Prelude: Hola! Sorry for the lack of updates as I had problems uploading my 16G pictures from my recent Burma trip. My internal SD card reader cannot read 3 out of 4 memory cards I bought to Burma. Therefore, some were transferred to my personal laptop and the others to my office laptop. And they are all everywhere and messed up. Sorry to keep you waiting for the update. Let’s quench your thirst!

15.06.2012 – Arriving Yangon

After so much of to-go-or-not-to-go thoughts, I was at the LCCT Airport at 4.30-ish to catch the flight to Yangon leaving at 5.10p.m. My flight was delayed until 6.00p.m. and here, I met Hadi, a tweep I got to know through Twitter. We actually learned months earlier that we were on the same flight to Yangon. Since I wanted to do the trekking trip from Kalaw to Inle Lake, I asked him if I could tag along to save costs and he said, okay!

So we were travelling together until we split at Inle Lake merely because I ran out of my travelling time. We reached Yangon International Airport at 7.05p.m. Myammar time (equivalent to 8.30pm Malaysian time). Near the exit of the airport, there were rows of money changer for which one may select. Illegal money changers are everywhere on the street to offer you better rates but this transaction is as dangerous as soliciting drugs. Once caught red handed, you will be fined and the law relating to money changing is rather a serious offence.

We did not settle with the illegal money changer after what we read on the internet on the repercussion. After all, we still had many days to survive in Burma.

We waited quite awhile at the hallway near the exit as too many taxi drivers came approaching us. We did not have a place to stay that night to begin with. So we had no idea where to go but we sort of decided to try the guesthouses at downtown Yangon. The next thing is to haggle for taxi fares. At first, Hadi and I wanted to share taxi fares with the other travellers.But then again, two Asian looking travellers who might have been mistaken as the locals would definitely be a subject to ignore by fellow travellers. So we followed the taxi driver who agreed to take us to downtown at USD8.

So, this is Yangon as peaceful as a state in Malaysia though not so modern. While Hadi and the driver were talking in front, I absorbed the Burmese essence and breathed the Burmese air. When we reached one traffic light, the hollywood-view of Shwedagon Paya, the most important religious site, stood still before us. Over the window, a girl was begging me to buy a bouquet of jasmine flowers for prayers. Flashed her a smile and the taxi drove passed her.

We were dropped near Sule Pagoda, 46-m octagonal shaped stupa, in the middle of the busiest intersection at Yangon. As the watch stroke 30 minutes passed 10.00pm, we hastily went in search for a cheap guesthouse. We had been advised tourism is still new in Burma, and that we must book our guesthouse in advance. The first guesthouse we knocked was fully booked – Okinawa Guesthouse. We dismissed a dilapidated guesthouse for something better knowing not that was the only available guesthouse to provide shelter for that night. And so we walked for almost 1 hour before ended up at the dilapidated building.

It could be one hell of a search if I was alone. Thank God Hadi was with me at least I had company to walk pass the dim-lighted street of Yangon.

Who would have guessed Myammar is a melting pot of different ethnic groups? India, Bengali, Burmese, Chinese, Bangladeshi etc.

After we settled at Mahabandoola Guest House – No. 453/459 (2nd Floor), Maha Bandoola Road, No. 93, 32nd Street, Pabedan, Yangon, Hadi and I took the street again just behind the Shia’ mosque for drinks. Apparently in this part of the world, there is so much Indian influence and inhabitants, lassi is a common drink just as Biryani is a common halal food available throughout Myammar. Must be the close vicinity with India and the Indian princes who used to take refuge in Myammar back then. Lassi costs me Kyat 500 while a bottle of water costs me Kyat 300.

To be honest, I could not sleep for the night and had to attend to my stomach ailment which I believed a result of drinking the street lassi. I normally don’t drink iced water when I’m travelling for fear of stomach ailment, but in Myammar most drinks served in some restaurants are iced drinks except for tea. It wasn’t a good start to have stomach problem on the night of my arrival. My advice is be careful on what you take from the streets.