Traveling Myanmar

So, this week I got to do some traveling around Myanmar. It all began Sunday night with a very long night bus ride. Wondering about what a night bus looks like. Well I suggest you watch the third Harry Potter movie. And it was nothing like that. It would have been really comfy if my legs were only Asian sized. As it was I was glad to get off at noon the next day in the small city of Lasho.

Lasho was nice. Much cooler weather than Yangon and I loved it! We did some shopping, met with the pastor of the church and his family, and took a tour of the church. The next day we left for a 5 hour drive to Pyin Oo Lwin. We took a taxi with a driver and 4 passengers. It was tight and we were all happy when we arrived. The roads were like something out of a car commercial. Very curvy and tight and we were constantly passing semis. And it didn't help when we passed not one, but two, fatal accidents. Yes, could have gone without seeing those, especially since one was a motorcycle.

Now Pyin Oo Lwin was the most beautiful town I have seen this whole trip. It is small and full of fun things to do. The hotel was gorgeous and spacious and super cheap, although I do have to say that every time I walked into a hotel they charged me twice as much as my traveling companions. This hotel still rung in at only $30. No AC but it certainly didn't need it. The weather was fantastic and the town gorgeous. Horse drawn carriages, colonial style homes, and mind blowingly gorgeous flowers. We went to the church (which was amazing and surrounded by flowers), then to eat at a nice restaurant where I got some ribs and sushi. Next day we had a lovely breakfast at the hotel then off to the botanical gardens. We hiked up to the tower overlooking the gardens and town. Then we road the elevator to the top (7 stories) and walked down. It was very cool and windy and a little scary as the wooden steps were not in great shape. Then we had to walk down the epic hill we walked up to get to the tower.

Then back in the taxi for an 2 hour drive to the big city of Mandalay. Well the weather was certainly warmer, or hot. We arrived and checked into our hotel then went to see the old Palace. $1 for my friends, $10 for the white girl. Ah the life of a traveler. We climbed yet another tower, this one small, yet still needed some maintence on the steps. From the top you could see the many palace building. Most of them were the homes of many wives the kings had. And there were a lot of queen houses.

Then we went off to see the last church of the trip. The Mandalay church was just as beautiful as it the other two churches we visited this week. Although, it was quite a bit warmer there. Then back to the hotel and for our last night of the trip followed by an early morning. We finally made it on the bus headed to Yangon. The bus back was nicer than the bus there with personal TVs. Fun!

I'm glad I got the chance to see more of this beautiful country. If you are planning a crazy vacation you should definitely check out Pyin Oo Lwin. There is so much to see there and it has marvelous weather. And it like walking back in time seeing all the colonial houses left from the many years of English control of the country.