Yangon to Bagan

Our oasis in Bagan

Hi, it's us! We had very little, to absolutely no WiFi this past week which was definitely a creature comfort we missed. Today we took a private taxi from Bagan to Mandalay. It was just under four hours on a rickety and bouncy road (I can't even imagine what the train is like!), but we made it safely despite not wearing seat belts, and as we quickly weaved around motorists, other cars and the occasional herd of cows.

Myanmar seems to be a country with many contrasts. We started out in Yangon, a city full of cars where no one stops for anyone (motorbikes are banned here); traveled to remote Bagan where electronic bikes and bicycles are the primary mode of transportation; and then to Mandalay, a busy city with noisy motorbikes everywhere.

Let's backtrack a bit to our last few days in Yangon...Unfortunately the weather remained pretty crappy (we're here during Myanmar's 'off' and rainy season), and there wasn't much else to do. Our hotel was one of our least favorites for several reasons, and we didn't want to stay in our room or necessarily venture outside either. On our last night we ended up walking in the rain to a nearby mall that didn't seem to offer too much. Then it was a 2 hour ride on a prop airplane (surprisingly a smooth ride) and we were in mysterious and magical Bagan!

Yangon's City Hall

High Court Clock Tower

Reclining Buddha

One of the many dogs I wanted to swoop off the street and adopt.

 Tea leaf salad is always tasty!

One of the terrible malls we walked through

Our first night in Bagan, we walked over to a local restaurant. All of the restaurants in Bagan are open-air, so we've had to mind a few bugs and sweat while we eat.

The owner/chef/server was great and we really enjoyed the food, however Kiel came down with a little food poisoning after...

And at our oasis of a hotel...