In a country where communications are strictly monitored and there is no means of mass communication except for that controlled by the government, it is amazing that people are so well-informed about events across the country.
Television, radio and newspapers are all strictly censored and reveal very little, the telephone network is sketchy, the internet is closely monitored and blocked and email is illegal except for those accounts which go through the government server, but still it seems that people find out exactly what is going on, and very quickly too.
The answer, as far as I can work out, is the traditional Burmese teashop. Teashops are of many and varied types. They range from upmarket establishments - with roofs, full size tables and chairs, refrigeration and a proper kitchen - to a few tiny plastic stools and tables on a footpath with a charcoal brazier to boil water and cook snacks. Some serve only tea, coffee and soft drinks, while others are also beer stations where people start drinking at a very early hour and continue until late at night.
But what they all have in common is lots of customers and a constant turnover. The teashop is an integral part of Burmese daily life - at least every couple of hours a Burmese person has to call into a teashop for a cup of tea or a beer or a snack and a bit of a chat. Sometimes it seems as if they're constantly eating and drinking, but it's not just the food and drink they're after, but they're checking on the latest news, just as we would listen to the headlines on radio.
Somehow, without any apparent way of verification, the knowledge of the latest events passed on in the teashop is remarkably accurate. When a major event happens, the word is out in the teashops long before any official version is published. That can sometimes take weeks, if at all, but everyone in the teashop culture has known about it almost instantly.
For instance, when a bus was attacked and the occupants killed a couple of months ago on a major tourist route into Rangoon, the teashop talk was all about it the same day, while the official announcement came nearly a fortnight later. There were a few discrepancies between the rumour and the announcement, but the general perception is that the teashop talk was right and the official version wrong. When the prime minister was deposed in a coup last year, it was common knowledge in the teashops days before it was officially announced.
The other aspect of the teashop is, of course, the sustenance they provide which can range from samosas and the quaintly named husbands and wives (a deep fried pastry about the size of a 50 cent piece with chilli and spices inside) cooked over charcoal on the footpath, to a full-scale restaurant menu. There are teashops specialising in food from all kinds of countries you can get traditional Burmese food, Indian, Chinese, Korean, Thai, barbecue, pork stick, practically anything you want. And its all incredibly cheap. Typically green tea is free, a plate of fried rice with chicken or pork about 40 cents, a Burmese curry with rice and condiments about 30 cents and barbecue skewers about 15 cents each.
But there's always a drawback isn't there? In this case its those tiny plastic stools which require you to squat on them while you eat, drink and talk. Burmese people are used to it and don't have any trouble at all. I get down onto the stool all right, but after about 20 minutes when I try to rise, I'm locked in position and it takes someone to give me a hand up before I can struggle to a standing position. It's quite a sight . . . maybe I should sell tickets.
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