Blogs from Burma, Asia - page 8

No, it is impossible; it is impossible to convey the life sensation of any given epoch of one’s existence – that which makes its truth, its meaning – its subtle and penetrating essence. It is impossible. We live as we dream – alone. - Joseph Conrad, Heart of Darkness I sat alone at the top of the red brick temple, looking out over a land that was not my home, and I dreamed about peace. Ten million miles from anything like an utterance of my other life, I gazed over the vast open plains of central Burma and dreamed with my eyes wide open. I listened to the wind and the birds. I watched the shadows of the world appear and disappear as great white clouds drifted under the sun. Without any other discernable human presence ... read more

Inle lake is probably the most touristic part of Myanmar and at Inle lake, I probably did the most touristic thing that one can do, which is take a boat tour to all the so called 'sights'. Now, don't think touristic as in Thailand touristic, no it is nothing like that, but for Myanmar there are a lot of tourists, especially tour-groups. And they all take the boat tour, you can see them zipping around the lake in numbered boats umbrella's or parasols up in the air, depending on the weather. And so I found myself on one of those sleek boats jetting through the water and looking at the folks that call the shores of this lake their home, and somewhere along the line I started thinking how strange this all was. Because I found ... read more

Barring nations mired in active armed conflict, countries with the most problematic travel considerations are usually the most rewarding. Myanmar adds to this catalogue of nations where once the restrictions and conditions are successfully surmounted, the rewards are immense. Due to financial sanctions placed upon Myanmar, where credit cards and travellers cheques are effectively useless, it necessitates all travellers obtaining a collection of clean, crisp, unfolded and unmarked US notes. This appears easy in many countries, but in Thailand, where banks are fond of marking foreign currency with all manner of notations, this proved to be a difficult task. After visiting a least half a dozen banks and money changers with eraser in hand in order to remove any pencil marks, I was able to successfully obtain the necessary funds. Visas must be obtained prior to ... read more

Painting seller: "Where do you come from?" Me: "Holland." Painting seller: "Oh, that is a beautiful country. You are very good at football? Do you know Robben?" Me: "Yes, football, and yes I know Robben." Painting seller: "Is this your first time in Myanmar?" Me: "Yes." Painting seller: "Do you like it?" Me: "Yes, it is a lovely country." Painting seller starts unfurling his rolled up paintings and getting to the point: "Do you want to see my paintings?" Me: "No, thank you." Painting seller: "Just look at them, you don't have to buy them." Me: "No, I am really not interested, sorry." Painting seller: "Maybe later?" Me: "No, also not later?" Painting seller: "Maybe tomorrow?" Me: "No, never." Painting seller: "Ok, maybe tomo... read more

Do you see the story? Do you see anything? It seems to me I am trying to tell you a dream – making a vain attempt, because no relation of a dream can convey the dream sensation, that commingling of absurdity, surprise, and bewilderment in a tremor of struggling revolt, that notion of being captured by the incredible which is of the very essence of dreams…- Joseph Conrad, Heart of Darkness Burma… Oh man, I don’t even know where to begin with this one. In my futile attempts to describe this experience to friends, a word that has continued to pop out of my mouth is “wild.” And the more I think on it now, the more I find that to be an appropriate adjective. This was unlike anything I’ve ever done or anywhere I’ve ever ... read more

They all can be found in Myanmar! Myanmar that beautiful land, the country that has been on my mind for a long time. I have finally made it here and it is like stepping back in time. Some say Myanmar is like S.E. Asia used to be 75 years ago, I don't know about that, but certainly I would say it harkens back to how it was 30 or 40 years ago in this region. So does it live up to my expectations? Yep, it certainly does! I loved it on arrival, it somehow reminds me of my youth in Thailand. Even though I think already at the beginning of the eighties Thailand was more advanced then Myanmar is now. Still it approximates it quite well. Strange how I found what I was looking for in ... read more

I am looking for 2-3 traveling companions for a short 14 day photography trip to Burma/Myanmar in March 2012. I had a full trip of 4, but the other three had to pull out. I have created a MeetUp site for discussion. http://www.meetup.com/Travel-Photography-and-Writing/" The price will be somewhere in the area of $1500 for the two weeks (excluding international flights). Might go lower as I work with other companies, but will not go any higher. I have several possible itineraries, but here is the one I like the most. Day 1) Yangon arrival in the morning – after a brief rest, shoot at downtown and major pagodas including great Shwedagon Transportation: Car Hotel: Kandawgyi Palace Hotel / 5* / Lakefront Deluxe Day 2) Yangon – drive to Golden Rock in the morning with shooting at local ... read more

THE LONG RIDE TO INLE was about as uncomfortable as it gets. Having booked tickets only the night before our seats were way in the back of the bus and they did not recline, which meant that the guy’s head from the seat in front of me may as well have been laying in my lap. Like really, I could have brushed my fingers through his hair and sang him a lullaby. The road was so bumpy that anytime you tried to lay your head against the window it was abruptly thrown in the opposite direction and then back towards the window with amazing force. The heat was stifling. Sleeping was impossible. Around 1am we stopped at a brightly lit rest stop (think Christmas lights and fake palm trees) for what we thought was a routine ... read more