Lessons from Birmanie!

They say life is not about the number of breaths we take, rather than the moments which take your breath away. And I’ve been more than lucky in that aspect to have had the opportunity to visit Myanmar (erstwhile Burma) for its magnificent landscapes, people beyond the definition of hospitable, art and architecture to satisfy your senses to no end and smiles and peace to greet you even in the most chaotic pick-up van!

While, soon there will be several posts detailing your journey which started from Mandalay, then a 2-day trek from Kalaw to Inle Lake, followed by 2 days at Inle Lake and the neighbouring regions, moving to Bagan for 2 more days and finally back to Mandalay and the neighbouring ancient cities! 

It sounds too much for just 8 days, and it did stretch us to our physically limits, but if we have to do it again, there’s nothing we would change!

While now I sit in my apartment, on a humid Sunday Bombay evening, I can’t stop thinking of snippets of the Myanmar trip and how much I learnt about history, geography and people in general in just those 8 days!

Lessons from Myanmar:

Smiling is a national mandate!

It is crazy, how can an entire nation always put up a smiling face?! Irrespective of the weather, the hardships in life, the spice in your curry, there is nothing that a smile cannot overcome! One night we reached our hostel post midnight and had to bang on the doors to wake up the owners inside, and wake they did with a resplendent smile! Everywhere we went the one thing common was the innocent smiles that greeted us!

First family we met on our trek to Inle Lake. And it was the first time they were seeing foreigners! So happy to have a polaroid to keep those memories forever!

Babies of Burma! On the trek to Inle Lake

So excited to show off his catch!

History does not define your future

Historically, the capital of Myanmar has mostly circulated between Inwa, Amarapura and Mandalay, the three ancient cities. We happened to visit Inwa on one of the days and unless we had specifically read about it’s royal history, there is pretty much no semblance to an erstwhile royal capital! Just goes on to show how if people don’t move ahead with times and still hold on to their heritage, they will neither belong to the past nor to the present.

Ruins at Inndain

More than a thousand pagodas at the Shwe Inn Thein

Bird's eye view of the Shwe Inn Thein

Indulge in the arts!

Almost everywhere one can see people setting up easels or mixing colours to paint the silhouette of a wooden monastery or the flaming colours of the setting sun or the life story of Buddha! Agreed, a lot of it is turning towards commercial consumption owing to increased tourism, however, it is still heartening to see old men with flowing white beards painting sunsets.

Just another morning at a monastery

Too much beauty in the same frame!

There is always time for football!

Footballs here are not what one is used to seeing, the colourful patches on a bouncy big ball. Instead it is fashioned out of bamboo (called a chemlo) and is considerably tinier but still clearly affords the same amount of fun to kids and adults alike. On most corners and alleys it’s not a rare sight to see young monks, with their maroon drapes tied around their waists running after the chemlo.

Chemlo is always a good idea!

At any time of the day!

With anyone!

Mass tourism is fast approaching!

Myanmar saw about 2 million tourists in 2013. Compare this to the 20 million that its neighbour Thailand saw in the same time. While in major tourist spots like Bagan you can see taxi drivers approaching the bus even before it has stopped at the station, at others like Manadalay (surprisingly) most locals just leave you alone as you walk about its crowded streets. While Myanmar is still one of the most pristine and untouched countries in south East Asia, it doesn’t seem like it will remain so for a very long time. It is up to people like us, who while should visit the country and savour its beauty and hospitality in all its glory, but also do it in a manner most responsible. Let’s not make it another Thailand.