City Star Yangon (Rangoon)

Darrer dia a Yangon, darrer viatge en autobus nocturn (si mes no per ara). Com que tinc un dia lliure abans d'agafar el vol de tornada a Bangkok, decideixo anar fins a Bago a veure (ho heu encertat) encara mes temples i mes pagodes i aixi completar d'una vegada per totes la meva immersio en la cultura budista birmana. La idea de quedar-me a la capital no m'atrau tampoc gaire. Tan bon punt arribo a Bago i els meus ulls comencen a ...

... lady who invited us to dinner. Nick was ill so I went by myself not really knowing what to expect! She met me at my hotel with her friend and we took a trishaw to her house. As we left the lit streets I became a little nervous....I had no idea where I was going in the middle of nowhere at night with a stranger! But when we got off the trishaw (and after she refused my offer of money to pay for it) she, sensing my concern, took me by the hand!! I thought it was so sweet and motherly! When ...

... such, and spoke English reasonably well, enough to communicate (don't forget I'm an English teacher though, so as long as it's anything that resembles English, it's all good). They had noticeably bloody-looking teeth, and lots of Myanmarese do, actually, so you'll see lots of red spots on the streets and sidewalks, and that's their spit. It turns out its a nut they chew on according to a friend who corrected me on it. It still freaked me ...

... sell you something all day long (especially in Bagan) - while you are touring a Temple, while you are riding a bike, while you are riding in a boat,... The Temples are unkempt. They are dirty - betel spit (like chew, except is is reddish orange), cobwebs, bird and bat poop, stones (even though you have to take off your shoes and socks) Women are not allowed to place gold leaf on Buddha Claiming your baggage ...

... done before, wonder where this info goes?). The Paya is fairly plain, the seated Buddha is very large and beautiful. There are a few other Buddha statues, but no other separate buildings. It is a quieter, smaller Paya. We did see 5 small female monks praying to one Buddhas. They are so cute! We took a cab back to our inn. Again, this driver got lost too. But, we made it all in one piece. I had a short nap and we headed to the ...

... three women with you?” he suddenly asked.

“How did you know that,” I responded.

“I see you with them on the beach and at the restaurant.”

“WeR 17;ll. They’re not all mine if you want to know the truth,” I said.

“Tell me then, how to pick up foreign women,” he implored.

I was a little stunned by his request and tried to fend it off with a few odd comments that I ...

... real treat - a buffet with several main and fruit dishes, toast bread with many kinds of jams, papaya juice, banana roll and hot drinks. It is also not that far from Sule paya and China town. Stuff at the reception is very helpful and provide relevant info about tourist attractions throughout the country. I got a room at the top floor overlooking Schwedagon paya. It was also my first experience with staying in one room with a bat. We got along well with each other ...

... the airport prepared us for some of the culture shock we'd be exposed to walking around the heat of downtown Yangon in just an hour to come. Driving, walking through, or just being in Yangon is like taking a step back in time. Rewind to maybe 30 years ago (on the Southeast Asia timeline, mind you). To an era when people still dressed and made themselves up in the traditions of their recent ancestors: most of the men in what basically look like sarongs tied around their waists ...

... or the meaning of the individual words, and then the teacher tells them the answers to the questions that follow, which in turn they repeat out loud in unison. It completely lacks any effort to make the students be creative or produce any spontaneous responses to questions or scenarios. The result is a general boredom and ineffectiveness in learning. Furthermore, the monks repeatedly called students "stupid" and smacked them on the head if they didn't provide ...

... out; the other is that they love to depict him as the prince before he renounced his throne and went on a search for enlightenment. They often depict Buddha as having feminine features and adornments, e.g. rose colored lips, blue shaded eye lids, pink cheeks, earrings, and lace work. We were able to see all of this in great detail as Buddha's head alone was 10 meters in diameter. Perhaps this is where Prince, the R and B singer got his ideas of fashion... Oh, and last up was the ...