Wonky Stupas of Indein, Inle Lake, Myanmar

A long tail boat is essentially a long open canoe-shaped boat with a loud car engine stuck on the back with a prop-shaft and propellor protruding out a long way before touching the water. We had seen many of these before in Asia especially in Thailand, and it was in this that we enjoyed a long day trip across Inle Lake. It was a busy day and we saw lots of lake life - many amazing stilt houses and villages, floating gardens of tomatoes, lots of cargo of rice and veggies being shipped around to markets, and of course, fishermen doing their weird foot paddle. We went to a local market that wasn't too touristy. It sold everyday household items and homemade foods and veggies. The local people here were different and wore bright red towels wrapped around their heads. We were amazed at how many local crafts and trades they had as we jetted through the canals to silk and cotton weaving factories, black smiths, cheroot cigar rolling factories, printing presses and silver jewelry makers. We topped off our day with a trip to Indein - a popular spot with tourists and of course, souvenir sellers. We were lucky though, because since it was late afternoon, most of the stalls that line the path up to the top 9that seemed like miles) were all empty! Phew! At least that wouldn't ruin our visit (as we had heard from others) and it was one hassle were glad to have missed. The atmosphere of Indein is surreal, with its crumbly, wonky stupas (pointy monuments), and overgrown temple and paths. We even saw trees growing out of the tops of some stupas! There was even this UFO type bug that had clear circular wings and a glowing gold body underneath. It was seriously cool and we wished we had more time.

On the ride back across the lake, we took time to stop at the Nga Hpe Chaung Monastery, also known to foreigners as Jumping Cat Monastery. I guess monks get bored too, and these monks had taught their cats to jump through hoops placed about 1m (3 ft) above their heads. Weird but interesting. *Mush

Leg Rowing Fisherman, Inle Lake, Myanmar

Time to say goodbye to the jewels of Bagan, and we departed for the airport in our most different taxi yet - a horse drawn cart. Cool. Next stop: Inle Lake, and immediately we met a couple of other travellers - Burak and Seb from Turkey, to share one of our most expensive taxis yet from the airport. Inle Lake had an nice relaxed feel to it - lots of life on the water. Floating villages, houses on stilts, fishermen paddling in a unique way with their leg (as in the photo), freeing up their arms to put out traps or string out nets - I cannot believe they are able to balance on one leg on the end of a canoe! We took a canoe ride through some of the smaller canals amongst the reeds and watched how local life went -children hanging out by the water, playing football, feeding pigs, mothers doing laundry and dishes, people washing themselves etc etc. Along with it though there were lots of hellos and big smiles.

We met a few travellers in our guesthouse - some of them we'd met before in other places on the road, and we all ended up going to a small pizza restaurant called Min Min's. Well, Min Min's apparently had only been open for 2 months, and Min Min himself was a modest and generous (!) man - and very proud of his new brick pizza oven!! The pasta was good and eventually, when we tried it, his pizza was great, but the main attraction were his cheap and excellent cocktails! Capirinhas and Mohitos were just 80 cents (40p), and after a few very generous ones we were definitely all quite merry. The next morning most of us had stories to tell of either some drinking injury, getting lost on the way home, or feeling very ill with even a few of us throwing up! But it was an excellent night out. * Mush

Traditional Feast with Aye Aye Mar, Bagan, Myanmar

One of the local people we met during our time in Bagan was Aye Aye Mar (or we called her Emma). Whilst touring through the spectacular Ananda Pahto, we came across some vendors selling bamboo plates. The plates were made from circled bamboo strips, then lacquered with different colours. Emma was by far, the nicest lady of all the sellers and actually gave us a decent first price. So many vendors we encounter just ask for ridiculously high prices for their goods, and we don't even bother bargaining with them. But Emma was different. Her English was not too bad and we formed a nice rapport with her. It was a fun experience buying from her and we loved the quality of her things, so much so, that we returned to her the next day to buy some more. She even got her husband to deliver the plates to our hotel 4 km away on his motorbike with their son carrying the plates sitting on the back, just so we didn't have to carry them on our bicycles.

I think we spent a total of $17 USD on the plates, and as we were leaving her stall the second time, she called us back and asked us to dinner. How nice is that? We couldn't turn down the offer even though we were supposed to meet other friends for dinner. So, she took us to her friend's restaurant and provided us with an absolute feast of curries and sauces. Check out how many bowls are on the table. Of course, as soon as one bowl was looking low, her friend would top it up, so at the end it looked like we hadn't touched anything! Emma's English was not bad, so we had a good conversation at dinner and then came dessert. Michelle and I absolutely loved a sugary, fudge like substance called jaggery. It was made from plums! So tasty, she actually bought us some to take with us. At the end of dinner, she refused to let us pay and she spent probably about $3USD on us. Considering they don't make much money, this was a huge treat taking us out. She was an absolutely lovely lady, and is typical of the type of amazing people we met in Burma. *Stub

Tiny Doorways of Shwegugyi Paya, Bagan, Myanmar

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Great views of other temples from the rooftop of the Shwegugyi Paya, including the tallest (at 61m/200 ft) in the area, Thatbyinnyu, pictured on the left. But were the people actually this small? All who know me know I am not that tall, and I've even lost weight for this photo and I can still only barely squeeze through. Crooked too!

This temple is in the heart of Old Bagan. We have heard about a horrible story of how the government approached the villagers of Old Bagan and demanded that they move within 48 hrs, to a 'new' Bagan nearby. The locals were given no compensation for the loss of property and land, and nothing to set up their new home. That's just how the government treats the people here. I'm surprised they are able to smile anymore!

More proof of the horrible, destructive government of Myanmar. This excerpt taken from Wikipedia "UNESCO has unsuccessfully tried to designate Bagan as a World Heritage Site. The military junta (SPDC) has haphazardly restored ancient stupas, temples and buildings, ignoring original architectural styles and using modern materials that bear no resemblance to the original designs. Likewise, the junta is planning to construct a golf course, a paved highway, and a 61-metre (200-ft) watchtower, which is believed to be completed by 2007."
The hideous watchtower has been built and is in use. It does not resemble any of the architecture in the area and is a complete eyesore. Of course, the government pockets the money from any tourist climbing up the tower. So, don't climb the tower if you go! *Stub

Sparkling Sunrise in Bagan, Myanmar

As we had lost a few valuable days while I was layed up sick in the room at Hsipaw, we had some catching up to do. We decided to do a few internal flights to make up the time. The first flight from Mandalay put us in Bagan, a famous area because of the sheer number of temples/pagodas/stupas all in a 41 sq. km area. There are varying numbers, but I have heard 3000, 4000 and 5000 ancient and new temples scattered across the plains. Of course, they all vary in size and shape from tiny little points to massive temples with gold topped roofs, and impressive Buddha statues lining the interiors. Most of the temples were built in the 1000's to 1200's, but there are still new temples being built today.

It is a rather surreal place to catch a sunrise. We would ride bikes to our favourite temple #394, also called Buledi, and relax with this scene as the sun rose over the pointed pagodas. To add to the peacefulness of the scene, we were the only ones there! We could stay there for hours, resting, reading and catching up on the journal.

After enjoying the tranquil morning, we would take on the heat of the day, and ride from temple to temple down the dirt roads between. Some amazing temples, from the gold topped Ananda Pahto, the largest temple Dhammayangyi, and the Indian style Mahabodhi to mention only a few. There were a some sites that had some secret entrances, that you could climb up tight little stairways and reach the rooftop for wonderful views - of course, difficult to find. We would eat at local little restaurants scattered throughout the temple areas and interact with the lovely locals. And of course, finish with a beautiful sunset on a temple, overlooking the Ayeyarwaddy River beyond all the stupas. Quite a special couple of days. *Stub

Mr. Book, Hsipaw, Myanmar

On my travels around town I came across several notorious characters. Mr Book is famous not for running his bookshop, but for speaking out against the corrupt Burmese government. The more time we've spent in Burma the more we've read about it's terrible history. The country is sadly reknowned for its military dictatorship and brutal repression of human rights: slave labour and devaluing their currency, to name a few. You may or may not be familiar with the name of Aung San Suu Kyi - this lady fought for a democratic government for several years. Apparently, although many Burmese may be a little disillusioned with her Party (apparently, she wasn't forceful enough in asserting her right to govern), there is little doubt that had she come to power many years ago, then the people of Myanmar would at least be living less brutal and repressed lives. Mr Book dedicates a lot of his time petitioning governments around the world to become aware of Burma's problem. He is a compassionate man and is very active in the community always helping families, donating school books and pens etc. I felt very honoured to have met him and hope our stories here help to further this country's cause.

Another extraordinary character I met was an Australian lady called Maureen. She has been in Myanmar for several years and married a local upstanding man in Hsipaw. He was apparently a highly influential man in the community and without reason was arrested and jailed. She is still awaiting his return. Throughout our travels in Myanmar we hear many stories like this of how the goverment treats their people so atrociously. It's heart breaking and makes us ever more eager to support the local people and tell the world of their plight. *Mush

Michelle's New Hat, Hsipaw, Myanmar

The World Cup final was on while we were in Hsipaw, and it seemed that the whole town had turned out to watch it at the local cinema where it was being played - at 1AM. It was an interesting experience especially with the locals spitting out remnants of sunflower seeds, and red betel nut juice all over the floor and seeing red streams of it pass by your feet - pretty gross. They are really into their football here and as Italy and France battled it out on our big screen the Burmese jeered and cheered, until it seemed someone was very happy with the result- they must have bet on France!
While Martin was ill, I explored town and the outer villages by bicycle with an Ozzie couple staying at our hotel. The village kids were as usual very excited about having their photo taken and then seeing it afterwards on the digitial screen. In town I searched for a local traditional hat and couldn't find one with character, so with lots of sign language and pointing I bought a hat straight off a lady's head selling mushrooms and vegetables on the side of the street near the market. It was perfect: well worn-in with lots of character. I offered her the equivalent of 50cents and she seemed happy until she saw other notes that I pulled out of my purse - and by pointing to these she got an extra 10cents! * Mush

Buddhist Nuns, Hsipaw, Burma

A 4 hour drive east of Mandalay is the town of Hsipaw (pronounced Sipaw). We shared Muireann's taxi again (she had hired one at the start of her trip) and stopped at a couple of places on the way... Pyin U Lwin, a cool Muslim town with old colourful horse drawn stage coaches for taxis. Another stop at Buddha Cave was a big mistake on our driver's part, as it was the start of Buddhist lent and the 2 mile road leading up to the carpark was absolutely choc-a-bloc with trucks and vans jammed full of people. Sitting in traffic was not enjoyable, so we got out and walked. We never got to see the cave as we lost Muireann and waited at the entrance for her so that we wouldn't miss her... We didn't mind too much as the best bit was walking along the road with the crowds and waving hello, 'talking' to all the people stuck waiting.

Hsipaw itself is a small riverside town known for its relaxing atmosphere and walks/hikes into the lush countryside. A boat ride and hike took us through pineapple and papaya plantations to different villages and monasteries where we got some great pics of young monks and locals. Unfortunately, it was unbearably hot and Martin later started suffering from heat exhaustion. Not very pleasant especially as the hotel was choosing to conserve electricity (it is low season here) and there were no fans or aircon for about half the day and night! Add to that a bout of food poisoning and he really wasn't well for a number of days.

Hsipaw's main attractions are its two markets: the one that starts at 4am(!) - the veg and produce market called the candle-light market; the second, is the day market selling food and everyday housewares and hardware. And that's it! One morning at 6am while Martin was ill I went to market and although I've seen more exciting markets before, it was a great time to be out and I loved watching lots of young novice monks collecting alms (food donations and money) (double click the pic for pics of these). Two Buddhist nuns dressed in pink were also out, shopping for herbs and veggies. Loved the shape of their hats. * Mush

They're Watching You: Lucky Owls, Mandalay, Burma

We took a day trip out of Mandalay with Muireann and Matthew visiting Sagaing, Inwa and Amarapura - three different areas teeming with temples. It was a full day! In Sagaing we saw many of them and climbed the hills to see many more stupas and temples dotted throughout the rolling green landscape. At the temples it was crazy and there was souvenir stand after souvenir stand with an occasional one selling Buddhisty stuff - everything from incense sticks and Buddha figures, to these lucky owls made of papier mache. They were very cute sitting row upon row, wide-eyed, side by side. We couldn't resist getting a couple of small ones for our Xmas tree (when we get one). We'll see if they make it home in one piece!

By the end of the day we were pretty 'templed' out! At Amarapura we watched many monks crossing its famous U Bein bridge over large Taungthaman lake - the longest teak bridge in the world, about 1 mile long (1.2km) with 600 teak supports. These were leftover from the Palace at Inwa when it got moved to Mandalay. In Inwa we had to catch a small boat to get to the temples and the only way to get around was by horse cart. We were not happy at this as it was quite expensive (even though we bargained them down), but we had no other choice... Still, it was a nice afternoon inspite of a storm and pelting rain. * Mush

Chinlone Festival, Mandalay, Myanmar

After a long day, we made a stop at Mahamuni Paya on our way home and discovered the Chinlone Festival. Chinlone is a sport that is played with a wicker-type ball and seems to be the national sport of Myanmar. It is however, not a sport so much as a demonstration as only one team plays at one time. There is usually one player in the middle doing a multitude of tricks, with the rest of the team just keeping the ball in play after different moves. The centre player is switched at times, so more than one player is the focus. The best players had money pinned to their backs, apparently tips from the audience.

Apparently we arrived at a good time as this young boy is one of the best known chinlone players in the country. He was simply amazing and could control that little ball unbelievably. It is hard to describe some of the moves he was capable of. Apparently there are over 100 named moves that are appreciated more when repeated. Here he is kicking the ball up with his left foot(only about 12 inches high), and circling his foot over the ball before quickly kicking it up again. He could do this move about 100 times in a row if he wanted. He also would do some weird no look hits off his knee tucked under his opposite shoulder over and over - can you picture it??? I didn't think so, that is why I said it is hard to explain. Check out http://www.chinlone.com/ to find out more about the amazing sport.

It was a treat to watch these guys and sit around the circle with the local men and many monks in attendance. Michelle and our Irish friend Muireann were the only women in attendance! *Stub

Hsimbyume Paya, Mingun, Myanmar

We attempted to bus up to Inle Lake, but the buses were full, so we caught an overnighter all the way up to Mandalay, changing our planned route slightly. After taking one of the tiny blue Mazda Pick-up truck taxis from the bus station to find a hotel, we started to explore Mandalay. After lunch, the rains started to slow down and we walked to the Palace with a new Aussie friend Matthew. The Palace itself is surrounded by a huge moat, probably around 2 miles on each side. The palace has recently been restored with forced labour from the locals. A truth we are getting too familiar with. The palace was called the Glass Palace because of the small pieces of mirror decorating the outside. The structure however is wooden and painted red and yellow - quite beautiful really.

On our first full day in Mandalay, we walked to the Ayeyarwaddy river and promptly caught a boat upriver to Mingun Paya. The stupa at Mingun was slated to be the largest in the world at 150m (492 ft), and still would have been today. But alas, King Bodawpaya died in 1819, and work ceased on the structure, leaving the largest pile of bricks I have ever seen. The base built entirely of brick was complete, but a recent earthquake has produced several large crack in the brick structure. There is also the Mingun bell, the worlds largest, undamaged bell weighing in at a cool 90 tons nearby. You are able to climb up the steps to the top of the base, for great views of the area and Ayeryawaddy River. You can also see Hsimbyume Paya from the top.

We recognized Hsimbyume from somewhere...... oh yeah - the cover of the Lonely Planet Myanmar. So Michelle, taking the place of a young novice monk in a red robe, recreated the step across the arches to give our version of the picture. Check out this link to compare:

http://shop.lonelyplanet.com/product_detail.cfm?productID=2789&seriesID=1&seriesname=Country%20Guides&

*Stub

The Moustache Brothers, Mandalay, Myanmar

While in Mandalay, we saw a couple of evening shows. On our first night, we visited the local garage of the Moustache Brothers. About 10 years ago, they were visited by a Lonely Planet writer, who enjoyed the show and wrote them up in the 'travelers bible'. So, now most foreign visitors to Mandalay who own a Lonely Planet go to see this show. It was their meal ticket for sure!

Now for some history on the show. Apparently, the repressive Myanmar Government banned the Moustache Brothers from performing in public to local people because of some political jokes they told. Brother #1 Par Par Ley (RHS) was actually jailed 7 years for telling jokes (there is actually a reference to this in the Hugh Grant movie 'About A Boy'). Ridiculous you might say, but that is how things are in Myanmar. So, the brothers went underground somewhat, and out of their garage they still perform the show to foreigners (apparently there is no ban on this.....yet!). So, they make jokes about how they are 'under surveillance' and hold up signs of all the different countries' secret agencies with photos of their customers!

The show itself was interesting. Brother #3 (Middle) was the MC and he was quite hilarious. He uses all the slangs of so many countries, and although it was sometimes quite hard to understand his English, he even spelt it out for us! They put on demonstrations of different costumes, local clothing, local dances with the help of wives and sisters, and local music. A good night out if you find yourself in Mandalay, and don't worry if you can't quite find the right garage, they will find you! *Stub

Rainy Trishaw Tour with Sammy and Tin, Bago, Myanmar

Upon our arrival to Bago, 2 hours North of Yangon, we were greeted by Sammy and Tin, who were local trishaw drivers. Trishaws are bicycles with eassentially a side car attached with one seat facing forward and one backwards. They assured us that they would be able to take us around most of the sights of Bago in the afternoon, despite the pelting rain. So we agreed to pay them the 3000 kyats ($2.50, £1.50) for the afternoon, and they started peddling us around. We tried to use our umbrellas to keep them dry, but after a while it was a lost cause. The streets were a swamp and the locals took to using canoes to transport people through the lower level streets.

First stop was visiting the happy cheeroot (cigar) rollers. They spend at least 10 hours a day rolling about a thousand cigars, all for about $1 pay. There were even some young kids there (3-4yrs) helping their mothers out, and one was using a pair of huge scissors that were bigger than he was!!!
As for the temples: if you hadn't guessed it yet, there are probably millions of temples in Myanmar - even more than other countries we had visited. We were able to avoid the $10 government fee, by waiting until the ticket checkers had left for the day. This allowed us to 'help' out Sammy and Tin with a little extra money that went directly to them and not the government. Bago had some wonderful temples and 90 m tall stupas, with the highlight being the 61m long reclining Buddha of Shwethalyuang. It is housed in a large building to protect it, but walking up to it, all you can see is a huge wall of torso, only to reveal the massive length of the Buddha at the end of the hallway. It's head was resting on some very ornamental pillows and the soles of its feet were elaborately decorated. Even it's baby finger was over 3m long. We visited more temples for the rest of the day, finishing with the tallest at sunset. Although the rain was still falling, the bright gold made for a neat contrast with the strange blue of the sky (double click for pic on Flickr).

We thoroughly enjoyed our day out, but mostly because of the drivers. Such nice men, and we were able to really 'talk' to them. There are so many things that locals won't and aren't allowed to talk about, but they seemed to open up to us a little. Recommendations to anyone heading to Bago! An excellent afternoon. *Stub

A Typical Bus Heading for Twante, Myanmar

Across the river by ferry, we managed to get inside one of these buses which are basically big pick-up trucks with narrow lengthwise bench seats. These buses DO NOT leave until full - including the rooftop!!! Little did we know that when full, not only do the people climb up on the roof, they then hang off the back - I think about 20 people were holding on for their lives on the tailgate as the bus tanked along. It was a fun ride inside jammed elbow to elbow with all the curious locals. 1 hour later we were in the small town of Twante (pronounced 'Twanty').

Greeted by more torrential rain, we were led to a local joint for a bite to eat, and then perused the market. I guess they don't see a lot of Westerners there, and were very curious about us, staring intently. Friendly though, as we had become used to in Myanmar. Of course, the market was filled with many strange and colourful sights, but not quite as smelly as many other markets we had been in. For the tourists, a local highlight is visiting the pottery shacks just on the outskirts of town. Using our newly purchased umbrellas, we strolled through the puddle-ridden streets to these thatched shacks and enjoyed watching one lady spinning the pottery wheel by hand, while the man molded a large pot on it in less than a minute! All the time, we had their kids jumping around us, wanting photos taken of course. Walking back to catch our bus kids were playing in the rain and deep puddles everywhere. Our journey back was another overloaded bus back to the river where we had fun on the ferry with the local vendors carrying their trays of things to sell - mostly kids sent out to make extra cash for the family. They were funny as they pretty much forgot about selling the gum and trinkets and were more interested in having their photos taken. An exhilarating and soggy day. *Stub

Formerly Rangoon, Burma

We've actually managed to find an internet in this wonderful chaotic city! Excellent! But email access is blocked! Not so excellent! The Burmese love football especially the Premier League and Man United! So we were able to find somewhere to watch the football. I realised that I was supporting England when I was disappointed about the bloody awful penalties! And Rooney and his red card!! All we had was Burmese commentary so not sure why he was sent off. So now, it's Portugal for the World Cup!!

Anyway, had a great first few days here. People are very friendly and we are pretty much celebrities, even though foreignors do come here. Burma was an English colony up until 1948, but people's English is still surprisingly good - even the younger generations'. It is raining season here too - pretty much raining all afternoon and evening which means we have to get up and out before 9am. It's the type of rain that's warm and refreshing, but soaks you in about 3 seconds flat! Possibly our best investment yet - we bought a couple of umbrellas!

Yangon, formerly called Rangoon during colonial times, is a multi-ethnic, frenetic city with lots of crumbling colonial buildings, gold glittering stupas, treacherous (for me, anyway!) wonky-slabbed pavements (sidewalks), and streets teeming with people, and markets with vendors and food stalls. Changing money is interesting here: since the government charges a tax for every transaction, you get more for your US$ on the black market - normally from touts on the streets or at the local tourist market. The men wear a sarong-type skirt called a Longyi, made out of a tube-shaped piece of fabric which they wrap around and tie in a knot at the belly. Business men dress a little smarter and usually sport a crisp white shirt with their longyi! Women and children wear a strange kind of face makeup called thanakha - a cakey creamy yellow that hardens and apparently protects them from the sun - even though there's only rain at the moment! * Mush

Sule Paya in Downtown Yangon, Myanmar

After a short flight from Bangkok, we were in Yangon (formerly Rangoon), Myanmar (formerly Burma). Things are different here. A very cool mix of cultures and people with smiling faces wherever you look. Unbelievable considering how badly they are treated by the repressive government.
They don't call it rainy season for nothing as we were greeted by torrential rain everyday. Sometimes the mornings would only be light rain, but by the afternoon, streets would be flooded and we were unable to ever get dry. So, we had to continue being tourists in the rain, because if we didn't, we wouldn't see anything!
The first thing you notice downtown is the main traffic circle, encompassing a huge, 2000 year old stupa called Sule Paya. Around the stupa are many colonial buildings from the British occupation up until the 50's. There is also a huge market area called Bogyoke Aung San, which houses loads of little shops and is also where we would get our US money exchanged to Myanmar kyat on the black market. All around the market, people would sneak up to you and ask if you want to change money. A little sly, but the only way to do it here as the 'official' rate of exchange is around 6 kyat to $1, where on the black market, you get 1300 kyat to $1. Not sure how that all works, all I know is I need to carry around huge stacks of 1000 kyat bills as that is the highest denomination they have. *Stub

Chatting with the Monks at Shwedagon Paya, Yangon, Myanmar

Our time in Myanmar/Burma was special. We hadn't planned to visit Myanmar on our trip, but too many people recommended it, so we squeezed it in at the end. Unfortunately, we only had 3 weeks and there is plenty to see in quite a diverse country. We were also quite tired after 13 months on the road, that we felt we weren't as adventurous as if we had visited earlier. Oh well, all good reason to return!

This photo is at Shwedagon Paya, the most sacred and impressive pagoda in the former capital of Yangon. It is over 100m tall, and is up on a local hill. The massive gold stupa has 4 long entrances, each from the cardinal points, with gold roofs and guarded by 2 huge chinthe (half lion, half dragon) statues. Around the main stupa were loads of other temples, some for each day of the week. In their culture, it is important which day of the week you were born, and you pray to that specific temple. Strangely, there are 8 temples, and so they divide Wednesday into AM and PM to create the 8 'days'. Just as we arrived, the skies opened up and the rains came. Loads of umbrellas, and some very slippery tiled floors circling the stupa.

It is typical of our time in Myanmar, as while we were waiting out the heavy rains, a group of monks came to talk to us. Their English was excellent, so they really didn't need to work on it, but just hung out with us for an hour learning about our lives and what we do. The people here are so curious about the 'outside' world because they are only told what the government tells them. They are genuinely friendly and our time in Myanmar was so good because of the people. Always greeted with a big smile and a friendly 'Minglava' (hello in Burmese). *Stub

Minglava! ---Hello!--- Myanmar

Hey everyone,
Just got back from 3 days in Macau - an ex-Portuguese colony, now part of southern China. Nice small city made up of 3 islands all connected by huge fancy highway-type bridges. Pretty amazing. Big chinese influence there and not much Portuguese apart from the odd church and restaurant.
In about 3 hours we will be on our way to Myanmar - what used to be called Burma. It's surrounded by Thailand to the East and India/China to the north. Apparently, the people there are lovely (although their government isn't!). We will be there for 3 weeks and fly back to Bangkok on Friday 21st July. During that time we will be incommunicado as internet access is pretty sparse apparently so don't expect to hear from us in that time..
We just hope that we will be able to watch the World Cup somehow... It's England vs Portugal next which is a tough one for me being Portuguese and English all at the same time.. who to support? .... Both!
Come on England! .... Come on Portugal!

Michelle and Martin

Macau Tower and Bridge

On our only full day in Macau, and because it is so small, we did a walking tour around the city. This is where we could see the old Portuguese influence in churches, small alleys and the colonial looking Largo de Senado (main square in town). Lunch on the waterfront and up the hill to the historic Penha Church where we shot this view of the modern Macau Tower. AJ Hackett (originator of bungy jumping) has a cable freefall from the tower that is the highest in the world - 233m. Our traveler friend Earl (Over 60 and still going strong) took the leap of faith, but I don't need any more brushes with crazy heights after my bungy jumps in NZ.
Macau, being so dependant on the water surrounding it, has a good Marine Museum which was nicely air conditioned. So, we took a break from our walk. It had some very interesting displays and excellent models of old boats. While we were on the museum theme, we also made a visit to the all important Museo de Vinho (Wine Museum). Since there was such a Portuguese influence, of course there would be wine. History about wine making in Portugal, including Mush's parents home island of Madiera. Then it was on to the tasting!!! We haven't really had much wine recently and definitely not good wine, so this was a treat. Next stop was across the hall to the Grand Prix Musuem. Macau has had a Formula 3 race in town since the 50's I believe. It is a very popular weekend in town. There are some cars on display from previous winners including David Coulthard, Takuma Sato, Michael Schumacher's 1990 machine (complete with plenty of photos of a very young looking Schumacher), and even the car of the late Ayrton Senna - all of Formula One fame. There is also a bike race at the same time, so a few huge, powerful bikes with massive tires were on display. The oldest car was a 1950's TR2 from the first race, but I can't remember the drivers name.

The next morning, we walked up past the Ruins of Sao Paulo - all that is left is the crypt and the front facade - and up to the Fortaleza de Monte. It houses another interesting musuem, but also sports great views of the town from the fort's perch up on the hill. Busy mish mash of buildings all around, a lighthouse up on the hill, and the bustling harbour full of fishing boats. Of course, there was the many scaffolded skyscrapers/casinos that were under construction.
Off to Bangkok tomorrow for 'One Night in Bangkok' and then we've booked our flights to Yangon in Myanmar (formerly Burma). *Stub

Flashing Lights of Casino Lisboa in Macau

A short 1 hour high speed catamaran ride South of Hong Kong and we found ourselves in Macau. An ex-Portuguese colony, now part of southern China. It was returned to China shortly after Hong Kong was in the late 90's. A nice, small city made up of a piece of mainland with 2 islands (Coloane and Taipa) all connected by huge fancy highway-type bridges. Pretty amazing especially as a high percentage of land is actually reclaimed. Big Chinese influence there and not much Portuguese apart from the odd church and restaurant. Prior to it's return to China, Macau was the 3rd smallest country in the world (at 16 sq. km) behind Vatican City and Monaco (there may be a couple of Pacific Islands in there too).
It is however, the Vegas of Asia and there are plenty of elaborate and gaudy casinos with the typical flashing lights. The Casino Lisboa is probably the oldest and well known, and we went in there for a couple of hours - but just to watch. We're just budget travelers, so no room for gambling in our budget. There was an absolutely massive new casino under construction called the Venetian. I'm sure it will rival the Venetian in Vegas for size and extravagance.

We passed the Venetian on a local bus ride down to a very quiet little place called Coloane Village. Strange to imagine that this sleepy little place was only a few miles from the massive casinos. It was a nice break from big Chinese cities, but back to the city for dinner.

Our favourite place to eat was a little sushi place called Good Choice Sushi - a recommendation from Stiffler. Great sushi, 5 pieces for just over a dollar, and the people there were more than friendly. We would get take-away, and eat on the steps to the ruins of Sao Paolo church, watching the locals. Makes for a nice evening meal! *Stub

A Posh Brunch with Georgie and Alison, Hong Kong

So, we got a little spoilt when we were in Hong Kong. We met Alison way back in Oct in China. She offered us a place to stay in HK, even though she wasn't there the first night - how nice is that! A great little apartment with a fantastic view of the Hong Kong skyline. We met up with Alison and her crew on our second night. Thinking we were out for a simple drink with them, but we ended up staying out until sunrise, bar hopping our way around the Wan Chai district, watching the World Cup games (as they are live at midnight and 3AM here). Alison and her crew of friends are a blast and we had a great time with them, every night in Hong Kong.

We had told them about our recent engagement, and they were soooooo excited for us that Georgie and Alison took us out to the Conrad Hotel for Sunday brunch to celebrate. WOW!!! For us it was gastronomic sensory overload. We would have been happy with one of the items of the buffet but we were in for a treat with a massive buffet of foods we hadn't even seen let alone tasted in so long. Cheese, specialty meats, seafood, lobster, sushi, roast lamb/beef/ham, and the kicker was the flowing fountain of chocolate for dipping strawberries under (see pic on Flickr). Being the budget travelers, we got our fill for sure, making it our only meal of the day as we gorged ourselves and topped it off with the complimentary sparkling wine!!

We had also caught up with our Dutch friend Stiffler. We have been traveling on and off together for 2.5 months now! She joined in the festivities with our new found friends, and we also spent time at a local beach with her, chilling out for the day. We haven't seen a beach in a couple of months, so it was a real treat! We have thoroughly enjoyed Hong Kong again. Watching sunset from the Peak, overlooking the amazing skyscrapers below. Joining the ex-pat locals watching the football (Come on England!!), and hanging out in the local pub districts. It really is a vibrant city with tons to do! One of the only drawbacks are the many rules that regulate life here! Michelle and I joined a few friends at a hotel bar. The bar staff refused to serve me as I had flip-flops on, so our friends complained! After a few drinks and some silly, partying and dancing, the police were called by the management. Luckily, there was no real problem and the situation didn't escalate, but I said to Michelle "I can't believe I'm going to end up in jail for wearing flip-flops". *Stub

Back at School, Yangshuo, China

Eventually, we decided we should get out and explore the area so we rented out some bicycles and rode around the rice paddies and villages amongst the beautiful limestone pinnacles. Really stunning! Earlier in the week we had met some teenagers on the main street who wanted to practice their English, and they had invited us to their school. What a great experience! We disrupted things a bit, and were greeted to a class of 40-50 screaming, cheering and clapping kids. We talked to the class for a while so they could practice their English and then had a tour of the school (the dorm rooms sleep 14 people - some 2 per bunk!) Anyway, it was all a lot of fun. Next, we headed to the home village of Xiao Mo - the lady who ran the guesthouse that we stayed at in the Rice Terraces. It was a small village and it didn't take long for someone to show us where her family lived. It was a brief visit as her brother (and nosey neighbours) didn't speak any English so we 'talked' for a few minutes in my broken Chinese, then spoke to Xiao Mo on the phone, took a quick photo and off we went. I think she was pleased that we went to say hello to her family anyway.

We had a great time riding around that day. Unfortunately, it had a miserable end when I took a bit of a tumble going too fast on the gravel (and following Martin's bumpy route - which I knew was a mistake, but it was too late). And I still had 10 miles left to ride back! So, now I have some new cuts and grazes and soon-to-be scars on my hands and knees. I suppose, I have been bruise-free for a few months so I was probably due for some new injuries! Oh well. *Mush

Back In Yangshuo, China

We were excited to get back to Yangshuo (the town where we spent Martin's birthday back in October). Not only for the fantastic scenery, but also to have a break from speaking Chinese (the people speak English here), which means, of course, it's touristy ....but wonderful western food abounds! Mmm! Heaven! That first Red Star Burger with all the trimmings (including CHEESE) was pretty fantastic! So the next few lazy days we didn't do a lot -caught up on internet, went out for nice food, walked around town (which would get quite sticky as it was so hot). We did actually make it a couple of times for sunset at Monkey Jane's Rooftop Bar, but mostly we watched movies in our air conditioned room (very luxurious for us!) and not only did we have a TV, but a DVD player too -the height of luxury indeed! We had splashed out a bit and paid more than usual - about $9 (5 quid)!

We were sorry to see that the town had changed a lot in the last 8 months -with more neon flashing lights and more glitzy posh shoe and handbag shops. But inspite of this it is still a small town (for China, anyway) with charming streets and fantastic scenery, and all in all we ended up staying longer than we intended. This happened to us last time we were in Yangshuo, and we met so many people that this happens to: as soon as you hit Yangshuo you slow down, take it easy, walk around a bit, chill out a bit more etc etc.. therefore needing more time to explore the area and have to keep adding days to your stay - we call it the Yangshuo Effect! It's great! *Mush

Dazhai Rice Terraces, Guanxi Province, China

At the city of Wuhan we said a rushed goodbye to my Ladies from the boat trip, and we went in different directions to catch various trains and buses. We had a long frustrating day after getting passed from pillar to post, and we were told that the train station we were aiming for was the wrong one - trains didn't go to Guilin from there. We decided to ask anyway at the ticket desk only to find that sure enough we could get a train to Guilin from there! Maddening! SO frustrating, so much so that we were feeling that the time for leaving China is getting very close!

Anyway, we made it to Guilin overnight and caught a couple of connecting buses to Longsheng rice terraces - a place where we had been last October. This had been one of our favourite places last time and we had wanted to visit the area again in a different season. This time the fields had been recently planted with rice seedlings and were water-logged - which made for great pictures. We stayed two nights at our old guesthouse who were pleased to see us again after so long. During the day we climbed up into the hills and walked along the ridges. How nice it was to be away from the cities and noise and all those communication problems, and to be back amongst the peaceful, relaxing surroundings of our tiny village and the terraces of Dazhai. * Mush

Martin the Fisherman, Yangtze River, China

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The star attractions of the whole trip (apart from us, Ha ha!) were the Three Big Gorges and The Little Three Gorges. These however, will be flooded soon due to the contoversial Three Gorges Dam - which is why we wanted to do the trip. The Dam was started in 1993 and has just about finished (2 years ahead of schedule). It's 2.3km wide. 185m high. Controversial because, not only will it affect the beautiful landscape and endanger species, but 8000 unexcavated sites will be lost. There will be soil erosion, rockslides, earthquake dangers, not to mention the 2 million people that have been displaced etc etc etc. It will however, increase China's energy production by 10%, reducing the need for burning coal.

The boat itself journeyed through the Three Gorges which were still pretty impressive even though the water level has risen some: The first, Qutang gorge was 8km long with misty peaks of 1,200m high with steep precipices. The second, Wu gorge was 40km long with 2000m cliffs on one side and lush green slopes and ridges on the other. Third, Xiling gorge - zigzagged for about 76km - lush and green and then huge cliffs. Unfortunately, the visibility was poor because of the smog, but it was still really impressive. We took a side trip on a smaller boat to the Little Three Gorges chatting with 2 other Brits onboard, David and Sarah. An even smaller boat to the Mini Three Gorges was brightened up by our Ladies once again, and we had fun trying on hats and taking lots of photos - they seem to take even more photos than we do! They all screamed with laughter when Martin tried on the jacket and hat (the driver wouldn't let us take our life-jackets off!).

Finally, we approached the dam on our last afternoon. Instead of doing a tour of the Dam we opted to stay on the boat and go through the lock system. Five humongous, impressive locks that could hold 4-5 big boats like ours and each lock taking about an hour: closing the massive doors, reducing the water level about 20 m (60ft) each and reopening to the next lock. Although we didn't get to see the Dam the locks were very cool (and anyway, we heard later that the Dam was just a enormous concrete wall!!). *Mush

Our Chinese Tour Group, Yangtze River, China

After a late night of football, we had a painfully early morning taking off to Chongqing - the hop off point for trips on the Yangtze River. The river, cutting right through the heart of China, is the 3rd longest in the world (after the Nile and Amazon) at 6300km long. Out of about 800 people onboard we were two out of 6 Westerners! The rest, for good or bad, were Chinese tourists and we were to be spending our next 3 days with them all! There had been, however, a group of ladies on our original bus from Chengdu, who took a shine to me - making motions of how strong I was to carry my huge pack (it is pretty big now as we are starting to collect a few purchases). Anyway, they were very impressed and took it on themselves to keep an eye on Martin and I. Onboard, as we left the dock that evening we had fun with them trying to communicate in our broken Chinese and their non-existent English while watching the crazy skyscraper lights of Chongqing.

Over the next three days we were to stop at different 'tourist attractions' which were pretty weak: temples, cheap chinese souvenir stalls, a 'Ghost town' with tacky halloween-like plastic skeletons and demons. On land, we were the only westerners in our group and we cringed at the thought of being in a tour group, and a Chinese tour group ( with its loud megaphones, talking, spitting etc etc)at that!! In the end it wasn't so bad and we had to laugh as we got dragged into the obligatory group photo (unfortunately, no group hats for us). Here I am next to my Ladies in the front row. Martin took this pic, but got dragged into the official one a second later. Thankfully, my Chinese ladies kept an eye on us and made it much more interesting showing us how to walk across thresholds of temples and bridges correctly so that it would bring us luck (e.g. three steps starting with right foot for women, three steps with left foot for men). If it hadn't been for them, the whole trip would have been pretty dull. * Mush

Pandas and Football, Chengdu, Sichuan Province, China

Chengdu is home to one of China's biggest Panda Research Centres. An endangered species - there are less than a 1000 Giant Pandas left in the wild in the high mountainous areas of this province. They are actually not that 'giant'- about 4 feet tall-ish, but big and round and cuddly. We were glad to see that they have a lot of space to live in and get treated fairly well. They get fed at about 10am every morning when they sit around eating masses and masses (approx 20kg a day) of huge bamboo stems, normally one in each paw until they've had enough, usually about an hour later. We watched them for ages munching away and then stealing bamboo off each other when there wasn't much left. They were very comical. When they'd had their fill, they literally couldn't move and would collapsed in a heap - crash out wherever they were: head flopped and flat on their fronts for a siesta that lasted pretty much the rest of the day - until tomorrow's feeding time. The smaller red Pandas, also very cute, were more like racoons and a lot more active than the Giant Pandas. Not as cuddly though!

Our hostel was quite busy and a few of us (including Alan from our Everest trip) joined up to watch the World Cup - the first England match was at midnight. We tried to watch it on a big screen in town, but they forgot to put the game on the big screen. It was on tiny screens instead so decided to rush back to the hostel to catch the rest of the match. Every bit of space in the courtyard was taken up, but the atmosphere at the hostel was nice with everyone packed in. Even though England beat Paraguay 1-0, we were not impressed. The Swedish girls in our group were disappointed that Sweden didn't score in their game, but we had to agree - at least they had played better football than England! *Mush

Grand Buddha, Leshan, Sichuan Province, China

An overnight train to another huge modern metropolis - Chengdu - another 13 million people. But a convenient base to do a few tourist attractions and a friendly, busy hostel to come home to every day. One of the attractions around is the largest stone Buddha in the world in the nearby town of Leshan. At an overwhelming 71m high the Buddha is carved into the cliff face and gazes serenely down over the confluence of two rivers. It was built by a Buddhist monk in AD 713 and took 90 years to build. Its ears are 7m long and apparently, you could picnic on his big toe nail! We watched all the Chinese tourists taking photos of each other trying to 'touch' various parts of his face from afar. Apparently, touching various features brings either good luck, good fortune, or good health, so of course, we had to do it too! We then walked down the steps alongside him to get a closer look from all angles. He was pretty impressive and had lots of vegetation sprouting from his chest! He is really MASSIVE! *Mush

Terra Cotta Warriors of Xi'an, Shaanxi Province, China

We flew from Lhasa to Xi'an - another small city of 7 million people in central China - to do a whistle-stop tour of its most famous tourist attraction - The Army of Terracotta Warriors. The lifesize warriors were built 2000 years ago by an Emperor in order to protect him and his tomb in the afterlife. The were discovered in the 1970s by a farmer digging a well. The place has been excavated in 3 main sites. Pit#1 is the largest, with over 6000 Warriors housed inside. Pit#2 has about 1000 and Pit#3 has only about 68 Warriors. Each pit is in different states of restoration. They have basically tried to piece the warriors together as they believe they were originally built - a long process with each battalion separated by supporting walls (thought to hold up a roof) . The cool thing about them is that they each have different facial features and costume. Apparently, they also carried different bronze weapons which survived (although not on display). There are conspiracy theories that the Terracotta Warriors are not as old as they have been made out to be and possibly even built as a tourist attraction! From all the restoration going on it is hard to really know which is true, but when we were in Lijiang, Yunnan, I met an Italian woman who was an archeologist doing collaborative work of other interest in China, but she did say that these Warriors have been proven to be authentic. Regardless, I have to agree that they were pretty impressive and really interesting to see and it was worth the trip North.

We didn't care too much for Xi'an itself - a big city, unfortunately, with its few remaining 2000 year relics generally hidden. There was a smog lurking over the city too and we weren't impressed with the big modern parades of shops such as Prada, Louis Vitton etc. After just 24 hours in the city we were ready to head on. Just as we were leaving the hostel we met an old travel companion, Lisa from Australia, who had helped us at the hospital in Zhongdian about 6 weeks ago, and THEN, at the train station, we saw Andy - a Canadian friend we had met many months ago in Laos and then Cambodia! How crazy is that! It was only after seeing these friends that we seriously wished we were staying longer in Xi'an. It's SO nice to see people you know when you're on the road, and we were bummed. *Mush

Everest Team, Tibet

We came down from Everest base camp a little sooner than expected as Sarah had developed a major headache and nausea - signs of altitude sickness - something that Martin is all too familiar with. We had to get down to the monastery where the girls and our Landcruiser (and driver) were. Easier said than done as we couldn't get a horse cart down and so had to walk the 8km (6 miles) over fairly rough terrain with our gear (tents, sleeping bags, food, etc). Even though we were going down - we could definitely feel the strain on our bodies and we were exhausted and weak by the time we got down. The important thing was to go down in altitude as soon as possible and we left immediately for Sarah. Thankfully she was better by the next day at a lower town.

The next few days were mostly spent in the car on rough roads that were sometimes closed by road works which also meant hanging around waiting for them to open. We took a detour up to Phuntsoling Monastrey with very cool ruins on a hill overlooking the glaciated valley and some amazingly high sand dunes - something we were not expecting to see in the middle of Tibet!

The Landcruiser developed a rattling sound, that Lhakpa, our driver soon solved by removing the offending piece! As is the Tibetan way, he didn't seem too bothered about it although it looked like an important piece of metal! We later discovered that it was from the suspension system and that of course it was important! So we got sent another vehicle with another driver a day later; all that was available was a 24 seater bus!! A bit of overkill but it meant we wouldn't be stuck in the middle of Tibet. It felt a bit like Cliff Richard's 'Summer Holiday' film - all of us bundled with our stuff on a big bus. We headed east beyond Lhasa passing more unexpected sand dunes, on our way to Samye Monastery - another monastery that we were interested in seeing. And then just before we reached it, even more surprisingly, we passed groves of poplar and willow trees. Not at all like the barren plains of central Tibet. We spent a night there and explored what there was of town and the monastery - mostly it made for interesting people-watching of all the visiting pilgrims. Then it was back to Lhasa for a good wash, rest, and yak meat stew! *Mush