Blogs from Yangon, Yangon Region, Burma, Asia - page 3

Entering the Pagoda can be through any of the gates, North, South, East or West. By each there is a lift but we began at the East removing our flip flops (and putting into plastic bags as they were soaked), kind of guards watch to ensure no footwear, not even socks. Signs are in English with clear pictures, like road signs, banning inappropriate dress. After paying the entrance fee for foreigners, K8000 Chris took a selfie of the 2 of us and we began our walk around the stupa clockwise as is the tradition. It was not as crowded as he had expected being a national holiday and at no point did it feel a crush. Due to the rain the marble surface was extremely slippery and mats had been laid but I found they hurt ... read more

Thursday eve 19th Oct As I had a couple of hours before I need to sleep I thought I would walk the 10 minutes up the road to the large seated Buddha and maybe on to the reclining one. In half hour I am back. According to the map I reached the steps up to it so took my flip flops off and rustled in my bag for the camera. Dogs came to see if something was for them but did not come too close. As I climbed the steps other dogs began barking and coming down towards me - a man shooed them away but as I reached the top more came and seemed quite aggressive. I could not see what was in the buildings but to the right may have been the Buddha. That ... read more

The Yangon drive from airport was more stop than go and took over an hour. Chris told me some history of the city, (didn't like to say I'd read it in preparation for traveling), explained how to agree a price for the ride before getting in a taxi and told me a bit about himself. He was in Singapore for 5 years after being a student in Yangon. He began guiding in 2010. Out of the window I saw little trucks with people lying on stuff in the back, expensive cars with closed windows for aircon, cheaper cars with open windows, small Hyundai buses full of commuters and all of them in crush to get along the streets and often switching lanes or turning left dodging the oncoming traffic. Many streets had small shack-like stalls reminding ... read more

Jo John picked us up at the Hotel at 9am and we set off for the day sightseeing beautiful Yangon. Swedadagon Pagoda - Truly amazing and one of the wonders of Myanmar culture. We then had a coconut water and the inside of the coconut very nice on a hot day. Reclining Buddha in downtown Yangon 65 meters long and 16 meters high, housed in a big shed North of Kandawgyi Lake completed renovation in 1907 by the Buddhists and foreign tourist donations. National Museum located in Dagon of Burmese art, history and culture in Myanmar. Founded in 1952, the five-story museum has an extensive collection of ancient artifacts, ornaments, works of art inscriptions and historic memorabilia related to the history, culture and civilization of Burmese people. Kandawgyi Lake one of two major lakes in Yangon. ... read more

When I left off on my last entry, I was feeling fatigued and unsure if I could sustain this travel. After Australia, I went to Singapore for four days. Family, friends, and food helped lift my spirits. A painful but much needed massage helped relax my weary muscles and joints. And, I had an unexpected boost to my post-travel job prospects. With all this happening, I got my spring back and I felt ready to tackle Myanmar! First Impressions of Yangon I landed in Yangon mid-afternoon on Monday September 4th. After stepping into an airport taxi, I realized something didn't feel right. It took me about ten minutes before I figured out what was wrong: almost all the steering wheels I saw were on the right... and the cars drive on the right. I asked the ... read more