Arrived in Yangon

We’ve just arrived in Yangon. Our flight landed in Myanmar at 7 AM, and there weren’t many tourists on board. In total, there are only six flights arriving each day. Some airlines have boycotted flying to the country after the demonstrations last year. We had pre-booked a stay at a family-run hotel for just $15, and they were waiting for us at the airport with a sign that read, “Mr. Jan Tovgaard.” They drove us through the city, which was still waking up. The British named the country Burma when they colonized it. They moved the capital from Mandalay down south and called the city Rangoon. The military regime now refers to the country as Myanmar, and Rangoon is known today as Yangon. The military has shifted the capital further north, but we won’t be visiting that city. You can still see clear signs of colonization in the form of large buildings that have never been renovated since they were built. They stand in decay, with plants growing up the walls. The windows look like big black holes—ghost buildings. But if you look closely, you can see that people still live in these crumbling structures. On the surface, Myanmar seems like an ordinary country where people live quiet lives. We’re excited to explore more of the country and dig a little deeper. Thankfully, we can access the internet here—quite cheaply, too. It’s 200 kyats for 30 minutes. Some websites require special hacking programs to access because they’re blocked by the government. For instance, it’s tricky to use Yahoo Mail here. The exchange rate is a bit tricky. If you exchange $1 at the airport, you get 550 kyats. At the bank, it’s 7 kyats. On the black market, you can get 1200-1300 kyats. The first time we exchanged money was at our hotel, where the rate was 1200. Not bad! Then we set out to explore the city a bit more. Several people approached us asking if we wanted to exchange money. We managed to push the rate up to 1300 kyats. Later, we were told that it’s never been possible to get the rate that high before. We were shown to a tea shop where we were supposed to wait. We almost thought we’d been scammed. Finally, a man rushed over to us. We went around to a back staircase to count the money. The man was incredibly nervous, practically bouncing on the spot. It’s obviously illegal, but it’s not often that tourists agree to exchange money. So, he was a mix of fear and excitement. Now we’re walking around with a ton of cash on us. Foot massages in this country only cost 4000 kyats for an hour. We had dinner at a restaurant that featured a show during the meal. For $10, we got enough food for at least four people. The menu was set in advance. What a feast! - The appetizer consisted of spring rolls, salad, and noodles. - The main course was soup. - The main dish included six different plates, each with its own dish, plus rice. - Dessert was Burmese cakes and fruit. The show featured ten traditional Burmese dances. One dance stood out from the rest, where a girl performed incredible acrobatic tricks with a ball. VB could learn a thing or two from her! :)