Brastigi

Waking up refreshed and clean, we spent the morning pouring over the next month’s itinerary – and realized that we’d made a huge mistake in both the group tour concept and in the specific itinerary of this trip. Most of the trip was going to be spent watching sunsets and admiring volcanoes (as well as trekking to them). So, we worked out a plan to blow out of the tour midway through the Bali/Java segment. We’ll see how that will work.

Since we had a month in Indonesia, we decided to learn a bit of the Indonesian language. The people were so receptive when you made an attempt to speak the language. So far, we’ve learned , “How are you?”, Thank you (the word for thank you translates to “tear up my car seat” said very rapidly), “Is there cold beer?”, “Is there cold wine?” and “Is there cheese?” (plus the numbers 1 through 5). We do mess up occasionally. Today in the market, this nice man said, “Hello” and John responded with “Adu keju” (translated to “Is there cheese?”)…. Unfortunately, the guy understood and probably thought we were crazy.
The people were so friendly- probably the most friendly, accessible people we’d ever met. It was interesting - even the wait staff or cleaning people would sit down and just start talking to you. There was a real sense of equality and interest

Bukit Lawang to Brastagi

An early start to head for the orangutan rehabilitation center. Evidently many Indonesians took the young orangutans as pets-leaving them in an endangered species status. They’re now taking these domesticated orangutans and re-introducing them into the wild. So, at 8:00 and 3:00, they have a feeding in the mountains….free bananas, etc.

We walked about a mile to get to the river crossing- in a tiny dugout canoe.

Then, it was a fairly strenuous hike up slippery steps to get to the feeding station. There were a lot of young boys ready to offer their help- for a price. We decided that they probably throw buckets of water on the steps to make it very muddy and slippery to increase their price.

Photo courtesy of Flickr

The orangutan’s were amazing- huge and very comfortable with people. In fact, they were quite the ham in front of cameras.

After a bit, it was time to head down and fetch our luggage, grab a quick shower before heading on the bus to our night in the long house. Adrian, the guide, passed around a few photos of the “longhouse experience” (no showers, no toilets, communal living). After our two days in the wild, being dirty and sweaty, we made our own plans at lunch to bag the longhouse and simply stay in Brastagi, the hill top town.

The Brastagi Cottages were beautiful- little chalets, complete with hot water, a big bed, and CNN. The bus left with the group and we grabbed a “bemo” (a small van/taxi- you simply hop on and hop off when you want…for a mere 500 rupees…about 15 cents.) into town. We found a great little restaurant called “Raymond’s Steak House”. The staff was wonderful- teaching us a few words of Indonesian and serving great food. A bemo back to our room and a wonderful nights sleep.

Medan to Bukit Lawang

The London contingency of our group was delayed in Amsterdam yesterday and didn’t get in until this morning- so we had a slow start in Medan. There was time for a quick walking tour of the mosque (Masjid Raya) and the royal palace (Istana Marmoon).

Once the group arrived, it was a bus ride to Bukit Lawang. It was a tiny little town built around an orangutan rehabilitation center. The bus could only get to a point- then we hired tiny little Indonesian boys to carry our luggage across the river to our guesthouse.

We were in the rainforest- frequent heavy rain, lush vegetation. A quick lunch and most of the group headed for either a jungle trek or an orangutan trek. We opted to head for a walk through the town and found a great little bar/restaurant overlooking the river. What a scene- tons of Indonesian families in their makeshift picnic areas on the rocks with blankets and tarps. Most of the kids were in the river, just sitting, washing, or playing. It was so hot and humid—it looked like the best place to be. The river had a fairly active current- so tubers were racing down the river. After a few hours, we continued our walk and checked out the rest of the town.

At one of the local restaurants, we stopped for a beer and one of the locals asked, Where you come from”….so we made him guess. After guessing British, Dutch, German, Australians, we gave him a clue- “Bill Clinton”. He burst into laughter and said, “Bill Clinton- stupid, stupid”….then said, “Lewinsky- stupid, stupid”. It was amazing that everyone everywhere can relate to Bill and Monica. A light dinner and we skipped the group “orientation meeting”…already making a statement about our group participation.

Indonesia Map and Route

Sumatra


Java

Bali

Singapore to Medan, Indonesia

5:30 am…Singapore to Medan, Indonesia. It was a major Muslim holiday today, so everything was closed. We got to the hotel early, checked in, met Adrian, the guide for our Sumatra adventure, and got a bite to eat across the street at the Friend restaurant. The food was great- gado gado- a veggie dish with a spicy peanut sauce. Lunch was 52000 rhupies. The exchange rate was crazy- 8500 to the dollar. After lunch, it was time to play catch up on the journal and on our sleep. Then we took a ‘beca machine” (rickshaw with a motorcycle) to the TipTop Restaurant for a beer and watched the street scene.

Dinner at the Friend restaurant across the street from the hotel. We broke all our rules about eating meat (and had some wonderful spicy chicken). It looks like we might be paying for breaking this rule….stomachs were a little queasy tonight.

Bangkok to Singapore

Admin day in Bangkok- time to buy books for Indonesia, get a few sundries and pack up our gift boxes. We seem to have acquired a lot of large things in Burma, so we decided to store a few bags in Singapore and pick them up before we head home. Aun San’s husband died in London today- that may explain the blockage in front of her house in Rangoon yesterday.
Lots of airports and immigration forms and customs lines to go through in only a few short days. We got to Singapore at 9:45 and crash.

Rangoon to Bangkok

Depression set in last night when we realized that we had to leave Burma today. Our one hour flight back to Rangoon only gave us enough time for a quick stop at the Strand for a little last minute shopping and a drive by to try to see Aun San Su Kyi’s house. Unfortunately, it was blocked off by the military. We really weren’t ready to leave Burma. This place has really gotten to us.
The flight from Rangoon got us into Bangkok after 10:00 p.m.….enough time to catch a limo to the hotel and notice that McDonald’s (across from the hotel) was still open. A Big Mac was just what the doctor ordered at 11:00 p.m. after 2 weeks of veggies and rice.

Inle Lake

We had an early start to get on the lake before it got too hot. Getting up early wasn’t really a problem since the rooster outside our window started crowing about 4:30 am - before the sunrise. We got a page from Mom about the potential bombings in Kosovo. Seems so far away- but it was so good to get news from home.

We took boats to Inle Lake- a 61 square mile lake.

The lake life was interesting. The Intha villagers around the lake actually buy 100 metre by 2 metre strips of a humus like silt and weed mixture and tow these floating gardens to their homes. They grow everything imaginable on these floating gardens and use boats to harvest their produce (cauliflower, tomatoes, cucumbers, beans, peas, etc).

We piled out of our boats and stopped by yet another market.

This one was filled with “antique” dealers…everything is “old”. I priced a pair of earrings for Mom- the girl started at $25. By the time she had followed me through the market and all the way back to the boat, we settled on a price of 1500 kyat (about $3.50).
Then it was on to the silk weaving factory, the blacksmiths’ shop, and the silversmiths’ factory. We decided that it was time to make a list of all of the factories and workshops we’ve been dragged to. We had lunch across from the Phaun Daw U Pagoda, home of the famous bubble gum Buddhas (they’ve been plastered with so much gold leaf that the image of the Buddha is completely unrecognizable—they look like lumps of bubble gum).

Then, the highlight of the trip- the Nga Phe Kyaung (Jumping Cat) Monastery. The monks have trained the cats to jump through hoops. It’s was so stupid, it was funny. John suggested having them jump through a hoop positioned over a window leading to the lake. After a full day on the lake, it was time to head back.

We got to boat through the water buffaloes taking their afternoon dip in the lake. The look on their faces when they’re bobbing in the water is one of pure ecstasy.

Inle Lake - Taunggyi

It was a free/non-group day since almost half of the group was sick. We contracted wth the guesthouse owner to take us to Taunggyi and headed off for a half day with him, his older nephew as driver and his 7-year-old nephew tagging along. Taunggyi wasn’t much to see. There was a regional museum with costumes of the local tribes people and the ceremonial costumes of the sawbwa’s (the hereditary chieftan of the Shan people), a market and a cheroot factory.

What an awful job- dozens of women sitting on the floor, sorting the leaves, then rolling in the tobacco and filter…being paid by the cigar. Lunch was shan noodles- saved only by the addition of some spicy hot chile sauce.
Back at Inle Lake, we went to the Inle Inn. The owner has two Padaung (giraffe) women who come by for photos (for a price). It was almost uncomfortable to look at them. They have brass rings added to their neck every year until their neck is so elongated that they can’t take the rings off or they’ll die.

Photo Courtesy of Flickr
Dinner was at the HauPin restaurant- jam packed with Lonely Planet followers. The place was run with absolute efficiency by a Chinese woman and her very large son. Back to the hotel by rickshaw.

Pindau to Inle Lake

Another day, another market…this time the rotating market in Pindau. We decided to be more active participants in the market day and play a game of chance (to the amusement of the locals). Basically, it was a large board game.

You pick your animal (fish, peacock, lion, etc), put down your bet and wait for the big dice to fall. We actually came out ahead by a few kyat. So, with our winnings, we went to the cheroot vendor (Burmese cigars) and bought two cheroots to try. After a lot of laughter when we started to light the wrong end, we finally got the hang of it. We had most of the market laughing as we coughed and choked our way through the cigar.
Before we headed back on the bus, Werner (the German guy) gave a German coin to one of the Pa-O tribes-women. So, we decided to give her friend a U.S. nickel. It was an amazing site- they had never seen either of these coins and they all got together to examine them in detail- including biting and smelling.

Werner was asked by one of the hill tribe women why he was so big, “like a water buffalo”.

More caves today…this time the Pindaya Cave. No one knows why the thousands of Buddha images in the cave were kept here. It was very strange walking through a cave with every niche filled with Buddha’s in every shape and size and position.

Photo courtesy of Flickr

* The Germans, Werner and Doris have kept us entertained with stories of the East Germans. Communication is evidently a challenge between the West and East Germans. When Werner asked one of the East Germans where he was born, the response was, “My coordinates are…” - giving him geographic coordinates rather than a town or city. When asked about his occupation, one man said , “I make earth furniture” – translation- coffin maker.

At the caves, we bought a basket of the Padaung people (the Giraffe women).

Photo courtesy of Flickr
As we drove to Inle Lake, we come upon another shin-pyu—this time with young, soon to be novitiates making their entry on horseback (their feet cannot touch the ground until the ceremony).

Finally we got to our guesthouse. We got checked in, cleaned up and had dinner in the main house. Dinner was typical Shan food- quite good- served on the floor on lacquerware elevated trays. Following dinner was the dance show. The first part of the dancing was “nat dancing” and it was awful! Men dressed as women doing strange dancing to meowy music. One of the “flamers” actually did his/her dance with burning candles-, which he/she extinguished in his mouth, over and over again.

Following the dancing, we retired outside to the traditional Shan dance show….a one note band (mostly cymbals) with very strange dancing. Lots of costumes….dance just isn’t our thing.

Kalaw

The group left early to go trekking in the hills. We opted for the 4000 kyat, 4-hour tour with Albert, our new friend. He gave us an interesting perspective on the area. The town was a mix of Shan, Muslim, Burmese and Nepalis (Gurkhas returned from British military service). We got to see the rotating market in Aungban. The market was filled with hill tribe people- the Pa-O, Da Nu, and Palaung. At the market, there were also games of chance. We stopped to watch a huge crowd playing bingo.

After the regular market (food, etc), we headed to the hills for the ox and water buffalo market. Only 40,000 kyat for a water buffalo- about $120. There were no women at the market….so a blonde woman drew a lot of stares.

Then we were off to Myintmahti and the Buddhist caves (not yet open to tourists- since the government hasn’t figured out a way to charge for it). Since Albert knew the local road guards, we got through and got a local guide to take us through the caves with flashlights and a bit of explanation.

Back at Kalaw, we got to see the Nea Pagoda and the Buddha made of palm sticks, covered in lacquer then gold leaf. Albert had a sense of humor- he said, “Burmese are a funny people: They see a big tree, they make a pagoda… they see a big cave, they make a pagoda… they see a big stone, they make a pagoda…”
Since he was Indian, he pointed us to the only non-Burmese place in town for lunch, the Nepali Food Center. In their guest book, one of the quotes was:
“Hey guys, for all of you politically incorrect invaders of native cultures and destroyers of the hillside status quo- enjoy. The food here is really tasty and the banana lassi is far out solid and right on Bob… from a crass American- aren’t we all”

Pagan to Kalaw

At breakfast, our guide and his wife gave us gifts…. a blouse for me and postcards and a Buddha laminated card for us. They were truly special people.
Another bus ride and more bone-jarring hours on the road to Kalaw.
We stopped at a toddy farm where we got to see them making peanut oil (using an ox ), making palm sugar candy and toddys.

To get the palm syrup, these tiny guys climb to the top of the palm trees (a long way up!) – a lot like maple syrup except at serious heights.

Our next “tea stop” was the “chicken tea stop” where dozens of women carried trays of cooked chicken on their heads. We chose to skip the chicken, but tried a few of their greasy doughnuts and tea.

Finally, we got to Kalaw and, a beautiful hotel- the Dream Villa. We got a cab (Albert, the Muslim cabby- who was covering all the bases with a baby Jesus on his dash board and Buddhist stuff hanging over his mirror….not to mention the TV on his dash for those times when he’s waiting for his passengers) and headed to the Kalaw Hotel. It was another old British hill town hotel, built in 1903, but not renovated- and obviously government run. It just had that stench. It was still light out, so the waiter carried a table and chairs outside to the front yard so we could enjoy the sunset. Unfortunately, the mosquitoes were out in force- so we headed back into the bleak dining room. They had wine- a rare commodity in Burma. It was a cheap, dry German wine (well, not cheap by Burmese standards-- $10 a bottle)-- but after beer and cokes, wine tasted so good. The dining room filled with a table of government people. It was obvious who the head guy was by the tone and loudness of his voice. An interesting experience. Albert rescued us and took us back to our hotel. As we left, we passed the TV room- where CNN was on talking about Yahoo and the Internet. You have to wonder what these people think about the world outside Burma. It must seem very strange.
Back at the hotel, we sat on the balcony and listened to 3 or 4 dueling guitars playing through the town…bad singing (like a drunken frat party).

The hotel had an active Nat shrine- with flowers, pictures and coconuts. The hotel cost $18 a night and, once again, electricity only from 6:00pm to 4:00 am.

Pagan

Since no one had opted to take a guide for today, we contracted with our guide from yesterday again. This time with an A/C car and driver. We got an explanation of naming conventions in Burma. There are no family names. Your name is based on the day of the week that you are born (for example, if you are born on a Thursday, your name had to start with Tha)- and the advice and consent of your astrologer. Our guide was a charming man- and told us of his concern that Intrepid is being pressured to discontinue trips to Burma due to human rights violations. Evidently Amnesty International is not convinced that Intrepid uses private vs. government hotels, guides, etc- so they want to shut them down in Burma. It would devastate our guide, the owner of the guesthouse, etc- who depend on the regular tours to keep them alive. We didn’t have much to give them as thanks- but gave his children a few small toys and crayons and I offered a lipstick (in high demand by the women) to his oldest daughter. Our guide immediately said, “I think that will go for my wife”

After a glass of tea- we headed to the local market (where we bought Bob an old Burmese tattoo book and tattoo kit- the men in Burma have tattoos everywhere). Then it was on to the cave temples of Hmyatha Umin, the village of Minnanthu Saw and the Monastery of Lemyethna and Payathoncu. The descriptions of the 4 enemies (big boar, big bird, the big gourd and the flying squirrel) were really hard to listen to without cracking up.

We also made a stop at Shwezigon- to exchange our alms bowl for one without a ding. We were greeted by “Welcome back yesterday!” We saw what the government has designated as a typical Burmese village at Pwasaw and saw the Temple of Manuha. At Dhamma Yan Gyi- we saw the chopping block used for the hands of masons who didn’t get the bricks tight enough.
After lunch, we headed for the boat jetty and watched an interesting negotiation by the local women for the pieces of wood they use to make their face makeup.

Each piece of wood was carefully inspected, smelled for the right scent and passed among all of them before buying.

(Cost for the entire day for an A/C car with driver- $15. The guide- $5/half day).
The handicrafts were spectacular—lacquerware is a specialty at Pagan- and we picked up a beautiful bowl- for $2.50.
Our second evening of dinner at a beautiful restaurant overlooking the Irewaddy River- and again, we had the entire restaurant to ourselves (Nandawun Restaurant and Sandbank).

We've been learning about the state of things in Burma. The government takes over any prime piece of property- and takes in huge profits from large tour groups. The universities have been closed for over 6 years—so the young people have no future. Most of them are waiting tables or selling postcards—with no hope of getting an education beyond the 10th grade (except for the children of the government/military- who send their children to international schools abroad). There’s a real feeling of hopelessness among the people. Business is divided into three camps” 1- run by the government, 2- owned by the government with a private “front” and 3- the private business. We asked about the monks- since there are so many of them and found that they really don’t provide any services; i.e., no ceremonies, counseling, providing for the infirmed or elderly). They do provide general prayer and work on their next life, trying to attain nibbana (nirvana). Not a bad life- no real responsibilities (other than to yourself) and free food (it’s considered a merit to give food to the monks), free transportation and generally free of charge services for anything they need.
The group returned from dinner- and it was a group “birthday/wedding” cake for the honeymoon couple from New Zealand) and Doris, the German woman.

Pagan

The $5 guesthouse had hot water and a good mattress…so after a shower and a good night’s sleep, things were looking better in the morning. Amazingly, we were the only ones in the entire group who wanted a guide (and since there was only one guide, we considered ourselves lucky). We met our guide and contracted for a horse cart for the morning. The cart driver made a clucking noise to make the horse go (a lot like Starvin’ Marvin).

This place was a bit like South Park—the underwear gnomes – “Step 1- Build pagodas, Step 2 ____, Step 3- Build more pagodas.

The Pagan area actually covers 40 sq. km and everywhere you look are stupas and pagodas.

Most of the construction occurred between 1057 AD and 1287 AD. The official count back in the 13th century was 4446 monuments. The last count in 1978 showed 2230 monuments standing. We got a chance to see 6 of the major pagodas- Shwezigon (supposedly housing one of the four replicas of the Budda tooth). Here, John managed to buy a Buddhist monks’ alms bowl directly from the monastery, Kyansittha Umin, Gubyaukgyi, Htilominlo, U Pali Thein, and Ananda. At the Ananda pagoda, we actually found a book on the Nats….
A morning seeing pagodas was enough for us (and definitely, enough for the poor horse who literally had to cart us around). We got dropped off at a small local restaurant and grabbed lunch - more noodles with veggies. The menu even included “But Weiser” beer.
You got an eerie feeling of being constantly studied by the Burmese - and a sense of their constantly anticipating your next request. At restaurants, they would sit at a table and stare at us. If you made a comment to a vendor like, “The tables are beautiful but too big to carry home”, they would chase you to show you how it can be taken apart and folded up into a much smaller, carry-able size. One vendor saw me open my wallet and saw Singapore dollars- he followed us all the way to the horse cart, saying, “I’ll take Singapore dollars”.. If you slap a few mosquitoes while you’re at dinner, they would immediately run out with spray and mosquito coils.
After lunch, it was back to the hotel…and a chance to see a shin-pyu, the initiation ceremony for novice monks.

Until a Buddhist male has gone through the shin-pyu ceremony, he is regarded as no better than an animal. To become “human”, he has to withdraw for some time from secular life. Most only carry their alms bowl for a week or so. The ceremony is typically done between the boy’s ninth and twelfth birthdays.

The entire village is invited to the ceremony- the house is completely decorated like a temple of gold paper mache and the young boys are dressed as “princes” before the actual ceremony. Most families spend as much as $300- they must feed the monks and the entire village. After the guests are fed, they proceed to the monastery to shave their heads in preparation for the initiation. The parents hold a white cloth under the boy’s head while the monk shaves all the hair off.

The parents then bury the cloth with the hair near a pagoda. We watched the two older boys (about 9)- then a very young boy (about 3) get their heads shaved. John took a picture of the little boy after the shaving with the digital camera- and showed him his photo on the display. He kept looking at the picture and touching his head- amazed that he really had no hair.

Then, it was time for the dressing in the monk’s robe and the ceremony. It was truly an amazing event.
Back to the hotel and it was dinner time. Avoiding “longyi” night with the group (where everyone was required to wear the native skirt- longyi”), we headed to the “Sunset Garden” restaurant. It was a beautiful setting- in a huge garden overlooking the Irewaddy River. We got a true sunset and the entire restaurant to ourselves. It was so peaceful and beautiful.

Mandalay – Mt Popa – Pagan (Bagan)

5:30 am start. Sunrise at Amarapura, home of the longest teak bridge in the world.

The roads in Burma were awful- one lane highways (which are their major roads) filled with bumps and potholes. Our bus was even worse. After a few hours, the breakdowns started. Every few hours, the bus just stopped running and we all piled out while the driver and assistant pulled out their tool kit to fix the current problem.

(The breakdowns always brought the locals out to watch...)

We did make it to lunch. While I headed to the bathroom, through the kitchen- I noticed the mice running through the salad greens (and we told ourselves, “as long as it’s cooked, it should be OK….)

When the bus would stop in towns, we'd be surrounded by locals selling food....

Our bus trip was 16+ hours (largely due to the breakdowns). About 5:00 p.m., we made it to Mt Popa, considered to be the home of the 37 Nats and a free sunset.

The Maghagiri shrine at the base of the mountain contained a display of mannequin-like figures representing the 37 nats and is a major pilgrimage site.

Burmese superstition says that you shouldn’t wear red or black on the monument, nor should you curse, say bad things about other people or bring any meat. Any of these actions could offend the residing nats who might then retaliate with a spate of bad fortune. Well, my black top and skirt must have gotten someone ticked off. After our visit to Mt Popa, the bus couldn’t make it up the hill to Mt Popa- so we got to walk it (well, the tourists got to walk, our guide – who we called the Burmese doughboy- hitched a ride). We made it to our guesthouse (barely). The drive through Pagan (Bagan) at night was spectacular….over 2000 stupas, lit up.
We got to the guesthouse…and discovered very spartan rooms (a bed- I grabbed the only double bed), shared bathrooms (3 bathrooms for the 8 rooms). Hopefully, the morning will bring a “new attitude”.