novatel opens a fancy hotel

i stopped in at a newly opened Novotel Hotel in Yangon.  it's walking distance with decent sidewalks from the apartment and they have good coffee.  the pool on the roof is amazing and for a short time was open to expat for free which was really nice as the weather was 100+/39+.  it was an effort to win over some expats as the initial opening had not gone well they were struggling a bit as early guests were arriving and the paint was still wet all the walls.  in particular the staff was criticized because they were so pretentious.  yeah, girls you get wear heels and short skirts at work but it's still a service job so adjust your attitude.

the big P

mostly i think to keep the tourists from noticing the mold and decay of the rest of the city, Yangon promotes the Shwedagon Pagoda as it's biggest attraction.  and it is impressive, with jewels and leaves of gold, built to stand out for miles in every direction.  it's a sacred place, so sacred that you can't wear footwear and you must be covered from elbows to knees.  unlike most sacred spaces, they provide companies the opportunity to advertise wireless internet access and charge a FEE if you are not a local.  you'll also run the gauntlet of vendors selling worthless trinkets lining the approach which is about half a kilometer.

take the time and go ride the circular train instead. 

at one time as an expat with properly stamped resident papers you could get in without a fee but now they just shake their heads and point at the fee board.  most people i know take their guest up to one of the bars/restaurants overlooking the pagoda towards evening as it is impressive to watch the sunset and moon rise and the lights come up at the pagoda.  unless you're a practicing Buddhist there's nothing to really see inside the perimeter [you can't go inside the actual stupa unlike a temple where the religious practice is inside] and it's voyeuristic to stand and watch those who are in the moment practicing.

Myanmar mulls left-hand drive car law

there's a lot of stuff that's different in Myanmar.  there is the fact that most cars [90%] have the steering wheel/driver on the right side of the car we call that right hand drive or RHD.  what makes it different from other countries with this car orientation is they also drive on the right hand side of the road.  again, superstition ... one of the generals switched the driving from left to right on the advice of a wizard.

well, now there gonna change that..... can't wait to see when that law hits.


http://www.nationmultimedia.com/breakingnews/Myanmar-mulls-left-hand-drive-car-law-30269172.html

Myanmar mulls left-hand drive car law

YANGON (AFP) - Myanmar plans to make left-hand drive cars compulsory, state media reported Sunday, causing concern in a country where the vast majority of vehicles remain right-hand drive despite cars driving on the right.

The law is an attempt to correct one of the more unusual legacies of decades of junta rule.

More than four decades ago Myanmar’s paranoid and notoriously superstitious dictator Ne Win ordered all citizens to drive on the right.

The reasons were never stated, but many said the change was either made following advice from an astrologer or was a rebuke to Myanmar’s former colonial master Britain, where vehicles are driven on the left.

After junta rule gave way to a quasi-civilian reformist government in 2011 and the lifting of most Western sanctions, the car market exploded.

But an estimated 90 percent of the vehicles remain right-hand drive -- primarily because most of the affordable cars available and brought in by importers are second-hand vehicles from Japan.

The strange quirk creates daily havoc on Myanmar’s increasingly congested roads, with drivers often having no clear line of sight before overtaking and buses regularly disgorging passengers into the middle of a road rather than onto a pavement.

The government now aims to correct that anomaly.

According to a report in the Global New Light of Myanmar a new law was given initial approval last week that will make left-hand drive vehicles compulsory.

The report made no mention of when the law would come into effect or whether citizens would receive any help from the government to initiate the change.

"The new law drawn by the Road Transport Administration Department pointed out that use of right-hand drive cars is incompatible with the existing drive-on-the-right traffic system from the standpoint of ensuring road safety in Myanmar," the report said, adding that drivers would have 90 days to make the change.

The same state media report voiced rare official criticism of the proposals, saying many were hoping the government would give drivers more time to make the switch.

"People will suffer losses if they are asked to abandon their right-hand drive cars during a short period of time," U Nyan Tun Oo, Yangon Region Minister for Electricity and Industry, was quoted as saying, adding that taxis and buses should be switched first.

The report added that over 50,000 right-hand drive vehicles are currently on showroom floors waiting to be sold, according to Dr Soe Tun, president of Myanmar Automobile Manufacturers and Dealers Association.

In recent years Myanmar’s roads -- particularly in cities like Yangon and Mandalay -- have become choked by the influx of cars that accompanied the country’s opening to the world after decades of military rule.

And the gridlock looks set to get worse.

Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA), which is working with Myanmar on several nationwide transport projects, predicts the number of cars clogging Yangon’s pot-holed roads will quadruple to around one million.

nat worship

no discussion of Buddhism or religion in Myanmar would be complete without a mention of the nats.  it's something else that is singular to the country, although the manifestation of evil spirits is common to all religions.  there's a specific list of nats like there are saints.  usually a nat is a human that has met a violent death and they are worshiped in much the way a saint would be venerated.  

ask a national about the nats and you'll get something similar to a 'ghost story' with the same passion and creepiness that goes along with the western tradition.

mt. popa is the largest of the shrine sites and hosts a festival on the full moon in December.  i did not visit mt. popa ... it's a day trip from Bagan because the other travelers i knew were a bit disappointed with the experience.  it is more actively practiced in the rural than the urban areas but they are everywhere and i saw the box below on a tree along the river in Yangon.  there is also an easy to find and quite impressive Nat Shrine in Hsipaw, to the north.

monks and nuns in myanmar

begging nuns - scotts market in yangon

the tradition of monks and nuns in Myanmar goes back to the 10th century and has remained for the most part, completely unchanged in the country. monasteries take in the unwanted children and they end up begging on the streets for offerings.  my heart breaks for the little girls with heads shaved following the older girls with no idea what they are doing.  

they go from store to store, house to house, restaurant to tea shop looking for whatever might be given.  in a lot of places there is a rice bowl with a scoop and each child who begs gets one spoonful of rice.

the little beggar girls from the Buddhist monastery on my street know me and will cross the street when they see me because they know i will empty my wallet. 

merit making

previously i'd mentioned the Buddhists persecution of the Rohingya in the Rahkine State of Myanmar and there's more that differs between the Buddhists of Burma and Buddhists in other countries.  there's a lot of them...  people from around the world have long flocked to Burma to study Buddhism and an overwhelming 85% or more of the population identify as Buddhists.  most are not conservative Buddhists, they eat animals, drink alcohol, beat muslims, etc.

street facade for 'merit making' week

strangely, unlike most military dictatorships, there was no effort in Myanmar to shut down religion after they took control.  in fact, they promoted and embraced it as a way of 'merit making'.  the military elite pours money into the building of pagodas [pagodas you walk around - temples you can walk into].

which leads me to the one of the annoying things about buddhists in burma which i have not encountered elsewhere.  merit making is the practice of good deeds and charity in order to obtain a favorable rebirth.  see that picture of the facade that is erected over the street?  that roughly translates to 'you are f#ck3d for the next week' and 'you will get no sleep'.  

preaching platform

on the street which they close down at dusk they build these 'altars' on which at some point in the night the head monk will come out and start preaching.  it's a really, really small area - like 1000 sq feet [sorry Europeans you do the math] but they use loudspeakers projected outwards to the community so non one misses out.  then, because the monks need to collect their food before sunrise, they loudly call all the monks to come around 4AM.  i know normally rational expats who, having lost sleep for days, will curse the monks who do this.

even more annoying is they ongoing list of merit makers that is read over a loudspeaker, sometimes starting at 6AM, and this goes on as long as it takes to collect the money needed to support the local monastery.

in the rural area i visited the presence and influence of the monks varies widely from village to village.  in some it was very passive and in others quite dominant.  see my post on a really sacred moment. in one village where we sat through an evening ceremony the most interesting to me were the bats flying around but i'm sure anyone in the village who was absent was noted by the monks.

fodka

HERBAL RUM?

i know i've been spending too much time traveling because the airports in SE Asia are getting way to familiar.  i actually budgeted time to hit the duty free shop in Bangkok before heading back to Yangon.  the reason for the stop was to get some real vodka.  real vodka you say, what about all that Absolut and Barcardi on the shelves at the store at the local grocery?  

when i was first in Myanmar i was shocked at the cost and availability of western brand alcohol.  a one liter bottle of Absolut costs about US11$.  i thought the relative cost of alcohol was the government's way of keeping the nationals numbed.  turns out i could not have been more wrong.  one of the expats explained is all fake alcohol made in china, where of course there are no limmitations on brand infringement.  on the shelf at the grocery store between the 'fodka' and 'facaradi' i found the tonic for 'general health'.  

the British, when they colonized Burma, pretty quickly set up a rum distillery and it's legacy remains.  it's called Mandaly Rum and it sells for about US1.50$ per liter.  it is not good.  on the other hand, there is a local beer called Myanmar Beer which does get pretty good reviews by the expats. 

execution in Indonesia

the Bali 9 is a drug smuggling ring of Australian guys who were caught and convicted by Indonesia authorities.  two were sentenced to death by firing squad the rest were sentenced to life.  when i mentioned to an Australian friend in Myanmar that i was traveling to Bali she was telling me how wonderful the island was but cautioned me against was doing drugs.  i had heard of the Bali 9 before but she had a connection to the parents of one the men convicted and sentenced to life in prison.  she was telling me about how they have to pay someone to see after their son for the rest of his life in an Indonesian prision.  food, medicine and other things not provided by the prision.  the caretaker has to constantly buy him matresses as they get nicked quite often.

those convictions were ten years ago and the executions of two Bali 9 happened on the day i left Bali along with six others convicted of drug related crimes.  it has been in the news quite a bit and the topic of conversations among fellow travelers.  even in the US the death penalty is used mostly in violent crimes and i can't imagine a drug smuggler being sentenced to death.

of course, outside the US most western countries are horrified at the idea of a death penalty so the conversations were focused on spending travel dollars in countries that have human rights violations.  the Australians are horified because it was the Australian authorities that tipped the Indonesians about the drug ring knowing that executiion was a possible outcome.

the executions were on a different island so there were not any organized protests on Bali. i did notice an increased police presence but when i asked my taxi driver about it he insisted that the police were cracking down on mushroom sales.

it's a horrible outcome and cautionary tale for all travelers.

last day in Bali

my last day in Bali was not boring. in the morning i walked down to the beach thinking i'd have it to myself but it was pretty crowded. on the way back to the hotel i stopped for coffee and had a chat with a guy from New Zealand. he said he'd been walking up and down the street because he'd left his rented motorbike somewhere the night before. the 'street' is about 5 miles long and lined with thousands of motor bikes. i finished my coffee and wished him luck as he ordered his third beer .... at 9AM! and that is why i never leave my passport when i rent a scooter.

i wander up and down the lanes and love the street art. Bali seems to have a healthy network of graphiti artists. one last massage and i'm ready to leave Bali.

lastly, i've stayed a lot of places in Bali but the staff and people i met at the Akmani Hotel have made my trip unforgetable.  for anyone, i recommend a visit to the pool on the roof of the hotel although the massages and other services of the hotel are exceptional as well.

Gili Air

i circumnavigate the island in less than an hour on a bike i rented.  that included two stops.  one for jumba [something the yoga instructor recommended] and one for coffee.  the bike i rent from the yoga centre is really nice and it makes getting around the island super fast.  most bikes i have rented in SE Asia come with optional pedals and other various missing parts so this is a treat.  the only other mode of transportation on the island are horse drawn carriages which i was able to avoid. 

the island is ringed by an amazing reef and is well known for it's sea turtle population, excellent diving and snorkeling.  one of the expats is complaining about the locals lack of concern about destroying the reef with their anchors and fishing practices but overall Gili Air seems to be pretty eco conscious... some places serve the cocktails without straws [or use bamboo straws] to reduce the impact of plastic on the island.  also missing is a huge trash pile that is common on so many of these beautiful islands.  the perimeter of the island is ringed with bungalos and small guest homes.  there aren't any large resorts on this island. 

beyond the water sports there is plenty to do and there is a party scene after dark although less so on this island than a the neighbor island.  it's about $2US for an island transfer so there's a lot of island hopping but i'm content to stay here so i never venture over to the other islands.  Lombok is culturally very different from Bali with the main influence being religion.  Bali is Hindu while Lombok is Muslim.  having been a guest in both places i can say the people of Bali are much more welcoming and engaging with the tourists.

the place i am staying is great.  except for the rooster that i would have killed had it not been a very fast rooster.  it woke me up two mornings before the sun was even up.  what is reason for roosters anyway?  in a departure from the rest of SE Asia there are no dogs on the island.  there are cats and i find one of them on my door mat several mornings but she's a fickle girl and i spot her napping on other door mats as well.  there is a pool and about 15 or so bungalows.  

there are less expensive bungalows but i opt for this one [$30US] becuase it has a/c which isn't really necessary but i don't like sleeping with the windows open becuase of the bugs and misquitos.  this iydlic island is a cesspool of tropical diseases - if you've heard of it - they've got it.  

the owner is a european transplant and when he leaves for the weekend the local staff turns the lobby into a hangout for thier friends. imagine a group of ten guys laying around on the couches, smoking cigarettes and watching their version of mtv.  so that part i didn't enjoy but i was too lazy to move to a different location.  the staff in general here was a huge adjustment after being treated like family in Bali.

outdoor shower

the first half of my week on the island was filled with sun but a cloud system moved over the island for the last few days.  the yoga platform was open on all sides and made for a magical experience with the rain pouring down on all sides.  because the bungalow shower was outside and the mix of the rain and the warm water from the shower also made for showering interesting.

mango tree in the garden

the Gili Islands are wonderful and after a long week unwinding in Bali, a week relaxing on the island it wouldn't take long before this became a lifestyle and it became impossible to leave.  but leave i do and i take another well organized boat and van shuttle back to Bali where they drop me at the hotel i stayed when i first arrived.  i've got another day in Bali to do some shipping, shopping and last trip to the beach before i leave.

cock that woke me up in the mornings

things i didn't need the last few days

after yoga a group would all meet up on the beach for snorkeling and eating and enjoying the island but the last few days i was using an umbrella more than my snorkel.  still the access to the reef is fantastic and sitting in the beach huts while a storm moves through is equally amazing.  

Gili Air is on the right

the thunder and lighting and pouring rain are bold reminders of insignificant we are to the ecosystem here.  there are no police on the island.  in the event something goes missing you are instructed to visit the village chief!