Places to Visit in Myanmar 2

 Continued...

In case you missed the previous post, you might find it useful, so here is the link

Bagan

The ancient city of Bagan in Myanmar is a UNESCO World Heritage Site. It is considered to be significant in the history of Myanmar as that's where a good part of civilisation in the country started.

Lined with temples, stupas and pagodas, in burnt red bricks but also whitish and black ones, some of them date back to the 15th century. There are also the signature gold temples that you'll typically find everywhere in the country.

Hotel staff have the best recommendations if you are open to them. We didn't know that there was a sunset cruise but were glad to jump on when it was proposed. 

We took off at the jetty by 4:30pm and were back at 6:00pm.

 The cruise was relaxing as we watched the sun set, with a flow of drinks and snacks on board.

Look at that sunset

Hot Air Ballooning is one of the activities Bagan is known for. We went on a ride with Oriental Ballooning Myanmar. 

Hot Air Baloon Set Up

We were picked up bright and early, just after 5am. The hot air balloon ride was incredible with the view from above. 

Watching the sun rise was gorgeous

The lovely ladies that made this trip memorable

The view of Bagan from above

Our captain was such a good sport. He works seasonally as the weather is only conducive for hot air balloons for a few months. So he comes in and leaves, he is British.

After the hot air balloon, the company popped champagne to celebrate the ride, then we were issued certificates and small packs of souvenirs (a hat, a note pad, pen) then we were back at the hotel in time for breakfast.

We hired a car for the rest of the day to see the city. 

From the stupas and pagodas, to markets, getting henna done and just being tourists, I was particularly impressed with the architecture of many of the buildings we saw. The people who built them with no technology and much less information than we have available today must have been geniuses. We spent the entire day looking around the city. 

Yangon

Yangon is the commercial capital and biggest city in Myanmar, one of those cities that is not necessarily pretty, but has many hidden gems. Navigating the city requires the knowledge of a local or someone who has been there for some time. You might eventually find your way around alone, but it requires time.

I had my routines and formed my life in Yangon for the two years I was there. There was a lot to explore in Yangon.

Visiting the famous Shwedagon pagoda was one of the first things I did.

The first time I went, I went at the crack of dawn (around 5:10am), so I could watch the sun rise. I was the first foreigner visiting that day, so we had to wake some people up to issue tickets which cost 10,000 Myanmar kyats and 2,000 kyats for parking. It was nice to see the morning routine of monks chanting, people paying respect and saying their prayers to buddhas and food set out for the buddhas, etc.

The next time I went, I went in the evening, to watch the sun set and see the pagoda in it's glory with all the lights.

I visited the national museum, the face below is one many know that represents Myanmar.

Aung San Suu Kyi

I started playing touch rugby in Myanmar. A game I never knew but grew to enjoy a lot.

I made friends with different groups of people with whom I discovered Yangon.

I visited countless pagodas and temples

This building goes back to colonial times

I found a church, the Methodist English Church. I attended regularly and even had a small community from there

These children always made me happy

In Yangon, I went on a walking food tour to explore food in Myanmar which was very interesting. Organised by Saba street food, the walking tour is a great way to see downtown and the guide knows the city well. There is a lot of food, so we had to pace our eating not to get full too quickly. The tour took about 2h30mins, a good amount of time, not rushed, that you don't even realise how far you have walked. I highly recommend it.

Would you eat lavae? I did!

Another way to see Yangon and towns close by is by a bike tour with Uncharted horizons Myanmar. I went on a half day tour that was so worth it.

We rode through villages and crossed over from Yangon by boat. It was interesting how dogs were the obstacles to watch out for in the village. Children lined the path with hands outstretched for high fives 😀 The tour took about 5 hours.

Beyond organised tours, there is a lot of street food and open air markets during the day and at night. Eat your way through Myanmar! 

This black chicken was fascinating to me but it also tasted good

Myanmar people love their food! You could go out to a foreign fancy restaurant but none of that excites them, at the end, their food will always come first. Cuisine is worth exploring, some dishes more easily than others, but there are various curries on offer. There are also lots of international restaurants so you can easily find food from different countries in Yangon.

There a few parks around Yangon for picnics and we even went on a roller coaster, it looked worn out, but it did the job and thankfully there was no incident.

The roller coaster right behind us

We had a picnic after the roller coaster ride

This park was just beside where I lived and has a special place in my heart. I went on morning walks here and bought papaya from a lady whose house is right on the side. She had her business set up for those of us who walked and exercised in the park.  

Photo from one of my early morning walks

I wandered around Yangon's neighbourhoods sometimes and this was one of the days downtown.

The last place I visited before I left was Hpa An, a town in the Southeast.

Thanaka, on the ladies faces, is a local product used as make up but also as sunscreen

Yangon

I cannot finish this post without recommending that you get as many massages as possible while you are in Myanmar. You'll be spoilt for a choice of places and the massages are affordable. I went for weekly massages and my favourite place to go to was; 'Anchan House of Spa' in Yangon. The massages did wonders for recovery from exercise and just general relaxation. I always slept so well afterwards.

Myanmar has its difficulties but there is normal life and I do hope that peace returns to the beautiful country.