in, breathe out … after a little tiff with Alex, in we went … it was swarming with tourists and I was trying not to do a head count and tally the government’s profits! I just have to let some things go!

Shwedagon Pagoda.

I should explain that whilst Myanmar’s currency is the kyat (pronounced chat), that the country also uses the American dollar … nice clean and crisp notes thank you very much!  The exchange rate is approximately just under 1000 kyats to the US dollar.

Shwedagon Pagoda.

I must say despite my little hissy fit, I did enjoy the Shwedagon Pagoda; it is indeed a spectacular sight. We went there in the later part of the afternoon as it morphed from a glittering bright gold to a crimson gold and orange as the sun casts its last rays. Despite the number of people and my initial trauma, I was still bedazzled with the visual intoxication it provided me with. As the masses poised their cameras to take the usual touristy shots, I walked around and tried to take in the peace and tranquility of the beautiful temple away from the maddening crowds. I had found my peace!

The many faces of Myanmar, Yangon.

Over the next couple of days we casually walked around taking in everything from ports to Musmeah Yeshua, Yangon’s only Jewish synagogue; people watching, of course, was the compulsory activity. The sprawling mess of the Bogyoke Aung San Market was in the mix … markets always are! Myanmar, despite its recent surge of tourism is still very much a third world country. The roads desperately need repairing, the footpaths are often pot-holed viewing platforms for the sewerage and mosquitos that live below and most cars would not … have passed a basic inspection … 20 years ago.  But it’s the people that really captured our hearts!  Always a smile which became even broader when we would say hello in Burmese! I could not help but wonder if this would all change when the country would be ‘permanently damaged’ by tourism.  By the end of our time in this country, we would note that it was like Thailand 20 years ago. With change always comes the good, the bad and the ugly! Myanmar … watch this space!

Alex’s doppelganger, on the stop over to Inle Lake.

Our next stop would be the placid Inle Lake, in Shan State, an overnight bus ride from Yangon. I must mention that whilst relatively comfortable, the overnight buses in Myanmar would rock up at their destinations at really odd hours, like 3 or 4am in the morning.  What does one do at this hour? And speaking of buses and the likes … we took a taxi to the Yangon bus terminal, which was some 45 minutes away from the centre, to encounter a bus city!  Seriously, this place was an entity unto itself!  I had never seen anything like it … buses, people, cars and food stands everywhere! It was indeed a small city. We ended up on a VIP bus to Nyaungshwe near the edge of the lake, which was three seats, rather than the usual four, across. Very comfortable, but freezing!  Hello Kitty had never looked so good; the blankets provided were thick, warm and well, very Hello Kitty! We met Fabienne and Jochen, a fun Swiss/ German couple who we chatted, laughed and had a middle-of-the-night food break with. Crazy young travellers like us, note the young! Check out their blog. We tried to sleep through the cold, but I struggled as I found it uncomfortably cold.  When we arrived at Nyaungshwe in the early hours of the morning, I understood why … not only had the bus been cold, but it was very chilly outside … as in mist chilly! When I had looked at temperatures across Myanmar, I had looked at the top temperatures, but not the bottom ones.  We were going to have some cold mornings and nights in this place!

Lake Inle countryside.

We had booked Remember Inn Hotel from Yangon the night before, and once off the bus we made our way there. A thin veil of mist covered the town (and us!) as we walked the short distance to our destination. Sure it was peak tourist season but in Myanmar we never really felt bombarded by by people and tourists. We had not made any advance bookings as we did not really have an itinerary; the plan of action was to book only a night or two in advance, once we had worked out where our next stop would actually be. Sometimes we got a place first pop, and other times it would take a few goes. Luckily, all the places we chose (again, what would we do without mobile technology and the capacity to review potential places!?) were comfortable and clean. Over our two weeks we would pay between USD$20.00 and $40.00 per night with $25-30 being an average (double bed and private bathroom). This has apparently more than doubled in the last couple of years.  This is what we call progress!

Our boat on Lake Inle.

Weaver, Inle Lake.

Nyaungshwe has grown into a bustling traveller centre, and this place is probably as close as Myanmar gets to having a backpacker scene. And with a backpacker scene comes good coffee … of course I found some! We even found a restaurant that made great soup and veggie dishes; Wa Toat became our local! On paper, Inle Lake is about 22 kilometres long and 11 kilometres wide, but it really is hard to tell where the lake finishes and the marshes start. In any case, it is obligatory, almost a rite of passage, to do the Inle Lake longboat trip. The drivers of the boats will almost certainly find you, before you find them. Indeed we were approached by many, and in the end we went with an affable guy called Kyo-Kyo (pronounced Jo-Jo). So, we spent a day on the lake, looking and stopping at everything from stilt-house villages and floating gardens to lotus weaving and cheroot (a type of cigar) making. And then there were monasteries (including the famous jumping cat one, but there didn’t appear to be any cats, let alone jumping ones!), temples and pagodas.  There are a number of tribes and groups in the country, and the Lake is renowned for the Intha technique of leg rowing, where one leg is wrapped around the paddle to drive the blade through the water. The balancing act is amazing to watch!

Market day in Nyaungshwe.

We also happened to be in Nyaungshwe on its big market day, where hill tribe people come from around the surrounding areas to sell their wares and food. I had a mission … to buy another jumper!  My legs were OK in the only pants I had, Thai Fisherman’s pants, but I just needed that extra layer up top for boat trips, early mornings, late nights and bus trips.  I picked myself up a lovely little grey number.  In fact, so lovely that I only ever wore it inside out! The style was acceptable, the print on it was not! Well, it’s certainly better than being cold!

We were going to visit Mandalay next, but we’d heard of a little place called Hsipaw up north, that was supposed to not be very touristy as well as being a great place to do some hill-tribe trekking … the kind of trekking that was available in northern Thailand years ago before the masses descended. With a flexible itinerary and no firm plans, we decided that that would be our next stop. So, we booked our ticket and were off without further ado.

The infamous fishermen of Inle Lake.

As usual, the bus would arrive at its final destination at a really odd time … 3am!  We tried to choose the bus that left latest but that made little, if any, difference. We met a great French guy, Fabien, at the bus station as we were leaving Nyangshwe.  We would end up at the same guest house in Hsipaw and in fact on the same hill tribe trek. We actually met some lovely travellers not only around the Inle Lake area but around Myanmar in general.  We noticed that it was a bit more of a mature travellers set and that there were very few young, say under 25s, around. I feel Myanmar just takes that little bit more to navigate and it most certainly isn’t party central.  If it’s a party you want you are certainly ‘barking up the wrong country’!

Ombi

Next: An ‘uncommercial’ Christmas in Hsipaw, Mandalay and New Year in Bagan.

“The amount of love and good feelings you have at the end of your life is equal to the love and good feelings you put out during your life” – Anonymous

Somewhere over central Australia.

Alex and baby Sean.

Ombi and Nu Deang.

With Link’s mother.

Myanmar … moving forward!

This is how we wire our house,! Yangon.

Alex enjoying Shan soup in Yangon.

OH&S eat your heart out, Yangon.

Local Thai coffee at Pong and Link’s local market.

Leaving Melbourne Airport, with the obligatory coffee.

Nu Deang with Pong’s parents.

Downtown Yangon.

Temples of Yangon.

Market food, Yangon. The many faces of Myanmar, Yangon.

Free wireless at the temple; how times have changed!

No money to pay your USD $8.00 entry fee?  Do not fear!

Outside mosque, Yangon.

One of the many mosques in Yangon.

The many faces of Myanmar, Yangon.

Downtown Yangon with sule Pagoda in background.

Reading the morning paper, Yangon.

Nyaungshwe morning market, Inle Lake.

Nyaungshwe morning market, Inle Lake.

Nyaungshwe morning market, Inle Lake.

Chicken anyone? Morning market, Inle.

Nyaungshwe, Inle Lake.

Nyaungshwe.

Nyaungshwe lady.

Washing time, Nyaungshwe.

Around Inle Lake.

The wheels on the bus go ’round and ’round.

Sunset, around Nyaungshwe.

Around the Nyaungshwe countryside.

Nyaungshwe lady.

Seamstresses, Nyaungshwe market.

With Pensiri at Lamphu House

This trip was proving to be lots of fun and I had , as usual, been able to pack in a fair bit.  Pong and Link had asked me to come back and stay with them for my last few days, but I had some serious ‘Bangkok cramming’ to do and I needed to be in the middle of the action to do it.

I had already booked my hotel, Siam 2 in Banglamphu. We had stayed there there on our last trip so I knew exactly what to expect and how to get there. It was comfy, clean and close enough to the action without actually being in it. The minibus from Kanchanaburi stopped very close by and I swaggered to my accommodation like a local … although I am sure that with my backpack, I hardly looked like one!  This part of Bangkok always feels like home to me!

Mango and sticky rice

I was on a mission … as Alex tells me, I usually am! I immediately went to my ‘local’ dentist and made an appointment to have my teeth cleaned and checked.  I only ever use dentists in Australia if I have to as they are exorbitant compared to other countries.  Appointment next morning!

I met some lovely people at Siam 2, including Aussie sisters Diane and Deb and Argentine-Brazilian couple Gabriele and Cybele. It’s always lovely to meet people who you click with. Siam has a pool so a few nighttime sessions reminiscing about both Brazil and Argentina were had. Cybele and Gabriele, don’t be surprised if I do knock on your door in Buenos Aires and say hello!

Thai coffee and green curry at the ‘local’

My next days were spent walking around various parts of Bangkok, eating (bring Thai Street food on!), having massages (stick those elbows in, none of that ‘soft’ stuff for me!), people-watching, shopping, jumping on and off buses, which of course included meeting and chatting to people, and … I was even able to fit in some sightseeing of the cultural sort. I must say, I was a bit disappointed with Mahboonkrong (better known as MBK) Centre. At eight stories high and with some 2000 shops, it’s a shopper’s mecca.  I must say, I think it has gone rapidly down hill in the last few years, and the shopping just ain’t what it used to be. It seems to be more expensive and more commercial. Oh well, I still had Chatachuk to go. This is the mother of all markets, and seriously, if you can’t find it here (15 000 plus booths!) you won’t find it anywhere! For someone who hates shopping, I love this place! I love the vibe, the frenetic energy, the mix of people, and the many, many different things on offer. As usual, I put in some serious hours, but my diligence paid off and I found and bought what I was looking for.

Raw silk, Jim Thompson’s House

On my way back from the market, I visited Jim Thompson’s House (the cultural, sightseeing bit), very close to Siam Square.  I have been meaning to do this for years but somehow have never gotten around to it. Jim Thompson was an American who moved to Thailand in the 1940’s and in 1959 pretty much single- handedly turned the Thai silk industry into a hugely successful export business. What’s remarkable about ‘this house’ is that it’s actually a collection of six traditional Thai wooden homes which he then reconstructed in a jungle like garden. Thompson was also an avid collector of both Thai and oriental art.  The guided tour was well and truly worth it.

Sunday night had arrived and I had fitted in everything I needed and wanted to do.  Always room for more though!  There’s always next time, and of course there will be a next time!  I would be flying back home the next day, on my birthday 14 October, but with the stopover in Brunei, would not get home until the 15th.

The changing face of Bangkok

Another trip down, and many, many more to go!

Ombi

“Dont cry because it’s over, smile because it happened” – Dr Seuss

Next: Christmas and New Year in Myanmar (Burma) … with stopovers in Bangkok … of course!

The many faces of Khao San Road

A ‘nice journey’ for some …

Banglamphu street vendor

Street food … plastic table cloth and all

Ah Ronald … you can run but you cannot hide!

Pigs ears anyone?

Pretty clothes for the bigger woman?

Fake it till you make it!

Fried scorpion perhaps?

Watch out!

No (extra) words needed … Chatachuk Market

Deb and Di at Siam 2

Flowers, Jim Thompson’s House

Banglamphu, Bangkok

Roti Ti-Mahaba, one of my fave Bangkok restaurants

Toilet etiquette

Cybele and Gabriel

Thai Quit Line

Random sign close to Bangkok

Miss Tim in Ko Samet, why not Madame Joe in Bangkok?

Bangkok