A memoir of journeys made

Myanmar may still be under the radar for most tourist but I’ve been wanting to visit for as long as I can remember. I can’t tell you exactly how this destination stumbled its way on my list. I just knew for a fact that I’d rather visit sooner than later. When the chance to do so this winter came, me and my travel buddy just can’t let our chance pass us by!

We had 7 nights – admittedly short – for Myanmar. Better known to others as Burma – its name was changed in 1989 by the then military junta. We had to plan it carefully: avoid beaten tracks, if possible. Avoid backtracking. Preferably, go someplace unpopular yet beautiful.

Day 1: Flight in Mandalay

I actually lost a day and a night for this trip. Air Asia rescheduled my flight much earlier eventhough I allotted more than enough time. I was to fly in to Bangkok’s Suvarnabhumi Airport from Manila at 8am. I was then meaning to catch a 4pm flight from DMK for Mandalay. It was however changed to 11am. I thought it was too close – with the immigration checks, baggage pick up/ drop off, and the fact that it’s at least 1 hour travel time between the two airport. On the upside, I was able to eat my way around Bangkok, delicious!

Immediately upon my arrival at the place where Jess was staying at – I didn’t even get the chance to change into my sandals- we hopped on to the private car that was arranged to take us around.

Day 2: Exploring Bagan

After a whirlwind tour of Mandalay (for me), it was off to Bagan for us both via night train. They didn’t have sleeper trains. We bought a first class ticket to avail of whatever comfort it may provide. When we arrived in Bagan, it was freezing! Our top priority was to get to our hotel for its warmth and bed. Enroute to the hotel, our taxi was stopped at the check point where we had to pay a visitor’s fee – 25,000 kyats. We were later told by other tourists that they made excuses to not pay this. Oh well. A proper sleep later, we set about to renting an ebike and seeing the beauty of the temples and pagodas for ourselves.

Day 3: Sunrise in Bagan

We’ve sort of scouted where to go for sunrise the day before. We did try to chance it to another temple but it looked like it was closed for  general public. Off to the original plan then! At the top of the temple – probably 3 floors high – we all, I mean everyone up there that morning, watched as Jessica’s DSLR cover went rolling down to the edge and fell to the ground! We got it back when we were safely back on the ground. We headed back to the hotel for breakfast and some more snooze before we dedicated the rest of our day to visiting more temples.

Day 4: Wandering around Yangon
That night, we got on a bus that would take us to our next destination, Yangon. We got our tickets from one of the many tour operators in Bagan, we chose the one that suited our budget and time. I remember waking up to the sunrise on the road. The bus station was very busy! It felt a bit overwhelming since it was very early in the day too. We took a cab to our hotel. The traffic was pretty bad in the city. The best bit for me was when were inside the Shwedagon Pagoda. It rained while we were there which made for an unusual experience. How the place gleamed under the sun after though!

Day 5: Hpa An’s sunset

Hpa An was the gem of our trip. We knew very little of the place. We didn’t know what to expect. We wanted to get away from the hustle and bustle of the city. We found refuge here.

Day 6: Hpa An on (motor)bike

This was my fave part of the trip. No fixed schedule nor itinerary, we wandered where we felt like. We made sure to visit temple caves and other sceneries. Beautiful! Chit chatting with locals – or tried to anyways! The frequency of us taking our footwear off since we were walking on sacred ground – read that as walking barefoot inside caves with guano- resulted to 2 pairs of (really) dirt(y) feet, I ended up dubbing them hobbits’ feet. Waah! hehe

Day 7: Back to Yangon

We left Hpa An early in the afternoon and arrived back in the city well in the evening. This was the only bit where we returned to the same place because we’re flying out of the country for Bangkok early the next morning. Speaking of flying, the lounge in their airport is one that’s pretty massive and impressive!

It’s always great to explore new destinations with your (fave) travel buddy. I had such a fabulous time! Thanks Jess!xxx