Blogs from Western Burma, Burma, Asia - page 4

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Asia » Burma » Western Burma » Thandwe December 7th 2006

Ngwe Saung We had read about the unspoilt deserted beaches which lined the east coast of Myanmar. For once we were not disappointed with hardly any other tourists there we had this lovely pristine beach to ourselves and the loan gun boat anchored out in the ocean. There’s very little to do here and we spent four very relaxing days soaking up the rays. This has to be one of my favourite beaches. It is definitely an ideal place to sit and do nothing - something which I'm becoming very good at! The town itself is charming in a small off the beaten track sort of way, full of curious friendly locals. There are a handful of family run restaurants which for the first time in Myanmar served up some great local seafood. We still managed ... read more
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Asia » Burma » Western Burma » Thandwe January 7th 2006

It is said that one can only know one extreme once she has known its opposite; such as sorrow carving out a space in your heart so that you may also know love more deeply. And so it goes with life on the road as well, for the plucking of a travel pearl increases in value with every tight-lipped sea creature you have to battle in pursuit of it. Since the buses only run at night, getting from Bagan to Ngapali Beach overland is a two and a half day journey via Pyay. In theory, each journey takes about 10 hours, although Burmese transportation systems seem to be designed to test the Burmese virtue of ah har de (not losing one's temper or causing a commotion over your discontent) by understating the journey's length by a ... read more
Sunset on Ngapali Beach
Giant Buddha
Best method of carrying firewood

Asia » Burma » Western Burma » Sittwe January 3rd 2006

Morning comes early. Tai chi is a useless endeavour. My body is aching after three days riding too small a bike, followed by a ten hour journey on a tiny bus seat followed by three days hiking and sleeping in the cold. The Portuguese couple in the bungalow next door share a cab with me to Heho airport. The lobby is no larger than a small town bus station. Three morning flights are delayed due to thick fog on the runway. I'm concerned I'll miss my connection in Yangon and speak with the front desk. "No problem, no problem," I'm assured. The sky clears and the planes land and the passengers board. Air Mandalay does not issue seat numbers. Every man, woman and child for himself. There is no warning that we are taxiing, no tables ... read more
teashops, early morning, Mruak U
sunrise, Mruak U
sunrise, Mruak U

Asia » Burma » Western Burma » Thandwe November 12th 2005

The arctic zephyr plays sweetly across my hot and clammy skin, momentarily transporting me from hot and dusty Mandalay to a cooling mountain meadow. I stand in bliss as the air conditioner artificially aids my body’s sweaty-messy attempts at natural temperature regulation. We’d arrived in the late afternoon after a day’s travelling down from the cooling hills into the steamy plains. Then after only a short AC fix we reentered the furnace, the body once again preparing for battle as beads of sweat appeared almost instantaneously and quickly formed a defensive layer of moisture. After commandeering a cycle rickshaw we were on our way around the Royal Palace’s 4sq. km moat, to catch the sunset atop Mandalay Hill. At the foot of the hill we shed our shoes and began frantically dashing up the 700 plus ... read more
Fishing on Ngapali Beach
Bagan at dawn
U Bien Bridge (the cliche shot)




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