Empty Nest Trekkers: Yangon (Rangoon), Myanmar (Burma)

When we started planning our South East Asia tour, we knew we wanted to explore Myanmar based on other tourists saying it is like Thailand was decades ago. It is a country not well-traveled compared to its neighboring countries and reliable tourist information is a little hard to come by. Up until 2011, the military government kept Myanmar somewhat isolated from the rest of the world. It is rapidly improving, and we had no problems obtaining local currency from ATMs and getting good SIM cards for our iPhones to access the internet. On 20 November we flew into the capital city of Yangon (formerly called Rangoon). Driving to our hotel we could tell this country was going to be different from what we had experienced in Thailand, Vietnam and Cambodia.

These nuns are the female version of the monks. They were walking around asking for donations. We saw many young boys and girls in monk and nuns robes. We were told many of them are orphans. Often poor families will simply send their kids to the monasteries for the free education, food and clothing.

No short pants when visiting the most sacred Buddhist pagoda in Myanmar - Schwedagon Pagoda. So, I had to don a longi before being allowed in.

Bathing Buddha

Constructed more that 2,600 years ago, the 325-foot tall Schwedagon Pagoda is the oldest of its type in the world.

At only 148 feet tall, the Sule Pagoda almost goes unnoticed compared to the Schwedagon Pagoda. "Oh, look, another pagoda".

We found, in general, the food in Myanmar looks bad, smells bad, and tastes bad. However, in all fairness, we did not confirm that this tastes bad. We saw these baskets of various fried bugs being sold at many markets.

Watermelon is always a safe bet.

A collection of various medical instruments being sold at a market.

A quick look at the train schedule and it's easy to see everything you need to know about taking the train in Yangon!? We had read on Trip Advisor how much to pay for the train. So, we just handed the 25 cent equivalent to the guy behind the ticket counter. He pointed at the tracks and gave us clear instructions, in Burmese. So, we just jumped on the first train that stopped.

That's exactly how our daughter packs for a trip!

The circular train around Yangon takes about 4 hours to complete the loop.

We were definitely a novelty on the train. Everyone was very friendly but we got lots of quizzical looks.

The young man in the white shirt is an English major at a university in Yangon. Very friendly and helpful.

Once we confirmed we were not on the train to China and indeed on the scenic train that goes around city, we were able to take in the beautiful scenery.

The vast majority of Burmese women put this paint made from tree bark, thanaka, on their face for protection from the elements and a symbolism of beauty. It's a 2000 year-old tradition. Some put a tiny amount on their face....I guess just to say they did. Others go for full coverage.