Bus 1
Express buses zooming between Yangon and Mandalay stop on the road east of the clock tower and not at the local bus station , and along this road you'll find half a dozen ticket-sales shops. Air-conditioned buses bound for Mandalay K1500, four hours leave around 9am for Yangon K4500,10 to 12 hours at 7pm or so. There's also an express bus for Pyay K4300, 12 to 14 hours at 5pm. The 'ordinary' bus station is just east of the Htee Thone Sint Paya, north of the clock tower. Here you can catch local...
Traditional Medicine
Throughout Myanmar traditional medical systems are widely practised. There is a big difference between these traditional healing systems and 'folk' medicine. Folk remedies should be avoided, as they often involve rather dubious procedures with potential complications. In comparison, traditional healing systems such as traditional Chinese medicine are well respected, and aspects of them are being increasingly used by Western medical practitioners. All traditional Asian medical systems identify a...
See Seim Hotel Chaung Tha Beach
Chaungtha Oo Beach Hotel 22888, in Yangon 01-254 708 r USS25-35 Popular with UN and foreign-embassy staff, this hotel at the quiet northernmost end of the beach has large, bright blue-and-green chalets, each with delightful private porches. The more expensive rooms have hot water, and the complimentary breakfast is served in a pleasant all-wood wraparound porch. Grand Hotel Chaungtha Beach Resort 23001 s US 18-25, d USS20-30 It has nice, clean, well-kept rooms, modern bathrooms with bathtubs,...
Twante
If your time in the delta area is limited, Twante, a small town noted for its pottery, cotton-weaving and an old Mon paya complex, is a worthwhile day trip. There's a large market in the centre of town - really only a wide, dusty road lined with ramshackle wooden shops. The journey to Twante is enjoyable, whether you go by hired jeep or ferry. The drive passes through leafy villages, where kids spill out from thatched huts to play. The ferry provides a glimpse of life on and along the famous...
TOP END Ese
Treasure Beach Resort in Yangon 01-501 565 www .myanmartreasurebeach.com cottages USS85-100 mains US 8 S 6 The nicest of all the resorts and occupying the best location just one minute's walk from the village, the Treasure Beach is also one of the oldest. It's very well managed, the grounds are meticulously manicured and the spacious bungalows have satellite TVs and porches ideal for sunset viewing. Reminiscent of a private, high-end Balinese resort, the Treasure Beach is sophisticatedly laid...
Upper Sagaing District
North of Sagaing town p252 near Mandalay, the Sagaing District sprawls northward to the Indian border. Few tourists visit here, which is part of its appeal. Monywa is near some top-shelf attractions historically key Shwebo p260 kicked off Myanmar's last dynasty. Further north - and only reachable by air - Kalaymyo p262 is a quiet valley town with a sizeable Chin community. During the 17th century, when the Portuguese adventurer Philip De Brito was defeated at Thanlyin, all the Portuguese and...
TRAIN Gpz
There are as many opinions of Myanmar's oft-maligned train service as there are people riding it. For some a train ride on narrow-gauge tracks is like going by horse, with the old carriages rocking back and forth and bouncing everyone lucky enough to have a seat on the hard chairs others dig it, as some routes get to areas not reached by road. One local said, 'It's not as bad as some people say, not as good as you hope'. What's known for sure is that train trips along the same routes as buses...
Getting Started
Read the discussion on p 17 regarding whether you should boycott My-anmar or not. The best time to visit Myanmar is between November and February. During these months it rains least if at all in places and it is not so hot. March to May brings intense heat TS Eliot described April as 'the cruellest month' . At this time, Yangon's daily temperatures often reach See Climate Charts p335 40 C, while areas around Bagan and Mandalay go a few digits higher. The for more information, cool hill towns of...
Kalaymyo
Travellers with up-for-grabs expectations -and an interest in meeting Chin folk without taking a government-guided trip to Chin State - can fly to Kalaymyo, a long way north of Mandalay and about 100km from India. There's not much to do in town, but it's interesting for the make-up of its population half Burmese, half Chin and its slender setting, ringed by far-off lush mountains the town is 15km long and rarely more than two blocks wide . Most foreign faces who do make it here belong to...
History Emy
A preview of the past life in Myanmar has rarely been smooth. Squabbling kingdoms plagued the area for centuries, till the British took it in three waves in the 19th century. For its own economic benefit, Britain managed the mountainous border regions home to many ethnic groups and the fertile plains and delta of central and lower Myanmar where most Bamar live separately, festering a rift between cultures that lingers in full force today. After a rocky independence from Britain from 1948,...
Bago Pegu
The logical first stop after leaving Yangon, Bago feels like an amusement park of fascinating Buddhist religious sites. It's very easy to do a day trip to Bago from Yangon, but shuttling from one site to the other makes it difficult to do any of them any justice. It's best to take your time and spend the night, although there's a lack of quality accommodation here. An early start to visit the sites is probably the best idea, as Bago can get very hot around noon. Bago is only about 80km from...
Where To Stay
Old Bagan p273 In the heart of the old palace walls high-end hotels on the river cost from US 50 to way more. There's little life outside the hotels, but they are closest to the big-time temples. New Bagan Bagan Myothit p275 Here are popular riverside restaurants particularly for lunch , and the biggest choice of midrange hotels that charge from US 20 to US 40. Nyaung U p269 It has the liveliest restaurant options, tons of shoestringers guesthouses for about US 5 and comfortable bungalows for...
Language 1
Conversation amp Essentials 381 Myanmar's official language is Burmese, the language of the Bamar majority. Speakers of Burmese and related dialects comprise nearly 80 of the population. Making up another 10 of the population are speakers of Tai languages, which include the Shan, Khun, Tai Lii and even a little-known group of Lao living near Payathonzu - descendents of refugees from Lao-Siamese wars in the 19th century. Linguists estimate that there are 107 languages spoken within Myanmar....
Baganera Monuments
Little of Salay's history is known outside a small circle of Myanmar archaeologists working with limited funds. So details on the 103 ruins - most of them known only by number rather than name - are sketchy. It is said that most of the monuments in Salay weren't royally sponsored but were built by the lower nobility or commoners -thus there are no structures on the grand scale of Bagan's biggest ones. In the pagoda-filled area across from the Youqson Kyaung, you can see Payathonzu see p308...
SHOPPING Gnp
There are some good bargains to be had in Myanmar, particularly for textiles and handicrafts. It's a good idea to seek out local artisans and buy handicrafts directly from them, rather than directing profits towards government-owned shops. See p28 for a list of top souvenirs. In larger towns and cities, bargains are usually found in the public markets, called zei, or zay, in Burmese. The main central market is often called zeigyo also spelt zei-gyo or zay-cho other markets will be named after...
OTHER SIGHTS Ogf
At research time, waterlogged roads prohibited access to these sights, which aren't always on horse-cart drivers' itineraries. The massive old city walls can easily be traced around Inwa. The best preserved are near the northern gate, facing the Ayeyar-wady northwest of the Maha Aungmye Bonzan . This gate was also known as the Gaung Say Daga Hair-Washing Gate , where kings went for a shampoo. On the southern side of the city stand the remains of the huge four-storey Le-htat-gyi Paya. There is...