When Steph and I planned on traveling in SE Asia we both wanted to go to Burma. When I travelled there 10 years ago (see previous post here) it was one of the best traveling experiences of my life so I was excited to share it with Stephanie. I was also eager to see how the political changes in the country have benefited the Burmese people, if at all. I was pretty skeptical that the announced political changes recently would have much of an impact on the country's people, but once we arrived, I was happily proved wrong. There was a noticeable difference in the openness of the people. When we checked into our guest house in Yangon there were posters, calendars and even a clock of "The Lady" (Aung San Suu Kyi) everywhere. I also immediately noticed how the people seemed a lot more relaxed and at ease. There were people hanging out on the streets, chatting with storekeepers, and children playing soccer. Years ago, people who were seen by the police (or undercover military) in groups were viewed as suspicious, so things were very quiet on the streets and there was an eerie feeling of secrecy. Thankfully, one thing that hasn't changed is that the people of Burma are still the kindest people I have ever encountered in my life. Over and over, we were greeted warmly, hugged, and invited into the homes of the people we met. To be honest, it was overwhelming at times. (Steph was even moved to tears a few times because, as Westerners, we're just not used to this kind of kindness with no strings attached.)
Peasant woman in Bagan
Novice Nuns outside Shwedagon Pagoda in Yangon
Dave, Kate, and Steph at dinner in Bagan
Steph's favorite kid outside Kyaukme
Beautiful tshirt sales person in Bagan
Ten years ago, that kindness was even more overwhelming because the people were so oppressed by the government and their lives were so dismal. It went against everything I had expected. On this visit, it was great to see the people being their same genuine friendly people, but able to be more relaxed about who they talk to and about what. There is also an empowerment that the people have now that is evident. In Mandalay (read here), Steph's motorcycle taxi driver said to her, "They can't stop us now. Now that we know freedom they will never be able to take it from us." He was so proud of his country's people, what they have overcome, and their commitment to holding on tight to to their freedom. They still have a long way to go. Burma still ranks among the poorest in the world. It's healthcare system is one of the worst in the world. Their education program is one of the least developed in the world. But there is progress. Tourism is on the rise. The politics are evolving. Things are getting better and, with any luck (and the continued hard work of the Burmese), things will continue to get better.
Gorgeous Shwedagon Pagoda inYangon
Novice monks outside Kyaukme
Our hiking group in Kyaukme
Amazing temple in Bagan
Another things much different from ten years ago: the roads. In most parts of SE Asia, when a guide book says that a bus ride will take 8 hours, it will usually take about 10. When I was in Burma before, the roads were the worst I had ever encountered. This time around, many of the roads were new and in great shape. This change has happened so quickly that the guide books haven't caught up yet. So, when a guide book says a bus ride in Burma will take 8 hours, it probably actually takes 6! Great relief! Not to mention, with tourism increasing so rapidly that all the buses are also new and really comfortable. Also, the sickest I have ever been was in Burma 10 years ago. Luckily, on this visit, we noticed that there is a lot more bottled (ie: safe and clean) water, cooking standards and personal hygiene are improving and, in general, living conditions are better. So, while we didn't particularly love the Burmese food, we didn't get sick while we were there, despite eating at plenty of local places and even a few street food stands.
Sunset in Bagan
River outside Inle Lake
Biking in Bagan
Since most western countries have recently lifted many of the sanctions against Burma there has been a huge increase in tourism. While it is great for some of the people in the country there was definitely a bit of a tourist track and, at times, we could feel like were on a traveler conveyor belt. Yangon, Mandalay, Inle Lake and Bagan are the four main stops on the circuit, and the price of guesthouses was high in those places. (At least, high for SE Asia standards.) There really aren't a large number of places people can visit in Burma because the government still limits the places tourists can visit, there is some rebel fighting in some areas, and tourist infrastructure isn't set up everywhere. While most of these sites are great to see there is a feeling of making the rounds.
U Bein's Bridge outside Mandalay
Gorgeous view on our Kyaukme hike
The next five to ten years will be key for Burma. The country is rich with natural resources such as lumber and gem stones but they are in a very vulnerable position right now. With a lot of economic sanctions lifted, many countries and companies are looking on how to make a profit from Burma. I only hope that the Burmese government continues to improve the country for the people. I am, however, fearful that these subtle political changes were just another strategic way for a few powerful people in Burma to make more money. Only time will tell.
Check out this video of some of our favorite photos from Burma. (Note: the video will not appear in your email newsfeed. You'll need to click through to the blog to view the video in the post. Or you can click here to watch it on YouTube.)
Check out all our favorite Burma pics here. (A few more favorites are in this post and below.) You can also check out all of our photos and videos by visiting our Flickr page and our YouTube channel. And, if you want to read the first of our "Revisited" Wrap Up Series, click here to read about India.
Coming up soon is a round-up of our best and worst moments and memories of Burma and the second installment of our series called, "The Good, The Bad, The 'Are You Effing Kidding Me?!?!'" Stay tuned!
Want a clue? Click play for the perfect soundtrack to this post. (Just press play and listen to it while you read. As always, email blog subscribers, the video won't show up in your feed. You'll need to visit the blog and click play.)
WE ARE GOING TO AFRICA!!!
(PS - I already told BFF Lauren that we were going to Africa and the first thing she said is that she wants Tom to hold me up into the air while we stand on the edge of a cliff, a la Simba and Rafiki. I have the weirdest and best friends.)
I mentioned in this post about Siem Reap that I have cared about a family from Cambodia for the past 15 years. I don't know the exact date, but they moved to the United States after the genocide in their country and after suffering monumental loss of lives in their family. I won't tell their story - it's not mine to tell - but I will say that hearing their story when I was 14 changed how I viewed the world. Before then, I didn't know anything about Cambodia's Killing Fields and Pol Pot's Khmer Rouge army. I didn't know that this brutal regime killed over 2.5 million of their own people through execution, exhaustion, and starvation. I didn't know that such awful things could happen in the same world I lived in. But they shared parts of their story with me, and I learned about this beautiful country and the horrible history they'd survived.
At Choeung Ek Killing Field, people leave bracelets at the mass grave sites in remembrance of the
This is the post you've been waiting for. Just admit it. This whole time, we've been posting about diving and yoga and UNESCO World Heritage Sites, and how fantastic life is, you've secretly been waiting for our WTF-This-Place-Is-Awful post, haven't you? Well, here it is, in all its bizarre glory. (Anna L. and Pam M., you probably do not want to read the rest of this post.)
I've been interested in Cambodia for almost 15 years, so finally being there was a bit surreal. There were only a few families who were ethnically different in my very white, very Christian home town. Yet, somehow, I found myself befriending the eldest son of one of those families. (Truth: He was my high school sweetheart. Shocking, right? You didn't think I had a life before Mr. Tom?) He and his family were from Cambodia (his parents, his younger brother, and 2 younger sisters), and I instantly became fascinated with their country and culture. On top of that, I fell in love with his family and they are all still important to me. (We even got to see them on our cross-country road trip before we left for India, and Tom finally got to meet them!)
But that's just the beginning of the explanation as to why visiting Cambodia was so satisfying for me. Back then, I never imagined I would be traveling the world. I'd never been on an airplane. I'd never seen the ocean (with the exception of a trip to Florida when I was 2 and didn't remember). I'd never thought much about life outside of my home town. By becoming close to this family, my world expanded. For the first time in my life, I considered someplace other than Missouri. And so, for the past 15 years, I've been anticipating a visit to Cambodia. After we finished our fantastic week of diving the Surin and Similan Islands (read here), we made our way to Siem Reap on an overnight bus from Bangkok, and my 15 year-long dream finally came true. (Side note: Crossing the border on an 11-hour bus ride from Bangkok was less-than-fun. The Thai border patrol are crazy corrupt. They created their own "Border Patrol" office with a hand-written sign that says "Cambodia Border" so that you'll use them to process your visa at an inflated price. Luckily, we are super savvy travelers and didn't fall for that bull crap.)
My favorite part of a dive is when the descent is over, I'm perfectly buoyant and I take my first calm breath 20 meters down and look around at my underwater world for the next hour. For me, there's nothing else like it. Tom's favorite moment is when we're at the surface, excitement and expectation running high for the dive about to come. We look around, regulators in place, making eye contact with our group. "Is everyone ready?" we mentally ask. 'OK' signal is given by all, followed by a down-pointing thumb. And then the real fun begins. From the moment we got our PADI Open Water certification in November, 2010, I've been hooked. At least once a week, I dream about diving, and sometimes I'm even swimming along side whales. Tom had the genius idea for us to board a dive boat to explore Thailand's Surin and Similan Islands and - no surprise here - it turned out to be one of the best weeks of my life. We booked our trip with Similan Diving Safaris and, after our time in Koh Lanta (read here), we took a bus up to Khao Lak, boarded the Similan Explorer, and set sail!
One of the strange things about traveling for such a long time is that we come across certain places to where one nationality flocks. There is usually no known reason why this happens, it just does. There were the scantily-clad Russians in Goa, the hash-smoking, guitar-playing Israelis in Hampi and, when we visited Koh Lanta, Thailand, after our 3.5 weeks in Burma (wrap-up coming soon), we were surrounded by over-tanned, blonde-haired Swedes. The main reason we went to Koh Lanta was to brush up on our diving skills before we set out on a dive boat for 5 days. Koh Lanta is a very long island so while there may be a lot of people on the island, there are so many beaches that it never gets too crowded. We stayed on a quiet stretch of Koh Lanta's Long Beach at Palm Beach Bungalows and our hut was only 50 meters from the sea.
