Water fights and wucking bankers From Wikipedia The Thai New Year (Thai: สงกรานต์ Songkran, from Sanskrit sankrānti "astrological passage"; Chinese: 潑水節) is celebrated every year from April 13 to April 15. It coincides with the New Year of many calendars of South and Southeast Asia. So, where was I? Oh yeah, in the middle of a massive traffic jam with the ancient city’s walls and moat acting as a water well. But instead of irate drivers hooting their horns, there was just a water fight between vehicles and their occupants - and we were stuck in the middle of it all. People then noticed us farang and began throwing ice cold water into our open pick-up truck and people sat in the backs of trucks shooting water guns at us. Terrific fun it has to be ... read more

The Nightmare continues! Having a wonderful time in Chiang Mai, Thailand’s second city; the people are friendlier, the city is more chilled out and the food is totally different. However, that’s all irrelevant; Hit me in the face with a hard brush - I've lost my wallet and my passport! It’s pretty difficult for me to write this all up for public ridicule but I thought it might provide a bit of catharsis. Maybe recounting it will make me see the funny side of it all. Yeh, the funny side, already I can see how utterly unlucky and stupid I’ve been since I landed in Thailand. So, I took the Second class sleeper train from Bangkok to Chiang Mai and it was bloody impressive. I was given a menu to order dinner and breakfast which was ... read more

So, one of the most horrendous journeys of my entire life and we wake up in a plush (by Myanmar standards) hotel room, with air con and free toiletries and a T.V.! I dragged myself out of my weel deserved slumber to catch the free breakfast, climbing one floor and behold the greatest breakfast buffet I have ever seen. I very nearly wept at the joyous display of everything from toast to eggs to fried rice and dumplings to orange juice fresh fruit and an odd assortment of pastries and cakes all displayed on a round table. Jesus. I ran back to the room and insisted John G get up to see before the breakfast finished. We ate like kings and it was such relief from the hardships we'd endured we'd got on getting to this ... read more

From Pyin U Lwin we got a share taxi and drove around the posh end of the town picking up a lady who sat in the front (the more expensive seat). Big houses in Pyin U Lwin; People aren't dying of poverty in Myanmar, people look happy and are not hungry, it's not Africa by any means. Back in Mandalay, we went to see a Western movie by trishaw, a very cheap experience and the girls - very pretty. But the film was pretty rubbish, some end of the world-aliens coming to save us rubbish - sort of an Al Gore environmentalist wet dream. Anyway, the next day we organized the a riverboat ride up the Irrawaddy to Mingun...we got the trishaw driver from thn night before to take us. According to Wikipedia... its main attraction ... read more

"On the road to Mandalay, Where the old Flotilla lay, With our sick beneath the awnings when we went to Mandalay! On the road to Mandalay, Where the flyin'-fishes play, An' the dawn comes up like thunder outer China 'crost the Bay!" - Excerpt, "Mandalay" by Rudyard Kipling, 1892 Wiki Facts: Mandalay is the second largest city (after Yangon - Rangoon), and a former capital of Myanmar. Mandalay is not an old city, not even a medieval one, but rather a new city that was created by King Mingdon Min of Burma in 1857 as the new capital of the kingdom of Ava. Only two Burmese kings ruled from there, King Mingdon and King Thibaw, before the British conquest of Upper Burma in 1885. So, we've got that over with: The bad news, my camera is ... read more