Travel in Thailand from the Northern areas of Mandalay and Bagan to the more Southern city of Yangon. New Tourism, Culture, Lifestyle and Boutique Travel. Independent Guide to Travel in Myanmar.
On the 13th April I fly to Yangon from the drenched streets of Bangkok. When I arrive it is nighttime and everything in Yangon appears calm and seemingly normal. I am here for the Thingyan Water Festival in Yangon, a celebration which takes place for 3 days between the 13th and 16th of April, to …
A quick guide to our favourite destinations in our Southeast Asia Travel Blog (we will update as we go along). This list follows our own interests and highlights our own style in travel. We travel independently as a couple, we generally avoid tourist and backpacker trails and we love to get lost in big cities although we do …
Advance bookings aren’t really necessary for day tours in Mandalay, the best thing to do is turn up, haggle a cheap taxi and draw together your own itinerary. Before reaching the hotel two local taxis had already quoted us unbelievably cheap Mandalay day tours but for comfort we book through the hotel at not much …
Chinatown is an area teaming with food and for many the best starting point for exploration is 19th street where you’ll find vendor after vendor of charcoal grills, cooking all sorts of meats, veg and marinades from shop house barbecue restaurants. This is the place to go for street food in Yangon; outside seating, bustling local …
For the downtown area, the Sule Pagoda in Yangon is a good starting point for touring the area. It is the major temple of the downtown area and can easily be found towering over the intersection of Maha Bandula and the Sule Pagoda Road. When I visit it was during the Thingyan festival (Myanmar New …
Tripadvisor tends to be my ‘when-all-else-fails’ option for food on travel but after arriving to Mandalay I was forced to it. Following 2 days of mediocre restaurants, limited food options and in honesty not so great food; Super 81 was a bit of a life saver. It no doubt makes a great start and safe …
While two days in Bagan is not ideal, it is doable. In two days, without prior planning, we manage to cover not only the better of the archaeological zone but even push further to rural attractions and Mount Popa. In many ways, how long you need in Bagan, will depend on your enthusiasm for temples …
Our travels to Mount Popa was a last minute thing. We arrive to the hotel, ask what tours they recommend, the hotel suggest the Mount Popa tour, we book it. No preparation. The price was $50 for the half-day tour, quite a bit more than local taxis but still feels like a steal. For the tour …
This journey on the Irrawaddy River is an attraction in itself and can be done in both directions. While we originally planned to travel from Mandalay to Bagan by boat (9 hours) our plans fell through leaving us with the next best option, the return journey travelling from Bagan to Mandalay by boat (11 hours) …
Travelling in Asia you will likely cross paths with Palm Wine at some point and in my travels I’ve boozed my own fair share; from coconut arrack cocktails in Sri Lanka to Tuba and Lambanog in the Philippines. Palm Wine, or Toddy as it is known in Myanmar, is a potent alcohol made from the …