Adventures with Julia

Friday, November 2, 2012

We arrived home about 2pm, safe and almost sound.  I developed a runny nose during the 36 hour journey home.  At least I am home nursing it, rather than in Burma.   We have managed to stay awake long enough to unpack, put most stuff away, get the laundry started, take showers and start to go through the mountain of mail.  It is 5pm now and am not sure how much longer it will be before we fall into bed.

It has been a superlative adventure.  I tried to think about what to say as a final note, but am at a loss—dare I say speechless?   There are two mistakes I want to correct, however.  The lodge in Putao is Malikha, not Melikha.  I spelled it both ways and want to clear that up. Mrauk U is also spelled Mrauk Oo.  I used one spelling and then another until I learned that both are correct.  The pronunciation is what is tricky.  It is Mraw oo, with the aw sounding like awe in Rakhine State.  People in Yangon say  Meaw oo.  Pronunciation issues plagued me all over Burma.

I may be sending another message in a few days relating to Putao in the northern state of Kachin.  When I have more information I will let you know.

Thank you for sharing the journey with us.  I hope you have enjoyed reading about Lao and Burma.  I’d love to hear your comments, good and otherwise.

Many blessings to you all,

Julia

Tuesday, October 30, 2012 Full moon and a Buddhist Sabbath

Mrauk U Princess Resort

Believe it or not, today was another temple day, as if we have not seen enough.  There are some differences, however.  Most noticeably, the Mrauk U temples are made of sandstone, while the Bagan temples are made of brick.  Also, the temples here are considerably younger than those in Bagan. dating mostly from 1430 to 1784, when Mrauk U was one of the richest cities in Asia.  At its peak under King Minbin (1531-53) it traded with the Middle East, Asia, Holland, Portugal and Spain.   In the late 18^th century the Rakhine king was defeated, by the Mandalay king and the city began to decline.  Under British rule, the center of activity in Rakhine State was shifted to Sittwe and Mrauk U became an unimportant backwater that the Burman government continues to ignore.  The government collects taxes from people who make a reasonable wage or better, but appears to return little to the community.    The roads, for example, are in abominable condition and there are schools and clinics, but not enough.  Today, Mrauk U has a population of 80,000, 60% of which are Rakhine.  Chinese, Indians, Muslims and other minority tribes make up the difference.

We were out at 8am to avoid some of the heat.  Our first temple, Kothaung, is the largest in Mrauk U.  The son of King Minbin, who wanted to outdo his father’s temple by 10,000 images, built it in 1553.   It contains 90,000 images of Buddha.  On the upper terrace, were originally 108 stupas.  Even now, with fewer stupas, it reminded us of the temple complex in Borobudur, Jogjakarta, with its many small stupas surrounding a central large stupa.  Completely over grown like all the temples in the area, this one has been uncovered and partially restored so that we could walk around the complex on the inside and get a look at many of the bas reliefs on the walls along with numerous Buddha statues.  Unfortunately, vegetation is reclaiming the site, as the government has done nothing to protect the temples in recent years.

On a hill immediately opposite Kothauang, was a small, unrestored four-door pagoda, called Peisi Daung, housing five Buddha statues—four on each side and one at the top.  Each of them has large white eyes with a black dot.   It was prickly pushing through the brush on the way up, but, for once, we did not have to take our shoes off and the view from the top was worth the trouble.  We could see Kothauang well and the surrounding fields and tree-covered hills.  Several “hills” are really temples that have yet to be uncovered.  The ancient capital was surrounded by three walls, which are also over grown, yet unmistakable.

Our next stop was Mingoung Shwaygu, a stupa built in 1629.   It is unique for its sandstone umbrella at the top.  Every other stupa top has been made of metal and is usually gold painted, if not gilded.  Aside from the umbrella, our only memorable  aspect of the place was the caretaker and his twin daughters of about 10.  These were the first people we have encountered at the temples so far this day and the first twins we know of on this trip.  Dad was most gracious to let us take “family photos”.  It feels like we must be the only tourists in town.

For a temple break, Kyaw, our guide, took us on a walk down one of many narrow lanes with old, often rickety, wooden houses packed closely together on both sides.  They were uniformly dark and dingy with no vegetation around them.   We saw trash everywhere and one stream between some houses that looked like a cesspool. Many people looked pretty raggedy too.  No one, however, was thin like the people in Putao.  We stopped at a house where a woman was making bamboo hats, while another woman was cooking lunch for her family.  I was fascinated by her process of cooking three separate courses, plus rice, on the ground over one small wood fire.  Luckily she had several large pots to hold the different dishes of green vegetables and bamboo shoots, a separate bowl with water to keep things clean and a crock and grinding rock to mash the roasted chili peppers and mix them with dried, separately roasted shrimp.  She was very organized and efficient.  Soon she and her two children were happily eating away.  The hat lady stripped a lot of bamboo into thin lengths for her hats, but we did not see her make one.

According to Kyaw, there is no large industry in Rakhine State and little work unless you are a farmer, fisherman, tuk tuk driver, local merchant, government worker or in a cottage business.  The rice and vegetable crops here receive over 200 inches of rain per year and satisfy the food needs of the people in the area.  He also said there is not much malaria in this region.

While driving to the Bandoola Monastery, we passed a number of street side vendors selling miscellaneous goods and several second hand stalls with clothes supplied by western countries.  Most stores were closed for the Sabbath.

Bandoola is a rambling hilltop monastery with lots of small spaces for everything from Buddha images to napping child monks.  All the way at the back and top of the hill is a large room where a third century polished bronze Buddha is encased behind glass.  It is said that to keep it from being stolen by the British when they arrived in 1824, it was encased in concrete and buried under water.  After independence in 1948, it was dug up and placed in the monastery.   Today, Buddhist Sabbath and the last day of Buddhist lent, a monk sat in front of it and began talking to the 30 or so faithful in attendance.  It seemed like a good time for us to leave.

By this time it was mid day and we were very hot, sticky and glad to get back to the resort.  After a cold beer and lunch, I stayed in our room to write and keep cool.  Mark got a nice Thai massage.  The $40 charge was too attractive for him to resist.

Back out at 4pm, Kyaw promised us no more temples after today.  It was still very hot, but slightly more bearable.  First stop was the Shittauang Temple built by King Minbin in 1535.  It contains some 84,000 Buddha images in statues and bas-reliefs and is the most complex temple in Mrauk U.  There are many stupas of various sizes; 26 of which surround a central stupa.  Thick walls with windows and nooks, surround the two-tiered structure.  Inside the temple’s prayer hall, two passageways encircle the main Buddha image in the cave hall.  The square, outer passageway has over 1000 sculptures, some still sporting a bit of paint, that show a lot of detail of Rakhine customs, including traditionally dressed dancers, boxers, acrobats, beasts of burden and hundreds of scenes from Buddha’s 550 past lives.   At each corner are larger figures including King Minbin and his queens in one corner.  The passageway is dimly lit, but the figures are impressive in their quantity as well as skillful execution.  The other passageway leads past scores of monotonous Buddha images in niches and circles in on itself until we reached a dead end and hade to circle back to get out of what feels like a maze.  It was the most interesting of all the temples we have visited on this trip.

From Shittaung we walked about 50 paces to the next temple called Andaw.  It was built in 1596 and is smaller and 8 sided and supposedly laid out in a similar linear layout.  We did not go inside, but enjoyed the play of late afternoon light on the exterior of the building and stupas.

Across the road is the Dukkanthein Temple, built in 1571.  The interior features a spiraling narrow passageway lined with images of Buddhas and common people such as landlords, governors, officials and their spouses sporting all of Mrauk U’s 64 traditional hairstyles. The passageway encircles the center nearly three times before reaching the “sun-drenched” Buddha image, that is lit by a flashing neon halo and colored Christmas tree lights.  It was a disappointing pay off for my trouble and I still had to retrace my steps to get out.  Mark skipped this temple and watched kids playing.

When I exited the temple there was still enough light to drive to one last stupa on a hill to watch the sunset.  Haridaung is a small temple, built around 1750.  We had to race up well over 100 steps to get to the top timely.  I was totally out of breath, but we did get to see the day depart nicely.  Back down the steps we were happy to know there would be no more temples on this trip.

On the way back to the resort we noticed many banana leaf luminaries placed every 5 feet or so along both sides of several neighborhood lanes.  We learned that the candles in them would be lit at dark to celebrate the full moon Sabbath and the end of lent.   The gatekeeper promised to call us when they were lit so we could walk down the street to see them.  I was in the shower when the call came and hurriedly dried off, put my dirty clothes back on and ran out the door to meet Mark who was carrying two beers and a flashlight.  We walked a few blocks to the first illuminated street and took several photos of the pretty lights and the people, especially children, enjoying the scene.   The moon made its appearance and we slowly walked back to the resort for dinner and bed.  We were especially saddened to learn of the death of Bill Riddle yesterday.  That brings the count to three since we left home.  Glad we are coming back soon.  Only one day more in Burma, before we start the long journey home.

Will try to get this message off tonight, if possible.

Love to you all with special thoughts for Judith Ciphers, Betty Hahn and now Bev Riddle, Julia

Sunday, October 28, 2012

Strand Hotel, Rangoon or Yangon, Burma or Myanmar

Last night we finished off the bottle of Myanmar wine Mark bought more than a week ago.  Produced by the Red Mountain Winery in Lake Inle, it was a pleasant, although not very mature, Pinot Noir.  Mark gave it a 6-7 out of 10.

Our last morning at the Melikha Lodge, I did not want to get up.  The air was cool and dry and the place wonderfully quiet with no AC or traffic or people to disrupt the silence.  This has been our experience for the last 5 nights and mornings.  It was the perfect place to spend a large block of time.   We had a light breakfast and then went to Putao to go to Mass at the only Catholic Church in the area.   We met Father John, the pastor, and Father Paul, a visiting priest.  Father Paul was especially nice and asked us a few questions.  He gave the homily after the gospel and spoke a few minutes in English about the readings just for our benefit.  The church was nearly full with more than 100 people and everyone sang the songs enthusiastically if not quite harmoniously.  Thomas was with us, but could not explain anything being said, as he does not speak Ra Wang, the common language of the region.

Unfortunately for us, the Mass went on longer than we anticipated and we had to leave or risk missing our flight.  We drove back to the lodge, finished packing, had a light lunch, said good-bye to the staff and headed for the airport.  The same group that greeted us on arrival—Daniel, the manager, Myo Ko, the driver, Kyi Thar, the airport rep, Sandra, the Lisu girl who was in native costume and gave us cold towels on arrival and Thomas— traveled with us to the airport to say good bye and be ready to greet the incoming guests, a couple from LA.

While at the airport we saw Simon again and chatted with him about ways to help the local people.  We exchanged more contact information and promised to be in touch.  The flight made two stops before reaching Yangon at 5:30pm.  It was a long, uneventful afternoon.   Simon sat in front of us and commented about the news he was reading in the local paper.  He was concerned about our onward journey to Mrauk Oo (Meow oo) as he read in the paper that more people had died in Sittwe and Mrauk Oo during the last 2-3 days because of fighting between the Muslims living in the area and the local Buddhists.  We said we would wait to hear what our local tour operator had to say.

As soon as we were settled in the car for the drive to the Strand Hotel in Yangon, we asked the rep, Cho, if there was a change of plans for us.  She said yes, our planned visit to one of the remote villages had been cancelled, as it was unsafe to travel there.  However, the rest of the itinerary was still in place.  We were disappointed to learn we would miss visiting the tribe with tattooed faces, but decided to continue with the program and hope for the best.

We can tell we are back in Yangon because the air is heavy, hot and sticky again.  We walked a few blocks to an Asian restaurant, the Monsoon, ate Vietnamese spring rolls, Myanmar butterfish curry and a Thai prawn dish.   It was tasty enough, but not as spicy as we have learned to appreciate.   People in this city seem to use the names  Yangon and Myanmar more than in the other places we have been, thus the use of the new name here.   We have another flight tomorrow to Sittwe in the far west of the country, followed by a 6-hour boat ride to Mrauk Oo.  It will be an interesting experience.  This is the fastest Wi Fi connection we have had so far on this trip, so I will send this now and hope we have a connection when we get to Mrauk Oo this evening.  If not, we may be in Bangkok on our way home before you hear from us again.

Don’t worry.  Be happy.  We are having a super adventure.  Julia

Friday, October 26. 2012

Melikha Lodge, Mulashidi, Burma

Up early, I managed to get yesterday’s post sent after several false starts.   Apparently Burma has only one server for the whole country and it can be down or overloaded at any moment.

Although this morning was quite cool, we were determined to go rafting on the Nam Lang River.    Thomas met us at 9am and off we went to the suspension bridge over the river, about a third of a mile from the lodge.  On the pebble bar below the bridge sat our raft all ready to go.  Our team today consisted of Thomas and two young men who speak no English and do most of the paddling.  I had planned to do a fair amount, but floating and enjoying the scenery was so pleasant that neither Mark nor I paddled much of the 13–mile journey.  I would happily have drifted the whole way.  We kept up a running conversation with Thomas instead.

He is quite a charming conversationalist even if not all his statements are accurate.  This time he told us that 30% of marriages are the arranged, although more and more people are choosing their own partners.  Divorce is common and among Buddhist society remarriage is not an issue.  There is a stigma in the Christian community regarding marrying a divorced person so Christians tend to stay married.   In the rural areas people get married around 23-25.  In urban areas they wait longer to save up money before taking on family responsibilities.   Public displays of affection are not accepted behavior.  Thomas says people are too shy.  Both ideas may be true.  We have observed shyness in lots of people including hotel staff.

We have experienced intermittent power throughout our trip and Thomas confirmed that there is not enough power sold locally to cover the demand.  Many places, like the Malikha Lodge generate their own power.  It comes on at 5:30am and goes off at 10:30pm in spite of 5-star top of the line billing.  Even our high-rise hotels in Rangoon ad Mandalay had intermittent power outages.   We understand from Davies and Ken that enough power is being produced to supply the country, but it is being sold to the Chinese with the generals pocketing the profit.  A few years ago there were candlelight demonstrations in many cities in the country where people marched in the dark with candles to demand more electricity.  The new government has complied somewhat and more power is available now than during the military junta period.

I asked Thomas if this was the poorest region of the country and he said no.  The southern tail of the country is poorer.  That is the part of the country that was badly hit by Cyclone Nargis on May 2^nd, 2008.  Some estimates are that half a million people perished as a result of the storm and the slow response by the government to allow assistance into the affected areas.  Recovery is still very slow from what I have read.   Here in the north, unlike the urban environments we have seen, poor people have fewer clothes, none of which are ever clean no matter haw many times they are beat on the rocks along the river bank.  Their houses are smaller and they have fewer tools that would help make life easier.

Just then, Thomas told us to put on our helmets and get ready to paddle, as we were about to encounter the only Class 2 rapids in the river at the confluence of the Nam Lang and Malikha Rivers.  It was fun running the rapids even if they were little.  We managed to stay in the main current and hit all the haystacks.  It felt like old times for me.  Like always, the rapids were over in a minute, we took off our helmets and floated downstream.  Around a bend we spotted 2 lodge staff on a sand bar waiting for us to arrive.    As we stepped off the raft, we were handed cold towels and hot soup in a mug.  Further up the beach, an umbrella was stuck in the sand.  Under it were blankets, a table, set for lunch, and chairs at the ready.  What a treat.   We swam in the cold water for a while and eventually, not wanting to hurry through the moment, sat down to a lunch of spaghetti with chicken and a cold beer.  That was followed by chocolate brownies.   We went back in the water for another short swim, while everything was packed into a motorboat, the raft having been collapsed and stowed in the bottom earlier.   The party was over, but we got a photo of the whole team before pushing off from the sand bar.

The boat driver powered us back upstream through the rapids and on up the Melikha River, as he could not negotiate the turn onto the Nam Lang River.  After 20 minutes we were off the boat in a riverside village and transferred to a large van owned by the lodge.  Thomas stopped at a friend’s store to show us some locally panned placer gold.   Yep.  It looked just like the gold that is panned at home.

We passed through Putao Valley with lovely views of the mountains to the west north and east enroute to the lodge.  Looking west, India is only 60 miles away at the top of the peak.   We saw scrawny cattle grazing in the valley fields.  It seems like it should be full of rice, but there is currently no way to get water to the valley so it isn’t even good enough for cattle.

Shortly, we were back at our bungalow.  I entered the door to find the big wooden bathtub full of warm water and rose petals.  Sitting on the edge of the tub were 2 Pina Coladas.  On the floor in front of the tub was a mat with the words  ‘Welcome to Melikha Lodge” printed on it with flowers and leaves.    What a surprise that was.   We wasted no time getting in and soaking, even though neither of us is big on baths.

We relaxed until our early dinner at 6pm.  Thomas showed up at 7pm to escort us to a thanksgiving celebration of the harvest.  We walked through the village to a church full of people listening to the minister give a speech.  We found a place to sit and soon different groups of women were singing and dancing on the stage.  At one point a group of women dressed in Lisu costumes came out one by one carrying a different vegetable and introducing it to the audience.  They must have said something funny about the vegetables as everyone laughed after each presentation.  Then groups of children danced one after another.  When there was singing the people lip-sinked to the canned music.  It was fun to watch for a while.

Sitting next to me was a man named Simon, who spoke vary good English and talked a lot about the plight of the Burmese people, especially those in rural areas like Putao.   He insists that many people are suffering a lot from malnutrition, that too many people are dying of malaria and TB and that the government is not willing to do anything to help.   Worse, the government makes it illegal to give medicine and aid to people in the rural areas.  There are no NGO’s allowed in the rural parts of the country.  He said he was a land broker and made good money selling property.  With his profits he is bringing medicine to the villages in the Putao area as that is his hometown.  It is very dangerous, he told me, but he does it because he wants to help the people.  He is trying to develop relationships with some of the generals, so he can get them to give him permission to bring medicine or, at least, agree to look the other way.   Behind Simon was sitting a doctor, who said he has been working in the local clinic for a month as a volunteer and plans to continue for a couple of years.  He said he sees 60-100 new patients every day.  Malaria is the biggest ailment.  He invited me to come and see the clinic tomorrow, so I think I will.  We are sure getting a different perspective from the people we are meeting here than we have seen on the surface of things.

Mark had had enough after an hour, so we left at a break between performances.  It was one of those evens that appeal mostly to parents and friends of the performers.

It is 10pm and time to stop writing.  We are agreed to get up early tomorrow to go the local market that opens at 6am.  I will be watching the people with different lenses as I sort through the stories we have heard from Thomas, Simon and the doctor.  There are so many layers to poverty and deprivation and each person experiences it differently.

One last story Simon told me was about the school system in rural areas.  Kids are required to go to school through the 11^th grade.  However, the government does not pay for them to go.  So parents have to pay.  Meanwhile, teachers are poorly paid so they do not teach much in the classroom.  Instead they hire out as tutors during the non-school hours and charge to tutor the students so they can earn more.  Meanwhile, the students never get playtime as they are always attending school or tutoring classes to learn enough to pass their exams.  Further more, parents have to spend extra to pay for the tutoring so they can’t afford to send all their children to school.

I mentioned that I noticed that so many Burmese people seem really shy.  He agreed immediately and explained that children are not allowed to ask questions.  They must say and do only what they are told.  They are all afraid to speak out or step forward for fear of being criticized or punished.  They do not develop self-confidence and forever look down or away.  He believes the entire education system needs to change before people will be able to assert themselves.

Tonight, I leave you with those thoughts to consider.  Julia

Wednesday, October 24, 2012

Melikha Lodge, Putao, Burma

It is such a pleasure to know that we have a good Wi Fi connection here and I can continue to send posts and receive email.  Transmission is still slow, so photos are not an option.  Guess I will have to send batches from home or put on a slide show.

It has been an interesting first day in the Putao area.   We had our breakfast noodle soup early and met with Thomas at 6:30am for a bird watching drive, village walk and picnic lunch.  We somehow expected a box lunch, but when we went to get into the car we were joined by a chef, Moe Kyaw, and waitress, Phyoe Thandar Kyaw, who were coming with us to prepare and serve a hot lunch.   So six of us including the driver, Myo Ko Ko, went bird watching.  It felt very strange to have such an entourage, but we did see and identify several pretty birds.   After 1½ hour we reached a suspension bridge over the Melikha River.  Thomas, Mark and I got out to continue on foot through a couple of villages, while the driver, chef and waitress continued on to prepare lunch at a prearranged place.    I was more comfortable walking with just a guide and no extra people.

We walked across the bridge and on into a village called Kaung mu lon that Thomas told us was over 2000 years old.  Unlike most of the region, which is Christian, this village is ancient Shan and has a typical white and gold stupa to visit.  The Buddha images here have flat, wide noses typical of the Kachin people.   The large platform was deserted except for one pink clad nun saying her prayers.   In other villages we saw only Christian churches.  The villages were small, picturesque and charming, but there were few people about and no cars.   Christian missionaries designed the roads in the region in the 1950’s.   They are on a square grid pattern with houses spaced one per acre along both sides of the road.  Several of the houses have been attractively painted with diagonal patterns on the woven exterior walls.

Along the way Thomas, who is a member of the Karen tribe, talked about the life in Burma from his perspective.  He believes that malnutrition is the greatest cause of death, followed by malaria and dengue fever.  When I suggested that the people did not look particularly hungry and there seemed to be plenty of rice, vegetables and fruit to eat, he replied that people have “adapted to hunger”.  They often get only one or possibly two meals a day and mostly of low grade rice.   There is no protein and very little vitamins or minerals in their diet.  I asked if he thought that was for this northern area of for the whole country and he said for the whole country.  Mark and I are having a hard time believing his statement.  He said life was better under the kings 100 years ago and has deteriorated more since independence in 1948.  Most people are getting shorter due to habitual malnutrition.  He believes literacy is only at 50% of the total population.

We passed by large fields of young tea plants that Thomas told us were owned by government cronies who were given permission to purchase the land in anticipation of tourism increasing.  They expect to build hotels when the tourists materialize and grow tea in the meantime.   Eventually we came to a middle school with the children in session.  Thomas spoke to the man in whose house we were to have lunch and he arranged for us to visit the school.  We met two teachers and took photo of the eighth grade classes.  One class was in the middle of taking an exam so we took a few photos of them without talking and then passed to the next classroom where the students were studying mathematics and most willing to have a diversion.   Although they are studying English, none of them understood a thing we said so Thomas did a lot of translating.   Someone fetched a globe of the world and I pointed to where we were from and where Burma is, almost half way around the world.  Then they sang us a song and performed a dance.  The experience was delightful, especially since it was unplanned.   We could not resist giving the teacher some money to buy supplies for the students.  They seemed most appreciative and clapped spontaneously for the first time.

Across the field from the school was the house where we were served our “picnic” lunch.  A Shan family owns the house and there is a small Buddhist shrine in the otherwise simple upstairs room.  The walls of the room are covered with large photos of houses from other parts of the world.   Thomas said they like to see how other people live.  The table was set on a covered, wooden balcony adjoining the room with a view of the mountains to the north and the local field, road, houses and scenery nearby.  We had, no surprise, another Burmese meal with taro soup, rice, chicken and fish curries with very little sauce, a tasty, but unidentifiable, green vegetable and sautéed potatoes.  Lately, I am eating way too much and feeling stuffed.  The staff is determined to feed us three large meals a day and it is hard to turn it down when they have obviously put so much effort into the preparation.

Back on our balcony and listening to the river flow by, Mark looked up some facts in his atlas app.  We learned from World Facts that the GDP is $1,300 per year per person with 32% living below the poverty line.   Average life expectancy in Burma is 63 for men and 68 for women.   Thirty percent of children under age 5 are under weight.  Literacy (defined as people 5 and over who can read and write) in Burma is at 89.9% with men at 94% and women at 86%.  Thirty-four percent of the population lives in urban areas with sixty-six percent living in the country.  Eighty-nine percent are Buddhist, three percent are Baptist, one percent is Catholic and four percent are Muslim.  There are over 130 tribes in Burma with 68% of the population being Burman, 9% being Shan and 7% being Karen.

We talked with Win, the food and beverage manager, and his opinion is that because of the fighting south of here, rice and vegetable vendors have been hoarding their supplies and the local people are having a hard time getting what they need.  The current harvest is just starting to come in and there should be plenty of rice again.  He does not think large numbers of people in the country are malnourished.   So I am inclined to believe my eyes and take others’ opinions with a bit of salt.

In the middle of the afternoon, we walked to the river thinking we might swim in it.  The lodge would not let us go alone, so David, the receptionist, came with us.  His English is pretty good so we chatted as we walked down the paved road to the public entrance to the river.  We had tried to get there directly down from the lodge but were cut off by staff telling us it was dangerous and there were leaches along the way.  Mention of leaches was enough to turn me around.  Once at the river there were large pebbles to negotiate.  The water was clear and rather cold and flowing rapidly.  We walked in to about a foot and a half and then lay down in the water to cool off.  It felt great, but was so swift that we were unwilling to get in any deeper.  A few locals were bathing and cleaning clothes.  In our bathing suits we were a sight for them to watch.   It did not take long to cool off and out we came.   By the time we got back to our room, we were warm again.

The rest of the day flowed by and just at dinnertime, we experienced our first weather of the trip.  Lightening and thunder were followed by light rain at first, then more rain during dinner and through the night.    It was a pleasant way to fall asleep in our thatched bungalow.

May you continue to be so blessed,  Julia

Sunday, October 21, 2012

Inle Princess Resort, Lake Inle, Burma

We met at the jetty at 8am and Ken gave us a brief overview of the lake and our plans for the day.  The lake, which is actually a man made reservoir, is 13.5 miles long and 7.5 mile wide, but up close it is hard to tell where the lake ends and the marshes begin.  The surface area is 45 square miles.  However, the average depth is only 7 feet.  It is the second largest lake in the country.   The shape is a bit like the shape of the country itself or a giant sperm with a very long tail at the south end where a dam was built in 1963 to create a reservoir and hydroelectric power plant. The dam and hydroelectric plant, according to Ken, were given by the Japanese as war compensation to the Burmese.  The power plant worked for many years but eventually deteriorated due to lack of maintenance and spare parts.  The new government is supposedly looking into improving the plant as electricity in the area has become spotty and people are complaining.

The people displaced by the rising water stayed in the area, built stilt villages and took up farming on the lake.  Floating gardens and stilt villages are everywhere.  Water hyacinths grow in single bulbs and in dense carpets.  Farmers clump them together to create a floating base.  Over the mat of hyacinths is added straw and nutrient rich mud.  Bamboo poles are run through the mass and into the ground to anchor the “garden”.  Then vegetables are planted and, voila, you have a hydroponic garden.

We also learned that until 1975, deceased villagers were buried in the lake with large stones to hold down the bodies.   The government banned the practice and now cremation is the law.   That sounds like at least one good thing the government did.

Ken also told us to watch for the unusual manner in which boatmen row.  They stand on one leg and use the other to propel the paddle through the water, while using the arm on the same side to steady the oar handle.  The motion moves the boat through the water at a greater speed than just paddling.  The maneuver somehow manages to keep the boat going straight as well.

As soon as we climbed into the boats, there was a young man demonstrating the maneuver, as motors are not allowed near the resort.  He paddled us out to a gatehouse jetty, where he jumped off and our boatman fired up the engine.   During the next two days we saw many young men paddling their boats in this manner.   As much balance, coordination and strength that must be required, I was not surprised that we did not see old men or women doing it.

Once out in the main part of the lake, which, at an elevation of 2,7oo feet, provides cool air in the morning and burning sunshine during the day, we headed south.  After an hour we were near the southern end of the fat part of the lake and made a bathroom stop at a small stilt hotel with a few vendors.  Here Mark bought some big baggy pants to wear instead of the longhi, which he has trouble keeping on.  Back in the boats, we motored another 2 hours south.  The sun was very hot and most of the group opted to use the umbrellas provided by the boatmen.   We must have been close to the end of the lake when we stopped a very small and seldom visited village with old, dilapidated stupas and a very small monastery.   It is called Sagar and has about 400 people in the community.  The place was deserted during the daytime, except for a handful of monks who were just sitting down to have their lunch.  A couple of stupas had been restored, but most were in a very dilapidated and precarious condition, due to the rise and fall of the water level since they were built in the late 1800 hundreds.

We walked around a bit, but I did not think the 3-hour ride was worth the trouble to see the village.  From there we headed back north a short distance to an interesting temple complex where Ken and Davies had arranged a catered lunch for us right on the edge of the platform.  The whole setting was very exotic and Asian and we all felt special.  Lunch was another super Burmese meal.  Afterward, we walked around and found several interesting and different statues including a reclining Buddha and a temple that looked very much like it could have been in Anchor Wat.  Before returning to our resort, we stopped at a silk and lotus-weaving factory on stilts in the middle of the lake.  There were at least 4 2-story buildings full of ladies working away at their looms.  Most interesting was watching how thread is teased from lotus stems, twirled together with other lotus fibers and then woven into cloth.   The other stop was at a cheroot factory where the thin cigars are made from bits of chopped tobacco blended with spices and rolled, together with a paper filter, in a tobacco leaf.   Where the silk was popular with the ladies, the men bought up the cigars.   Not being interested in either, I was glad to finally get back to the resort and take a shower.   It had been a long hot day and I was feeling sun baked in spite of a thick layer of sunscreen.

At dinner we learned that it was Jane’s birthday so we all sang for her and ATJ bought her a dark chocolate cake for all of us to share.   I have given up trying to send messages from our resort, so all I could do is write, which I did until bedtime.

Monday, October 22, 2012

Mandalay Hill Resort Hotel, Mandalay, Burma

Up at 5am again and packed for our early departure from the group.  While getting ready, I realized that I had forgotten to pack 12-days worth of my hypothyroid pills.  At breakfast I asked Ruth, the MD, if she thought I could go that long without any serious problems and she said it was not a good idea and to ask around to see if anyone in the group might use Synthroid and have some extras.  I did and was pleased that Stacy, Claudia and Elinor stepped forward with two pills each for me.  By taking one every other day I will manage until I get home.   Many thanks to the three ladies for being so generous with their own medications.

Ken had us all out at 6:30am and back on the boats for a mad dash directly across the lake to the annual festival called Phaung daw U, which means “Buddha on a barge”.   Once a year for three weeks a special gold covered Buddha is brought out of its temple, placed on a barge and moved to five other temples, one temple every so many days.    This was the biggest day of the long event as over 30 rowing boats were lined together one by one to pull the barge.   Each rowing boat was over 100 feet long and was full of young men on each side of the boat doing the paddling maneuver I told you about.  In the middle of each boat were a few men making rhythmic noises for the rowers to keep time.  Each boat was decorated in a different color theme with the boatmen wearing the same colored costume and using the same colored paddles.   Flowers, palm fronds, colorful umbrellas and shinny cellophane were liberally used as well.  Clearly, each was trying to outdo the others, and some were quite successful.

We arrived shortly before the procession was to start and motored our way from the front boats all the way to the barge along with many other spectator boats.  Thousands of people were on the water to see the procession and participate in the festival.   All the tourists staying on the lake turned out as well.   By the time we got to the Buddha barge, the procession was getting underway with thousands of boatmen paddling away to move the barge.   We fell into line behind the barge and followed it along with hundreds of other boats all jostling for a better position.  It was like a floating party with people chatting across boats rubbing against each other.   We smiled, waved, blew the children kisses, shouted “Ming a la bar“ and took lots of photos.  It was a super festival, even if we only participated in a small bit of it.  All too soon our boatman pealed away when an opening appeared in the crush of boats and away we went heading south again to visit yet another monastery.

This one is called Ngaphekyuang Monastery.  It is special for its beautifully carved Shan Buddha statues, which were made between 1860 and 1890.   Ken, being Shan, is quite proud of them as they all have younger, thinner faces that the usual Buddha statues.  The monastery, also on stilts has a huge open space for worshipers and visitors to share.  Attached to it is another building that houses several vendors selling wares to tourists.  Finally, I caved in and bought a longhi and top to wear during the rest of our trip.    It was good to see the inside of this building as we have passed many large two story houses that all look open from the water and it turns out they are wide open.  Ken says only one family will own a house, but all the members of that family will live in it, sleeping together upstairs and living together downstairs.  No privacy at all that I can see.  Even on the lake there is a pecking order as there are very nice and very poor looking houses in each stilt village.

We stopped at the Golden Kite, a large stilt restaurant, for an early lunch.  I think Ken timed it so we could have lunch with the group before our departure.  Finally, at 12:30 we said our farewells to everyone and got into a separate boat Ken arranged just for us.  Our bags were already loaded into it and off we went, waving and blowing kisses.   I will actually miss this group of folk.  We have had a lot of fun together.

The ride to the town of Lake Inle and the jetty took 50 minutes with the boatman going full tilt on the motor.  A van was waiting for us at the jetty and off it went for another hour’s drive to the Heho airport, which is at 3,858 feet or a thousand feet higher and cooler than the lake.     Our flight was moved up 30 minutes, so we got an earlier departure than we expected and landed at Mandalay at 4pm after a 25-minute flight.   Our transportation was waiting even though we were early.   The last leg took an hour due to commute traffic and the fact that the hotel is in the heart of the city.   We were finally in our room at 5:30.   Having remembered the lovely pool at this hotel, we wasted no time getting into it again.    Dinner at the hotel was fine with us and then writing so I can send a few posts while we have a good Wi Fi connection.

Not sure if I will have any ability to send messages from the far north and the far west or not, but I suspect this might be it until we get out of Burma and back to Bangkok and Hong Kong.  No matter what, I will try to continue writing.

Sure hope you are and remain well.  It has been sad for us to learn that two people we knew in Grass Valley have died since we left home.   We have also heard that the weather there has turned.  We have not seen any rain on this whole trip beyond a couple of insignificant sprinkles.  Cool and wet actually sounds good from here.

Will send more as soon as possible.

With much love, Julia

Wednesday, October 17, 2012

Thiripyitsaya Resort Hotel, Bagan

Ming a la bar,  (Burmese greeting.)

Balloons over Bagan provided us with a special sunrise experience over the temple area.  It was well worth getting up at 4:30am.   Fourteen of us ended up in a 16-person basket and we all have good visibility.  It was so nice to float quietly over the scenery.   There were dozens of temples to be seen in all directions.  The three other balloons in the air with us added to the photogenic prospects.

Back on the ground and fueled with champagne, we were “treated” to another day full of temples.   I almost hate to describe the day as I think you will be getting tired of hearing about temples even more than I am of visiting them.  However, I want to keep them as separate as I can for memory’s sake so here goes.

Bagan is more than one large area.  It is divided into the architectural district, Old Bagan, New Bagan and a couple other small villages.   Most of the temples are in the first two areas and New Bagan is the residential, restaurant and shopping district.  We seem to move back and forth in all the areas to see things in the order Ken and Davies have planned.

We started at the Ananda Temple for early morning shots of this beautiful structure.  Then we went a mile or so to a tiny temple by the roadside that had elephant and monkey sculptures set into exterior niches.   It was quite different than any other temple we have seen.  I went around the side to get a look into the interior and got stung by not one, but two wasps.  The pain was intense for several minutes after which I was OK except for a bit of soreness.   A little ice from the cooler chest ended that too, thankfully.

Next stop was a small temple called Gubyaukgyi near the village of Myin Ka Par.  The temple is known for its well-preserved and richly colored tantric paintings that date from the time the building was constructed in 1113.  Unfortunately we were not allowed to take any photos of the interior.  Ken told us about the Indian artists, hired for their artistic skill, who painted frescos from their own Hindu religion rather than sticking to Buddhist art.  Apparently the king of that time was more interested in good art than in the religious symbolism.  Many of the faces had long noses and big smiles and looked like caricatures to me.  A few frescoes were sexual and one even showed two naked bodies—with the sexual parts later painted over, ala the Sistine Chapel.

In the village, we stopped at Maung Aung Myin, art gallery and lacquer ware factory.  We saw several people etching intricate designs on large black lacquered panels.  Later color is applied, one color at a time—ochre red, avocado green and mustard yellow—and allowed to harden for several days before the second color is applied.  After all the colors are fixed, a clear coat is applied to finish the piece.  The number of coats of lacquer also increases the value of the piece.  We saw exquisitely made pieces of furniture and chinaware with up to 14 layers of lacquer.

The large chest I really admired took 14 months to make, with the etching taking the most time.  Even the sides of the drawers were etched.  The piece was already sold for $7,500.  Good thing as I might have tried to buy it.  Actually, the colors are all wrong for our home.  I bought a bowl in dark red and black that will be useful, I think.   Will fill it full of some food and take it to dinner parties.

Our lunch stop was at a place called Amata that included several upscale shops in a garden setting.  After a lot of negotiating I purchased a pair of flexible lacquer cups that are black on the inside and gold leaf on the outside.   Mark bought a small, well-crafted rosewood box.  Lunch was western style, which, I have concluded after a few such meals, the Burmese do not do well.

Back at the hotel by 2pm, we were given three hours of free time.   I wrote and Mark got a full massage for $23, which he really liked.  Then we went swimming in the too warm pool.  Five pm came too soon.  Off again for the evening, we made photo stops at two temples that are important, that we had already seen and that one of us could remember.  No surprise.  The two were worth revisiting, especially in the late afternoon sun.  The first was Dhammayanghi, which was completed in 1181, has a rounded top and is the most massive of all the Bagan temples, requiring 4 million bricks.  It is believed that the temple took only three years and two months to build as the king conscripted thousands of laborers.   The calculations are based on information written on excavated stone tablets found near the temple that tell the amount of rice consumed during construction years.

The second was Sulamani, which means “Queen’s Jewel”.  It is perfectly proportioned and very pretty.  Completed in 1183 and situated very close to Dhammayanghi, they must have been under construction at the same time, yet they are quite different in style.  The one being massive and rounded and the other being delicate and vertical.  I appreciated seeing then in sequence.

From there we drove to another shop that had lots of antiques and junk.  Hard to tell which was which.  None of us bought anything, although a supposedly 150-year-old finely etched and lacquered beetle nut box tempted me.

We had a good Burmese dinner, with a very wonderful hot and spicy soup that Mark and I loved and many in the group could not eat.  The restaurant was in a Marionette theater with the show in progress when we arrived.  Having seen such shows before in Vietnam, Cambodia, and China, we had a hard time staying interested.   The best part of the show was when the curtains were up and we could watch the puppeteers maneuvering the various marionettes.  Luckily for us, the show ended just as we finished eating and we were back at the hotel before 8pm.

I spent some time in the lobby trying to upload photos into the blog and finally, in much frustration, I gave up and sent the post sans pictures.  Very sorry.

Thursday, October 18, 2012

Bus ride from Pagan to Mt Popa and back.

This is perfect for me as I can see the scenery and type too.  We started the day at 7:30am and drove for two hours to a village named Chauk, where there is a perfect photographic market.  Confined to narrow alleyways, everything is condensed and the protected from the sun.  All the vendors and their children were willing to smile and pose for us, their produce looked fresh and plentiful and there were few flies bothering the meat and fish sellers.  We all went crazy taking pictures and showing them to the people in the image.

The roads we are traveling are mostly paved and tree lined.  We pass lots of scooters, some cars, many truck hauling merchandise and truck busses, the mode of transportation for most of the locals.  The fields are all green with crops of corn, peppers, butter beans, squash, peanuts, eggplant, and other vegetables.  There are orchards of mango and banana trees and trellis’s heavy with Dragon fruit.  We pass villages frequently.  Often we see public school children in their uniforms of white shirts and green longhis.  They are more self conscious about having their photos taken that little children and adults.   In one village we stop at a local teahouse where Davies treats us to milk tea, green tea or coffee.  I tried the milk tea, but did not like it.  It tasted mostly like warm condensed milk.

Every now and then there is a worthwhile photo op and the driver obliges us with a stop.  At one point we cross a vary wide waddy, or dry watercourse, that would be impossible to cross during the monsoon season.  At another point come across a flooded field full of tall palm trees.   All of this central part of the country is a large sandy plain with flat to gentle undulating hills.  As we get closer to Mt Popa the grade increases and we climb into mountains covered in dense forests until we arrive in Popa Mountain Park.  There is a lovely restaurant built on wooden platforms that protruded out from the hillside and into the forest canopy.  An extended platform provided great views of the volcanic Mt Popa (4981 feet) in the distance and its temple crowned cinder cone (2417 feet) on the other side of the canyon.  We had another very nice Burmese meal; similar to the others we have had, but outdoors.  The elevation was high enough for the air to be pleasant.   Once fortified, we drove back down the mountain and to the base of the shorter Mt Popa where there is a tourist village that caters mostly to Burmese travelers who have come to pay their respects to the 37 Nats that reside on the mountain.

According to Ken, many people, although Buddhist, still believe in Nats, who were once living people who were charismatic, but in one way or another came to a tragic end.  There were hundreds of them in centuries passed, but they began to get in the way of King Anawratha, who founded the Bagan Dynasty (1044-1287).  As a compromise to his subjects he selected the 37 most popular Nats for the people to revere, similar to Christian saints, and did away with the rest.  He then restricted Nat worship to Mt Popa at the edge of his kingdom and away from his palace territory.   We went into a room where there are statues of all 37 with their respective clothing and trappings that make them readily identifiable to Nat worshipers.  Apparently each Nat comes from a specific area of the country and appeals to the people from that district.  Some people are purely Nat worshipers, but most are Buddhists who want to cover all the bases.  As Ken explained it, Buddha is in the distance, while Nats are personal and close at hand when you need them to help you with a current problem.  Most people are afraid the Nats will bring ill fate to them if they do not worship them on a daily basis.   Therefore, people change the offerings daily including flowers, meat and alcohol, while Buddha, who is not feared at all, gets only fresh flowers, rice and water.

After seeing the Nats, most of the group hiked up the hundreds of covered steps to the top of the cinder cone.  The entire place was filthy from the overuse of people and an infestation of monkeys, who defecate on the steps and grab hold of people to try to get food.  In an attempt to keep them from tourists, several boys use slingshots to make the monkeys move away.  While walking up the stairs, there were monkeys grabbing on teenagers in front of and behind me.   Slingshots were fired left and right.  Resolute, I just keep walking and hoping I would be left alone.  It worked, but the racket was nerve rattling.  Halfway up the hill, we were required to remove our shoes.  Ugh!!  The good news was that the monkeys were behind us.  I made it to the top huffing and puffing.   After catching my breath, I saw a few small shrines erected higgledy-piggledy in the small space.  Everything looked and smelled filthy.  The place was totally unappealing.   The Nats can have it.   After about 10 minutes, we headed down and got back to the bottom in short order.   Sure won’t do that again and would not recommend it.   Back on the bus, I used a large wet-wipe for each foot and one for my hands.

The ride back to our Bagan resort was pleasant and uneventful.  Mark hurried to his second massage, as he liked the one yesterday so much, while I went swimming.

Later….. the hotel provided dinner for our group in a private area of the gardens.  For once we had a very nice western meal for our last night in Pagan.  Tomorrow is another early morning departure to our next destination.  Sure hope we can get Wi Fi there…wherever there is.

Sweet dreams, Julia

Monday, October 15, 2012

RV Paukan

Good morning.

We slept soundly last night and woke up before 6am.   Shortly the anchor was pulled in and we moved slowly down stream to the town of Sagaing (pronounced ”Sag I ne”) passing by uncountable white and gold stupas, shimmering on a series of low hills and surrounded by dense stands of trees, mostly ironwood and acacia.   The sight was breathtaking as the early morning mist gave way to the rising sun.

The river is very high and wide, as the rains have just finished.   In many places trees appear to be growing in the middle of the river and there are many marshy areas that will be dry land.  The captain tells us that in a few months the river will be so low there will be only a narrow channel.   Hard to imagine as we float down this broad, brown waterway full of debris.  Fortunately, the ship has only a 4-foot draft and can maneuver in shallow situations.

After a good breakfast, we went ashore via a small motorboat.  Getting on and off the boat was a bit precarious, as no organized plan had yet been made for such departures.  The crew used chairs and tables in a stack and held onto each of us to be sure we did not fall.  It was comical to watch.

A bus was waiting to take us on our tour of the area.  First, we up the slopes of a hill and stopped at a nunnery and wandered around the place looking for the pink clad ladies.   We are told there are 150 women in the nunnery, but we saw less than 20.  Some of them were preparing the mid-day meal of vegetables and rice, while others studied small books and a few were reciting prayers out loud in various buildings on the property.  The atmosphere was relaxed and peaceful and no one paid us any attention.   There are many fewer nuns than monks, however those who join the nunnery tend to stay, while many monks drop out after a few weeks or months.

From the nunnery we drove back down to town, which is on the flat land between hills and visited a silver factory and shop.  I did not expect to buy anything, but couldn’t resist a nicely carved, 3-inch tall, old man holding a butterfly.  It is made of some animal bone, possibly buffalo.  Ken told me it symbolized spirituality, the need to bring one’s body and soul together in spiritual harmony.

Then we climbed up the highest hill to a temple called Soon U Ponya Shin.  It had a large platform surrounding the central gold stupa.  The floors were covered in colorful ceramic tiles and the central Buddha was rather gaudy with flashing neon lights haloing its head.  There were lovely views of the river and other stupas from the edge of the platform, which was crowded with hundreds of local people thoroughly enjoying themselves.  Families were sitting on the tile floor sharing picnic meals.  Groups of teenagers were hanging around and making fun.  Small children were laughing and running around with no apparent supervision.  Lots of people were dressed up and having their picture taken.  It was like being at a fair.  I had a super time taking pictures as everyone was in a jovial mood and happy to oblige.  I got caught up in the scene and ended up being the last one off the platform.  The temperature had been comfortable on the platform as there was a slight breeze up on the hill.  Back down at the water’s edge the hot, sticky air was stifling again and we could hardly wait to get back onto our air-conditioned home.

It was 11am and we had until 4:30pm to enjoy the ship before going ashore again.   We visited in the lounge, had lunch and relaxed in our room as we watched the Irrawaddy River scenery slip by on our way to Bagan.  The hills around Sagaing quickly gave way to flat bottomland with many palm trees interspersed with other trees and vegetation.              Everything still looks very lush, although we are supposedly headed into the dry, arid season.  Several barges and medium to small boats ply the river, but, except for the ship that passed us called the “Road to Mandalay”, our ship is king of the heap.

In the late afternoon the ship stopped at a village called Yandabo.  It is well known for two things; the making of clay pots and the location of the signing of the treaty of 1826 between the British and the Burmese king that gave the bottom third of the country to England.

We walked from home to home in the village looking at hundreds of large round pots and observing women in various stages of making them.  Clearly this is a cottage industry for the whole village.  Once there are enough pots ready to be fired, wood is laid down in a clearing, pots piled high on top of the wood, straw and bamboo laid on top of the pots and the whole business fired up.   The business is successful because good clay for making the pots is available nearby.  I was more interested in taking photos of the village kids and missed a lot of Ken’s talk about pot making.   We walked completely around the village and saw how the place was laid out with a dirt path passing beside each house and yard until we got back to the large open area on the edge of the river, where soccer and other social events undoubtedly take place.

After an hour we were back on the ship.  We continued cruising until after dinner when we pulled up to a sand bar on one side of the river and parked for the night.

October 13, 2012

Mandalay Hill Resort, Mandalay

A lot has transpired since my last communication in Bangkok and we have had very little free time that was not spent sleeping.  I have about one hour now to make a start.

Burma and Rangoon were the names of Yangon and Myanmar before 1989, when the military junta arbitrarily changed the names.  Most Burmese do not like the change and still use Burma and Rangoon, so I will too.

We arrived in the late afternoon on the 11^th.  Our downtown hotel, called The Strand was reasonably pleasant, especially for having been built in 1902.   I was so tired I took a nap, while Mark went for a walk.  Later the group gathered for a western style banquet dinner, which I could have happily skipped.   I was able to get Wi-Fi for a few hours and do email.  Then the Wi-Fi went down and did not come back as long as we were in Rangoon.  It seems the government usurps the air waves at will.  Even the hotel staff was frustrated by the inability to get and keep us on line.  I finally gave up.

The next day we started with a walking tour of the downtown.   Rangoon was the capital of the Burma until it was moved to Nay Pyi Taw in the center of the country a few years ago.  The downtown is mostly composed of crumbling, old and moldy British colonial buildings dating from 1885 through 1940.   Vegetation is growing out of every nook and cranny and everything looks dingy, tired and gray.  Many of the structures are empty as they were abandoned when the government moved out.  Even so, the city is alive with energy.   People are generally friendly and busy and appear to be hard working in spite of the heat and humidity.

After a few blocks we arrived at the large outdoor Chinatown market, where we were able to get some nice photos of people.  Almost everyone I asked was willing to smile for my camera.   The food choices in the market were extensive, plentiful and fresh.  Burma is a fertile country with plenty of water and heat.  Everything grows well.  No one goes hungry in this country, which is partly why the government has been able to keep the people calm most of the time, even though there has been almost no money spent on education, health care or infrastructure since independence was declared in 1948.

For the first 20 years, the country was embroiled in multiple civil wars.  Then the military took over and the generals usurped the resources of the country for themselves.  Finally, in 2011, a former general, Thein Sein, was sworn in as president and is heading a quasi-civilian government.  He has made several reforms including: providing electric power on an almost regular 24/7 basis after years of spotty electricity due to the generals selling the power to other countries for cash; allowing internet service to be provided to the citizens, although it is still not as available as it could be; granting visas and opening the country to tourists; releasing political prisoners; allowing people to buy cars and other foreign goods; and opening the country to foreign investment.

Ken, our local Burmese guide, told us the country exports natural gas, Teak wood, Tungsten and Fish.  It imports arms and weaponry, Chinese, Japanese and Korean automobiles, machinery and medical supplies.  The generals have kept most of the proceeds and local businesses for themselves and their cronies with only a little trickling down to the people.  Worst off are the people living in rural areas, as they have received almost nothing from the government.

We left the market and drove to the National Museum to see a bit of the history of the country.  Along the way, we noticed that many cars and busses have the steering wheel on the right even though traffic moves on the right and there are no motorcycles or scooters on the roads.  Ken explained that the government decided to change from the British system, gave everyone a one-month notice and changed the traffic direction overnight some years ago.   It is taking a long time for cars with left hand drive to arrive in the country.   Then in 2005 they used the excuse that there was too much traffic in the city so they banned motorcycles and scooters within a 15k radius of the city center.  The effect was to make mass demonstrations more difficult.  Reducing traffic was incidental.   The museum was not very interesting, except for the huge finely carved and gilded, teak wood throne that belonged to the last two kings who were in power from 1850 to 1885, when the British ousted King Thibaw.   I also liked learning about the Burmese alphabet of 33 letters written using circles so the letters could fit between the lines on palm leaves, the original writing medium.  Otherwise, I could have skipped the place, but it gave Ken the opportunity to tell us more about his country.

There are 60 million people in Burma with 6 million in Rangoon.  Eight % of the population is Christian, 7% is Muslim and 75% are Buddhist.  The country is slightly smaller than Texas.  Although the government owns all the land, Burmese are allowed to arrange 90-year leases and own whatever they build on the property.   Most people are guardedly optimistic about the new president and hope he will do more to help the people.  Elections will be held again in 2015, more seats are expected to be added to the assembly and there is hope that more liberalization will result.   There are 7 Burmese provinces and 7 minority states that make up the political divisions.  All together there are 130 minorities within the country.

After the museum we went to Scott’s Market, known for its arts and crafts.  It was contained in a huge warehouse-like structure with narrow aisles and huge quantities of merchandise being peddled by vendors of similar products encamped next to each other.   It felt very similar to the Bazaar in Istanbul.   We wandered around somewhat aimlessly until Mark decided to buy a longyis, a Burmese style sarong, worn by local men for comfort in the heat.

Finely, we went to a place called Monsoon for a traditional Burmese lunch.  The food was ok, but I was too hot and tired to enjoy it.  Thankfully we went back to the hotel after lunch and were able to cool off and rest for a while.  At 4pm it was out again for the highlight of the day, the Shwedagon Pagoda at sunset.  It is a 322 foot tall, glistening gold stupa surrounded by many smaller stupas, pagodas, temples and Buddha statues in every posture.  To get to the temple platform, which is the base of the gold stupa, we took an elevator up several levels from the ground at the south entrance.  The open platform is 12 acres in size.  It is the most sacred Buddhist site in Burma and was crowded with Burmese, both civilians and monks, while we were there.  Everyone walks slowly in a clockwise direction around the stupa.   People are not silent, but genial and soft-spoken. It took us a long time to get around the place, as there is so much to see as well as several monks who wanted to practice their English on us tourists.  Gradually the light changed and the stupa became crimson and orange in the glow of the late sun.  As it set, well-placed lighting came up and the stupa continued to bask in the glow.  It was an impressive sight.  The original stupa is said to date from 1485.  Due to numerous earthquakes, the stupa has been rebuilt several times, with the current stupa dating from 1768.   Being on the site was a very pleasant experience and I could have lingered longer taking in the ambiance, the relaxed people and the cooling breeze that developed as the sun set.

Dinner was on our own, so we ate lightly and went to bed early.

Today, October 13, we were up at 5am to catch a plane to Mandalay.   We hit the ground running as the day was packed so full of sites to see.  We started in a town called Amapura, not far from the airport, to visit a shop called Kalaga for its hand made tapestries, puppets and miscellaneous stuff made to look older than it was so we would want to buy it.  I used to get taken in by such stuff, but could hardly bring myself to even look at it this time.  Thankfully, Mark did not buy the anatomically correct naked puppet on strings that he was considering.

Next stop was the Mahamuni Temple, which was exceptional for all the gold leaf applied to the body of the 13 ft. high, seated Buddha image, by so many millions of people over the years.    We saw photos of the image without gold leaf, then successive pictures until one taken in 2000 showing several inches of coverage over the entire surface.  Now the statue is beginning to loose definition for the density of the gold leaf.   Pretty amazing sight.  Mark went up and added 6 square inches of gold leaf himself.   Women are not allowed.   In a side building were six large Khmer bronze statues of figures that are reputed to have been stolen from Angkor Wat centuries ago.   It was interesting to watch people rubbing parts of the figures enthusiastically in the belief that they will regain health in the area of their body that they rub on the figure.

After the temple we went to a Gold Leaf factory to see how it is made.  No machinery here.  All the flattening is done by men, who pound the heck out of it with sledgehammers.  The women cut it and package it for sale.  A one-inch square is about $2.

The next temple is called Kuthodaw Paya.  It is another stupa that happens to be surrounded by 729 smaller stupas that each contains a text-covered marble slab.  Together the texts represent the entire 15 books of the Tripitaka.  Collectively they are often called the World’s largest book.   Now, I know that I should be telling you what Tripitaka is or means, but the truth is I don’t know and can’t find any info on it in the guidebook.  So I am asking you to look it up and tell me what it means.  Then we will all know.  I can only guess that it must have something to do with the teachings of Buddha.

Before we could go to lunch we had to visit one more place, the Schnuenandaw Monastery.   It is made of beautifully hand-carved royal teak and provided lovely photo opportunities.   It had originally been in the King Thibaw’s palace, but was dismantled and moved to make way for a newer, larger monastery.  Everything in the palace burned to the ground during WWII.  This gem survived because it had been moved out of harms way.

At last, we sat down to a Chinese banquet and ate way more than we needed.   We have more to see today, but the took us to our new digs for two hours of rest.  Mark and I went swimming and I started this post.   But not for long.  We were out again at 3:30 to visit an active monastery, called “Chaw Myat Three Storeyed Monastery”.  It is filled with 1200 youth, who live and study on the campus.  We wandered around the facility, which included several buildings for sleeping, dining, studying, etc. and saw young monks, cleaning clothes, others washing themselves, studying or just hanging out.   Most did not seem interested in us or want their photos takes so I left them alone.   It was interesting to see a monastery in action.

Finally, we drove to our last stop of the day, the U Bein Bridge.   At 1300 yards, it is the world’s longest teak footbridge.  It crosses a shallow lake and is one of the most photographed sites in Burma, especially at sunset, which is when we arrived.  We wandered out to the middle of the bridge, taking photos all along t way of people and the sunset behind a small temple.  Found young people who were happy to chat with us in English generally had a fine time.  Shortly after the sun was gone, however, we were ready to get back to the hotel, have a salad for dinner and turn in.

My general impression of Mandalay is of a younger, more modern city with smaller, well-maintained buildings throughout the city of 1 million souls.  Motorcycles and scooters are ubiquitous.  According to the book, the city was founded in 1857 and was the capital of Burma for a short time.  While driving into town, we were given copies of Rudyard Kipling’s poem, The Road to Mandalay.  It is a delightful writing even if he never got to the city.  He writes of Mandalay Bay and the sea, where there is only a river.   The city is in the middle of the country an hour’s flight north of Rangoon.

I plan to send this post in the morning, if I can get a hook up, but I will not have time to add photos as we depart here at 8am.   I hope you don’t mind.   We will be getting further away from internet opportunities from now on and I may not be able to send anything.   For the next two nights we will be on a boat and out of touch for sure.

Here’s hoping I get lucky soon.

Julia

PS  I got on line, but it was very slow and tedious.  Want you to get something rather than nothing so I will not try to include pictures.