Places to Visit in Myanmar

Myanmar was once booming with tourism and was the next big thing in South East Asia (SEA). You would get such great deals at much cheaper than some other parts of SEA. It had people visiting in their droves until the military coup in 2021. The situation has changed significantly since then and has slowed many things down.

 

I moved to Myanmar for work in May 2023 and although I did not write much while I was there (better safe than sorry), I tried to see a bit of the country. 

See my first post on Myanmar in case you missed it Slowly Making My Way Around Myanmar

I took a few weekend trips around and discovered some beautiful places I think are worth sharing with you, in case you happen to visit that part of the world.

Ngwe Saung

Ngwe Saung is a beach resort area located about 238km from Yangon. It's a 5 hour drive without traffic but 6 hours realistically. I got there by public transport, by coach/bus. It was the only place in the country I was allowed to get to by public transport.

Reaching for the sun

Departure from Yangon from the pick up point was at 5:30am on a Friday and by 11am, I was settled in the hotel. I returned on Sunday and the pick up from the front of the hotel was at noon. By evening around 6pm, I was back home. 

There is a strip of hotels and the coaches could drop you off right in front of your hotel, as well as pick you up. That was the case for me when I visited, making transport so convenient.

I stayed at Emerald sea resort in a beach facing bungalow. It was nice to wake up to the sea and take walks by the beach. The hammocks were nice to lazy around in and just watch time go by.

I was told of the fanciest resort in the area called Ngwe Saung yatch club & resort, so I wandered around a bit on Saturday and had lunch there.

 The resort is lovely and has some great picture spots

The joy when food is on the way

And when it arrives 😀

The photos above were at the yatch club, while those below were back at the Emerald sea resort.

There were some water activities but all I wanted to do was rest and recover. I took morning and evening walks and had easy days, it was a relaxing weekend which was what I needed.

Inle Lake, Shan state

The hotel we stayed at was glorious! Aureum Palace Hotel, Inle - luxury in the middle of nowhere. To add a personal touch to it, each morning, I woke up to some lovely notes addressed to me, stuck on the door from the hotel. I loved them. We spent 3 nights.

We didn't use the pool as we were only there for a long weekend and had activities lined up. But I managed to get some photos.

The reception area

The hotel had boats waiting for tours. Some had left already when I got this photo

Inle lake fisherman

My travel buddy and I

The fishermen of Inle lake are known for their fishing prowess. They cast their nets into the lake, standing on one leg at the edge of the boat, while they wrap the other leg around an oar. It is impressive to see them balanced like that while they work. Apparently, this technique is used because of the reed and water plants in/on the lake. Standing gives the fishermen a better view of the water compared to when they are seated. The technique has been passed down from generations and Myanmar might be the only country where this technique is used.

Back in the day when tourism was at its peak in Myanmar, they also used some basket like nets and put on a full display for tourists. I heard that if you pay them, they would oblige, but we chose to watch them do their everyday activity.

Houses, pagodas and stores make up the community in Inle. And they all are a part of the lake. We stopped by this shop where we met women who maintained the culture of wearing brass rings around their necks. 

I gathered that girls start wearing these neck rings from as early as 5 years old. The rings are stacked, making their necks longer over time. The weight of the brass rings exerts pressure on the area of the clavicle and the chest elongating the neck over time. These elongated necks are a sign/standard of beauty.

I understood that the women do not take the rings off their necks and do everything with them, including sleep with them. I was adorned with one and it was HEAVY! I don't know how they manage to live with them. I wonder whether it might cause pain or health issues down the line...I digress. This cultural practice has different stories behind it, but it is one I don't plan to try again.

We also went by a textile store, I'm not sure if to call it a factory as it was quite small. The workers who were all women, used their traditional yarn machines. It was wonderful to see.

We got some locally made fabric but I doubt they were all made at the store. 

I had seen many people smoke these cigarettes, so watching them get made and packed was fascinating. I was even gifted a pack which I gave to the boat captain.

 

We passed by this hotel which was unfortunately closed as it got flooded from the last monsoon (rainy) season and was being refurbished. This was just one of many and is sadly one of the risks associated with business in the area as places could easily get flooded, which happens yearly. 

I find water soothing and relaxing so this trip was a treat. I would highly recommend a weekend trip to Inle.  

Mandalay, Mandalay Region

This is the 2nd largest city in Myanmar after Yangon and I happened to visit twice for work. Stories have it that it was the royal capital of the last monarchy. I did notice some grand structures but I was careful with taking photos as there was some military presence. I also noticed that the city is definitely neater than Yangon!

It still remains the economic centre of upper Myanmar. There is a noticeable presence of Chinese nationals as it shares the border with China. Many goods also come in from China and stores were well stocked at the time I visited. 

Random shots as we drove by

 

There are tuktuks everywhere. Motorbikes are equally as popular.

I was given suggestions on possible things to do but both times I visited, I didn't get round to being a tourist as much as I would have liked. I did enjoy the food while I was there. And from stories I've heard, Mandalay is definitely worth exploring. 

My colleague took me to a Hindu temple and I got a mini orientation, then we wandered around the area. The night market was across the street but I didn't have the energy to go there.

Street food...

Not the best view but the view from my hotel room

There are a number of roof top bars and I got a good view of the sun set from this one. The food there was really good.

I did not see much of the tourist part of Mandalay but I feel like I did not miss much for someone who had lived and had seen a bit of the country, as there are similarities in many of the things one sees around the country. Mandalay hill is popular and the region is sure worth visiting.