An awesome country : Myanmar and the incredible balloon festival
Myanmar is an incredible travel place, there is such an abundance of colour, exotic places and interesting attractions. Not many persons have heard about Myanmar, some only know it as Burma, the old name, and most people have the same reaction when they hear something like this from northern Thailand’s neighbors: “Myanmar, is this even a country?”
It is also amazing, impressive and hits you as a very cold shower since you make the first step in the airport. Even though I seriously prepared myself before going out this spring, nothing prepared me for the reality that you will find there. Whether you want to get there in the very near future, or want to enrich your general culture a little, you should know a few things about Myanmar.
The national currency is the Kyat, the rate being 350 kyat to 1 leu. Although it may seem surprising, you will find plenty of ATMs in big cities such as Yangon or Mandalay. We, for example, withdrew cash twice in the 17 days, and sometimes, where it was possible, we also paid with the card (generally at hotels). And one more thing: we know that one of the great requirements of all modern tourists, so to speak, is to have, as much as possible, the Internet. Contrary to the information circulating on various sites, the Internet is doing well. We had a SIM with internet, MTP and Telenor, but also wi-fi at hotels, and it was perfect.
Another oddity of the place is the way women are makeup. They use a natural cream, thanakha, extracted from a bark of the tree, with which they face. Originally, this makeup took different forms, from leaves to circles or other symbols, but in everyday life, women apply cream on their cheeks and forehead and stay with it. It is said to be a cream that not only protects the skin, but also beautifies the wearer. One of the most unpleasant things I saw in Myanmar was chewing tobacco. It seems that chewing tobacco, kun-ya, especially by men, is one of the oldest traditions of the place. In fact, it is not even pure tobacco, but a combination of ingredients, all wrapped in one leaf. You can read more about the recipe here. Find additional details on https://globalhawkmyanmar.com/.
Moreover, the roads are not bright either, air competition exists, that is, but it is completely lacking (or near), in terms of hotel services would have enough to learn from their neighbors a bit more experienced, and trips on on their own they are very cumbersome. In fact, in some places, you can’t do much on your own, but you have to rely on private taxis or organized trips that are not cheap. One by one, Myanmar is a destination for connoisseurs, for those travelers who already have some experience in organizing holidays on their own, and is, in many ways, quite difficult to digest. The miracle happens, however, when you understand it, because then you will clearly fall in love with places and people as well.
Almost everyone wears slippers, regardless of social status, clothing, time of day. Slips with shirt, slips at the market, slips at the hotel, slips at the restaurant, slips on the boat. In the end I bought myself a pair. The children are very curious and eager to interact with strangers. In the center of Mandalay there is a forbidden city, 8 square kilometers surrounded by huge walls, water and another fence, guarded by weapons, in which the army lives. Locals living outside the walls do not think much about it. Discover more info on https://globalhawkmyanmar.com/en/tour-program/trekking-tour/.
