Stake out a slice of beach on the blissful Bay of Bengal. Drift down the Ayeyarwady (Irrawaddy) River in an old steamer or luxury cruiser. Thankfully, the pace of change is not overwhelming, leaving the simple pleasures of travel in Myanmar intact. The new Myanmar is very much a work in progress. The Burmese military continue to play a key, if less visible, role in politics. But the economic and social changes Myanmar is undergoing are largely confined to the big cities and towns, and large swaths of the country remain off limits due to ongoing ethnic conflict. Modern travel conveniences, such as mobile-phone coverage and internet access, are now common. Sanctions have been dropped and Asian investors especially are coming to do business.
In 2015, Myanmar voted in its first democratically elected government in more than half a century. Drinking tea – a British colonial custom – is enthusiastically embraced in thousands of teahouses. Trishaws still ply city streets, while the horse or bullock and cart is common rural transport. You'll encounter men wearing the sarong-like longyi and chewing betel nut, spitting the blood-red juice onto the ground, women with faces smothered in thanakha (a natural sunblock), and cheroot-smoking grannies. Traditional Lifeįor all the recent changes, Myanmar remains at heart a rural nation of traditional values. These are all important Buddhist sights in a country where pious monks are more revered than rock stars. Stare in disbelief at the Golden Rock at Mt Kyaiktiyo, teetering impossibly on the edge of a chasm. Contemplate the 4000 sacred stupas scattered across the plains of Bagan. Be dazzled by the 'winking wonder' of Shwedagon Paya. Golden WondersĪmazingly, over a century later, Myanmar retains the power to surprise and delight even the most jaded of travelers. It's a new era for this extraordinary and complex land, where the landscape is scattered with gilded pagodas and the traditional ways of Asia endure.