Myanmar 9 (last one!): back in Yangon

Novice monks at Shwedigon

Mon 26 Feb 2018

Loikaw airport!

Quick flight from tiny Loikaw airport to Yangon, taxi in mad traffic to Cozy Hotel (yes, really) in  Chinatown. Yangon is somehow noisier, hotter and smellier than last time!  Only one way to find the attractions to this city: fire up Google maps and go walking.                                                        


Sule Pagoda: legend has it that it was founded in 230BC and contains a sacred hair of Buddha Gautama. It was reconstructed in 15C, and is unusual in that octagonal shape continues up the curved bell part of the stupa. And only in Myanmar would this important Pagoda be a major traffic island – and indeed the site of past demonstrations.

Sule Paya 

The Mahabandula Park is a very small oasis of greenery in the scruffy oven of Yangon; it has the Independence Memorial obelisk, and is overlooked by the City Hall, the Baptist Church and the former High Court.

Independence Memorial 

City Hall

Old High Court

I then walked miles east to the Botataung Pagoda – the original location for all eight of the Buddha’s hairs originally bought from India 2000 years ago. Only one hair remains. Also on the site is a gilded bronze Buddha statue that was pinched by the Brits and spend 66 years in the VA – but returned in 1951.

Hair of Buddha ‘shrine’\ 

Bronze Buddha returned from V&A! 

But the real Yangon aside from these gilded high-points, is the decrepit buildings and the dirt. They make for rugged photos, but there’s little sign that the city is trying to improve unlike others we have visited on our travels.

Scaffolders four floors up!

As the heat of the day dissipated, I watched the boats and people on the Halong River near the Botataung Pagoda, and then strolled back through the teeming streets

A wedding photo shoot! 

Evening traffic and Sule Paya 

Marching Firemen?

We took Lonely Planet guidance, and had an excellent BBQ supper at Kaung Myat on 19th street; a popular tourist haunt - which apparently the government keeps making new rules to curb, which seems odd as this culinary vibe is sorely lacking in Yangon for the visitors.


Tues 27 Feb
Up at 05.00 – and tried but failed to do Emirates online check-in for tomorrow night’s flight home. Then we walked half an hour to see dawn come up at Shwedigon, Myanmar’s most sacred Buddhist shrine, and by far and away the star attraction in Yangon.  I came here three week’s ago by myself, in the mid-afternoon heat - so much nicer admiring the acres of shimmering gold in the cool morning air.

27 metric tons of gold leaf!! 

Surprisingly busy – but still lovely wandering around the multiple temples, celebrating every denomination of d on our tBuddhism, with novices nuns & monks, school kids, monks, and hordes of smartly attired Burmese making their morning prayers to their specific temple or shrine.

We meandered on slowly north to a google-recommended coffee shop, but it didn’t open so we found another one with super-chill aircon and much needed cappuccino. Spent a couple of hours cracking the blog, and then lunch back at the popular Burmese restaurant I found last time, which convinced us that you don’t come to Myanmar on a tour-gastronomique!!

Walking even slower as the afternoon heat melted tarmac, we found a park and played slow Scrabble.  

Google Mpas said this was a road!

Back to 19th street for more BBQ - and managed not to chose any intestines on a stick this time!


Weds 28 Feb
Last day of our South East Asia tour; feels very weird. But really really looking forward to getting home to see the family, and (as you’ve probably now gathered) I won’t be sad to depart the noise, smells and heat of Yangon.

We spent the whole morning in the huge National Museum

The Lion Throne; 150 years old; taken to Calcutta but returned in 1948.
 There were 9, but 8 were destroyed in WWII

Then a Chinese lunch outside followed by a coffee shop with a. Aircon b. Wifi! That’s how I’ve been able to get the dreaded Blog up to date before we get on our plane at 02.00 tomorrow morning.

And - judging by the number of messages we’ve received today - it’s a bit snowy in the UK and we might not even make it to Gatwick, or if we do - we might be walking up Chart Lane.....

Next report from the UK!!!

A man walks on 9th floor of uncompleted but inhabited building, with Shwedigon behind.