http://www.travelblog.org/Asia/Burma/Yangon/ Travel adventures in journals and photos from Asia , Burma , Yangon en-us Wed, 06 Jan 2010 17:19:50 +0000 Wed, 06 Jan 2010 17:19:50 +0000 It looks like Father Christmas threw up in the lobby of the ParkRoyal Hotel.The lobby is decorated in a garish redgreengold theme. Several huge Christmas trees covered in long loops of sparkling lights and glittering ornaments are located just inside the entry. Christmas carols are blaring on the hotel's speaker system. The Christmas decorations don't stop at the lobby....the exterior of t http://www.travelblog.org/Asia/Burma/Yangon/blog-459284.html What do you think of when you hear the word Burma British men wearing linen suits sipping gin and tonics while resting in wicker chairs being cooled by ceiling fans Stunning ancient temples and abundant natural resources A horrible and oppressive military regime Cyclone Nargis in 2008 and the government's initial refusal to accept foreign aid Democratic leader Aung San Suu Kyi's ongo http://www.travelblog.org/Asia/Burma/Yangon/blog-458375.html Myanmar Burma..... whichever you call it it's definitely worth a visit to if you can figure out how to get here. I think BKK and SIN are two sure shot ways. There's also the Visa you need to apply for can't get it on arrival and bring freshcleanpristine 100 usd only. There are no ATMs travellers cheques are not accepted nor are credit cards. Fun right well actually that's the fun part. http://www.travelblog.org/Asia/Burma/Yangon/blog-437243.html To go or not to go to Burma This is the question that plays on most peoplersquos minds about travelling to a country where the military governmentrsquos human rights record is abominable and by visiting you put money into their pockets through tourism revenue received in taxes and various charges. It is particularly a difficult decision to make when you have been working with refugees from http://www.travelblog.org/Asia/Burma/Yangon/blog-424840.html Myanmar. Yangon. Gleich den ersten Tag verbrachten wir uns auf die bequeme Tour. Mit einem Guide. Andrew nannte er sich nachdem er unsere Aussprache von seinem wahren Namen Aung Mya als Beleidigung empfand. Zuerst ins Hotel das einzige whrend der ganzen Reise mit warmen Wasser aber das wussten wir eben damals noch nicht. Sonst haetten wir eine Thermosflasche mit handgeschoepften yangoner Hochqu http://www.travelblog.org/Asia/Burma/Yangon/blog-414009.html When I hear the name Shwedagon Paya I think of a massive temple with lavish decor. Large diamonds the biggest one is the size of my fist and rubies crown the tip of the really high gold pagoda. Many people come to pray pay respect to the Buddha or just to get away from the stress in their lives. There are many monks who relax and meditate. Even some monks can't resist taking pictures of the gra http://www.travelblog.org/Asia/Burma/Yangon/blog-411735.html Trotz regnerischer Witterung bin ich zusammen mit Min Thu der mich schon durch Rangun gefuehrt hat zu einem Dorf ausserhalb von Rangun in Richtung AyerwadiDelta gefahren. Dazu bedarf es einer Erlaubnis des Office of Tourism die jedoch innerhalb von fuenf Minuten kostenlos erledigt war.Mit der Faehre ging es ueber den Yangon River fuer Einheimische kostet die Ueberfahrt 100 Kyat fuer Touris 1 http://www.travelblog.org/Asia/Burma/Yangon/blog-405103.html Nachdem ich nun seit Jahren mit dem Gedanken spiele bin ich nun endlich in Myanmar angekommen. Vor vier Tagen nahm ich morgens den AirAsia Flug nach Rangun.Dieses Land ist mal eine neue Herausforderung was Reisen angeht. Ohne Visum geht gar nix und die Menschen in der Festungsaehnlichen Botschaft in Bangkok sind extrem unfreundlich. Meine Antragsformulare habe ich von der Website der Botschaft http://www.travelblog.org/Asia/Burma/Yangon/blog-402497.html Myanmar2day has published the most complete and up to date guide to Shwedagon Pagoda on their blog. The Shwedagon Pagoda Guide is run in a series of detailed articles starting from the history of Shwedagon Pagoda detailed description of each structures and largely unknown Wonders of Shwedagon. This is currently the most complete guide to Shwedagon Pagoda in Myanmar. http://www.travelblog.org/Asia/Burma/Yangon/blog-389023.html I really like yangon.i go to the different townships and check out the nice neighbourhoods.i sponsor a fmily and with them it gets me into peoples homes where i can get some photos.when in yangon i stay at motherland2.it is in a quiet neighbourhood and it was 7 a night single which includes breakfast and airport pick up and drop off.my friend..pic 66...took me to a palm farm about 2 hours outsid http://www.travelblog.org/Asia/Burma/Yangon/blog-375302.html Yangon Rangoon and breaking promises about hanging with Antipodeans Mingalabah means hello you stupid people But you should see it in Burmese Barmar script it's like Thai but with added squiggles and the number 8 sideways. Marvelously unique to match the equally weird country.Anyway locationwise I'm currently at Inle Lake in the centre of Myanmar Burma in some hot internet room with p http://www.travelblog.org/Asia/Burma/Yangon/blog-374793.html So the Myanmar currency is called kyat pronounced jat. So far I have see 1000 500 200 100 kyat bills. But there exists nothing higher than 1000. Now I know what you're thinking in the US we don't have 1000 bills. This is true. But what is also true is that hotels do not cost 10000 US a night. The exchange is currently around 1000 kyat to every dollar. So this means that people an http://www.travelblog.org/Asia/Burma/Yangon/blog-371466.html Stepping into Myanmar was like stepping into the distant past. In many ways it reminded us of China in 1983. Yangon has many crumbling images of its colonial past. Houses sidewalks and roads show little signs of maintenance. Buddhist pagodas dot the landscape and in many cases are the tallest visible structures. The two lakes within the central city provide some scenic beauty to the dilapid http://www.travelblog.org/Asia/Burma/Yangon/blog-370550.html For those that don't know we are travelling with a Swedish friend of ours called Anders. This blog features the seven major funny things that happened in the last few days.It could well be the most interesting country out of the 21 we have seen so far and the people are usually very very friendly but the travelling in Myanmar is a definitely not for wimps. English is rare though anyone who http://www.travelblog.org/Asia/Burma/Yangon/blog-368044.html Myanmar is not as Cosmo Kramer mistakenly asserts an American discount pharmacy. It is of course the country which is always referred to parenthetically as Burma. It's coming on twenty years now since the military junta changed the name so why does the world persist in sticking to the old label This 'Myanmar or Burma' question continued to tax me throughout my fifteen days in the country http://www.travelblog.org/Asia/Burma/Yangon/blog-361976.html There are few times in all of our travels that we thought our mere presence in a country may actually harm it. Oh sure you walk around many tourist traps in the world and roll your eyes at the mobs of pasty consumers running around the OUTSIDE of a temple or in the gift shop ACROSS the street from the museum but you never really think that this may contribute to the oppression of a society. Perha http://www.travelblog.org/Asia/Burma/Yangon/blog-361396.html If you are visiting Myanmar Burma you will find yourself trying to find a money exchange to change your foreign currency into Myanmar kyat. Although US dollar is universally accepted small vendors will be reluctant to accept US dollars because of difficulty in exchanging into kyat. So you invariably have to change some money into Myanmar kyat anyway.The first place you can change is at the ai http://www.travelblog.org/Asia/Burma/Yangon/blog-359585.html Day 260 on the road Myanmar where to start A country governed by a ruthless military dictatorship known for its human rights abuses including forced labour torture and child soldiers once occupied and ruled by the British now isolated from the world and embargoed by it except by China who happily finances the regime in exchange for raw materials Myanmar is bound to be an interesting co http://www.travelblog.org/Asia/Burma/Yangon/blog-355312.html De monnik in Mandalay nodigt ons uit in zijn kamer. Buiten kan hij niet vrijuit spreken. Er zijn te veel spionnen in het klooster. Hij haalt het boek van Aung Sang Suu Kyi het icoon van de vrijheidsbeweging uit een kist. Het zit achter slot en grendel. Het bezit van dit boek is in Birma strafbaar. Binnenkort gaat hij naar Sri Lanka op uitnodiging van een klooster. Hij zal zich ginder echter ni http://www.travelblog.org/Asia/Burma/Yangon/blog-354035.html Thursday July 24 2008May Fair Inn Room 108 Yangon Myanmar We landed in Yangon about 12pm. I trucked around the streets a bit before catching a cheap taxi into town and my destination The White Hotel. Arriving I quickly noticed a smelly reception area and dirty beyond my my comfort level. Although I was to stay in a less than clean hotel in Bangkok in a http://www.travelblog.org/Asia/Burma/Yangon/blog-349501.html