Myanmar, or Burma as it was once known, presents both a unique opportunity and a challenge to the prospective visitor. The opportunity is the chance to see a country and culture still largely untouched by mass tourism. The challenge is whether or not to go to a place where the government has such a questionable human rights record. Setting aside for a moment whether or not it's "right" to go, let's discuss why you may want to go there in the first place.
One of the thousands of temples dotting the plain of Bagan.
Unlike its neighbors in Southeast Asia, Myanmar has yet to experience mass tourism. While there are tourists visiting the country, they mainly consists of couples and individual independent travelers. Currently, there are few, if any package group tours to Myanmar. This means that every town you visit still retains a unique sense of place. There are no "could be anywhere" destinations such as you'll find in Thailand and Indonesia. In many respects, Myanmar is still very much a place where the past is still a real presence, rather than a sanitized and commercialized version of it.
Mandalay Palace, with the temple-studded hill in the background
Adding to the uniqueness is the fact that sanctions have, up to now, kept almost all western brands out of the country. You won't find McDonalds, KFC, Starbucks or any other fast food chains, nor will you find most hotel brands. Everything is local in Myanmar.
Shwedagon Pagoda in Yangon
The last, but certainly not least, reason to visit is the Burmese people. While news reports may have you expecting a starving downtrodden people, the reality is far different. While they're not exactly dancing in the streets, everywhere you go you will see people going about their business, with authority figures a rare sight.
To Go or Not To Go
Prior to the elections of 2011, which introduced at least a partial democracy for the first time in nearly 50 years, the question of going or not was a difficult one. Now it seems that Myanmar is very much the 'next' popular destination, and there's very little discussion about whether or not it's 'right' to go. While one could argue that the elections are little more than window dressing, it still appears that western governments will soon drop their sanctions, so it could be time to go, before the invasion of western brands.
It must also be said that the country is getting easier to visit. In the recent past, there have been many barriers to getting there and getting around, such as the requirement to obtain a visa in advance, exchanging money at ridiculous rates, etc. These barriers are slowly falling.
I tend to think of myself as a jaded traveler in Southeast Asia. Having seen all of the ancient monuments of Southeast Asia, I didn't think I could be impressed by anything again. Of course, I had read up on Bagan before my first trip there, but I still wasn't prepared for the scale of the place. It's one thing to read about more than 2,000 temples built in an area of just 42 square kilometers, it's quite another to see it for real.
Myanmar isn't anywhere near the top of gay or lesbian travel destinations, but that doesn't mean there's no gay scene. Like everywhere else, there are gay people, and places where they gather, although being a somewhat closed society, there are few places where people can get together openly.
As always, the people at Utopia Asia have the latest information on where to go, where to stay and where to meet people.
The only sure-fire way to get more than a few kilometers inside of Myanmar is to fly. Although Mandalay has a brand new state of the art international airport, as yet very few international carriers fly there. Almost all international flights land at Yangon's Mingaladon Airport. The name sounds a bit like a dinosaur, and that impression is reinforced by your arrival there, although a new terminal is under construction.
Burma's last royal capital is only 150 years old. King Mindon founded the city between 1857 and 1861, soon after deposing his half-brother Pagan Min and taking the throne. The pious Mindon, who thought he had achieved enlightenment himself, founded the city to fulfill an ancient prophecy. According to the legend, Buddha visited Mandalay Hill with his disciple Ananda and proclaimed that 2,400 years after his passing, a metropolis of Buddhist education would be founded at the base of the hill.
Getting around Myanmar can be done by plane, train, bus or river boat. Several trains a day travel between Yangon, Mandalay and further north, with both government and private operators. Most trains are overnight, as is the bus service. Seat 61 has, as usual, some great, current, information about getting around by train.
If you have plenty of time, the river is an interesting option for travel from Bagan to Mandalay (or vice-versa).
The mouth of the Hlaing (Yangon) River has been occupied for more then 2,500 years. The village gained fame after the construction of the Shwedagon Pagoda on the highest ground in the area. The modern city of Yangon was founded by King Alaungpaya in 1755 when he captured the village called Dagon from the Mon. The city was called Yangon, meaning "end of strife". This was later changed by the British to Rangoon, under whose rule the city took on a larger commercial role as the primary port of occupied Burma.
Evidence of human occupation of the area now known as Myanmar goes back at least to 5000 BC. At around the third century BC, the Mon arrived and settled the Sittoung Valley on their way to establishing some of the earliest kingdoms in Thailand. The Bamar arrived from the China-Tibet border area in the ninth century AD and quickly established themselves as the dominant power in the region.
The Bamar established the first Burmese empire, founded in 1057 by Anawrahta.
