While the airplane lands in Burma your heart pumps with adrenalin as you fully understand that you are visiting a country far removed from the regular tourist circuit. Upon arrival you are immediately struck by an impressive golden building with bolting towers, which forms one of the most extravagant of airport exteriors. Although one explores a wealth of other impressive sites around this diverse nation, one eventually also realizes that the rich sight of gold at the airport is a mere facade masking the abject poverty and lack of development existing throughout Burma.
After negotiating chaotic mazes of people and exiting the airport, soon you are busy addressing the local masses seeking your attention with their gently accented, ``Mister, taxi...hotel?¡¯¡¯ It soon becomes evident that you are experiencing sensory overload because everywhere you look there is plenty to absorb.
In the midst of Rangoon¡¯s meager traces of modernity are 50-year-old beat up buses putt-putting through traffic with people jam-packed inside and others barely clinging on to the back. Near the market stalls with women serving cooked rice are other vendors offering deep-fried birds to alleviate hunger. To add to the fashion sense of virtually all citizens who wear the ubiquitous sarong-like ``longyis,¡¯¡¯ women and some men paint unique designs on their faces with yellow ``thanakha¡¯¡¯ which serves as natural sunscreen or beautiful makeup.
After tourists have adjusted to taking in these special observations, venturing around the capital city, Rangoon, is rewarding indeed. A main highlight which people make an immediate beeline for is the Shwedagon Pagoda. With its numerous golden Buddhas, stupas, shrines and bells all incorporated into a common area, it is considered the most sacred Buddhist site in the country. Walking among faithful monks and devout followers burning incense, an impressive feeling of mystical serenity adds to the experience of peaceful spirituality.
Hoping to keep this calmness, it was here that Aung San Suu Kyi addressed a mass rally in 1988 calling for democracy. Known here as ``The Lady¡¯¡¯ and internationally as ``the world¡¯s most famous political prisoner,¡¯¡¯ she remains under house arrest at 54 University Avenue. Anyone approaching this area to show indirect and unofficial support for her cause is muted by military officials who have set up barricades to control access to this road.
From Rangoon, a common excursion is to the ancient capital of Mandalay. Although it requires a lengthy bus trip with horns honking and wheels swerving rather continuously, the great experiences continue to come rapid fire. Yes there are countless pagodas and monasteries to visit, but the real value of this region is independently creating your own ``way of life tour.¡¯¡
After going to the ``World¡¯s Biggest Book¡¯¡¯ displaying the Tripitaka on over 700 large marble slabs and also climbing Mandalay Hill to quietly appreciate the significant view of the bustling town below, it is interesting yet heart-wrenching to witness how some of the general population make a living. If one chooses to wander a little from the typical sites, you can see people of all ages carving wood crafts, polishing stone relics, weaving cloth, embroidering tapestries and selling accessories made of watermelon seeds.
Although this is fascinating to see, the painful part, which is hard to swallow, is when the locals answer your probing questions with sobering reality. Young people who should be in school work in to help contribute to their family economy or because their parents cannot afford the minimal costs of school. Also, some others¡¯ appearance looks significantly older than their age as their hard life has taken its physical toll. Many of these people work long hours each day and are ¡°rewarded¡± by earning a dollar a day and getting a day off a week.
Nevertheless, throughout it all, the people of Myanmar continue to portray their globally unparalleled friendliness with big smiles. Yes, these facial reflections seem to express a hope for a brighter future, but unfortunately their smiles are far from shining bright. Many citizens habitually chew the intoxicant ``kunya¡¯¡¯ which is a betel nut, tobacco and lime covered with a leaf. The juice that this produces stains the people¡¯s teeth, while the lime itself erodes the enamel and eventually is the root cause of tooth decay.
If your stomachs have finished churning from the local delicacy _ goat brains _ on offer at the night market and the old backfiring trucks defy the odds and don¡¯t break down, try a short daytrip up in the mountains. Outside of Mandalay lays Pyin U Lwin. A quaint town with visible evidence of British colonial influence, you can get your own mild sense of royalty. Sure you will not pose a rival to royal families elsewhere, but here you can slip and slide in mud until you reach your ride in pony-pulled carriages. If you are looking for an even more dramatic rustic step back in time, another daytrip can be made to the town of Inwa. This place boasts the ``Leaning Tower of Inwa¡¯¡¯ where the only mode of transportation is the authentic horse and buggies along jaw-breaking gravel roads.
If you still have not gotten your full dose and quenched your thirst for pagodas, a venture to Bagan will certainly give you more than enough. On the other hand, a trip to Inle Lake will give you a taste of nature that Myanmar has to offer. With a panoramic view of beautiful mountains in the distance and the calm waters at your fingertips, this is an extraordinary change of pace.
The fishermen have a famously unique style of rowing with their feet, while the farmers have utilized the surroundings they have been given by creating a water garden of tomato plants and other things on the surface of the lake. Visits to see action at bustling markets, silversmiths detailing their work, handmade parasols being crafted and lots more await your arrival. It is also quite an impressive sight to see valuable thread being made naturally after fibers are extracted from lotus plants. All of this before heading back and doing as the locals do by getting around this quiet town with a casual bike ride.
A real treat in Burma is the fascinating ethnic diversity. Whether referring to Chin women with gridlines tattooed on their faces or Padaung women with coils giving them an appearance of long necks, the contrasts are striking. It is rather difficult to come in direct contact with these people, but with a little bit of patience and a lot of luck it might be possible to see them in their natural setting.
It is certain that the military junta has tarnished this part of the Golden Triangle by seemingly putting their quality of life and their future opportunities ahead of that of the masses. Yet, like the stupas extending across the vast horizon, the experiences from this fascinating nation will continue to shine long into the sunset of your life. This is Burma, once a land of mystery and now a land unmasked.
The writer is a Canadian currently residing in Seoul, Korea.