Feb/March ; Flew into Mandalay-
This is the first ( and LAST) time i will ever do mini bus's and long bus travel. I imagine the Triple first class Yangon- Bagan, Yangon- Mandalay, Inle Lake- Yangon would be nice if u need ONLY to get from A to B . Compared to all my other means of travel this is the worst way to travel around.
8 hour mini bus to inle lake ,( should have been 6 but it broke down) lake is very impressive but the town ( Nyaungshwe) sucks UNLESS u like the pseudo backpacker types, (Reminded me alot of kampot )
This is the closest town/city in Burma to Khao San road ( even down to 1,500 kyat ( $1.10) happy hours for a gin and tonic and ONLY 1,000 kyat ( $.75) - regular price is 1,500-2,000) for a large Mandalay beer, (puts Thai and Camboidan beers to shame)
The lake is beautiful but very touristy, the market ( they say its a floating market but its on land but u can arrive by boat - if u wish ) by boat, is the first I have visited in Myanmar that had items for tourist.
From there it was a 9 hour Overnight aircon bus to Magwe, arriving at 4 am. Booked that evenings 9 pm but to Mrauk u, took a nap and at 11 headed out for a meal.
back at hotel at 2 after a walk around, around 6 pm the cramps started and it was in and out of the bath room for the next 2 hours, Electric off and it was 32 degrees in the room..had to tell them i couldn't make the bus and went back to sweat it out the next 24 hours till the 10pm bus the next night to Mrauk U
This is the FIRST time i have gotten sick in my past 5 trips to Burma over the last 2 years
Overnight bus was 10 hours to Mrauk U. ( local aircon bus ...typical Indian style with way to many people and air con didn't' work )
Mrauk U was great, lots of pagodas and stupa's . BUT unlike Bagan, these all were ones you could go inside and they were fantastic images of buddhas and such. Than spent a day on the Laymro river visiting some Chin villages.
Next morning up at 7 to take the 3 hour fast boat down to Sittwe, Lovely Rakanese town on the Andaman sea, fantastic Sea food market and very good food.
Next day took the 45 minute ( $115 flight- more expensive than my Yangon- Bangkok- Phuket flight) to Yangon
Lesson learned; NO MORE BUS'S in Burma, they are just not worth it. Will stay with boats, trains and motorcycles
http://phuket.zenfolio.com/p506490376
My latest trip to Myanmar; Inle lake, Mrauk U & Sittwe
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My latest trip to Myanmar; Inle lake, Mrauk U & Sittwe
"We are turning into a nation of whimpering slaves to Fear—fear of war, fear of poverty, fear of random terrorism, or suddenly getting locked up in a military detention camp on vague charges of being a Terrorist sympathizer." HST
Hahaha--- every time I have a bad bus trip, I say no more buses, but ...
Always enjoy your trip reports Richard
Always enjoy your trip reports Richard
"Not my circus, not my monkeys" - KiR
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You do take a cracking photo.
Well done - good read
Well done - good read
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Absolutely super photos. You can almost feel the heat, humidity and dusty air in them, which makes all the images come alive.
"We want our country to develop step by step. But that is such a long way off . . . as far away as the stars."
Jobless father in documentary Cambodia: Country of Scars.
Jobless father in documentary Cambodia: Country of Scars.
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Although it might be more expensive but how about you do what I do in Myanmar and rent a car with driver for your whole trip? It shouldn't cost you much more than a combination of flying domestically, traveling by boat and other means, especially since these forms of transportation cost more for foreigners than locals and a typical one way plane ticket in Myanmar is easily US$80-100, which is around the same if not more than 1 day's car rental. I agree that I can't stand long distance buses, with a couple of exceptions like the Phnom Penh-Ho Chi Minh services because they're rather routine, are relatively predictable and don't take too long. However, these days I only choose Golden Ibis due to it's superior service and level of comfort, if I catch the bus at all - I'm more likely to drive my car, park it at the border and catch a taxi or get my Vietnamese friend to pick me up once I've crossed the border.
As for Myanmar, I normally travel overland across the Thai border at Mae Sot and have a regular driver that takes me wherever I need to go for a flat daily fare, all inclusive that means fuel, road tolls, the driver's meals and accommodation are all included in the price. When he's unavailable, I negotiate with other drivers at the bridge and am able to be on the road within a short time after that. Starting from Yangon or Mandalay after flying in you can do much the same, except drivers in these cities will typically charge much more for upcountry trips than drivers from provincial areas. All depends on your budget and available traveling time. Traveling by car with driver makes particular sense if you're in a traveling party of 2 or more travelers.
As for Myanmar, I normally travel overland across the Thai border at Mae Sot and have a regular driver that takes me wherever I need to go for a flat daily fare, all inclusive that means fuel, road tolls, the driver's meals and accommodation are all included in the price. When he's unavailable, I negotiate with other drivers at the bridge and am able to be on the road within a short time after that. Starting from Yangon or Mandalay after flying in you can do much the same, except drivers in these cities will typically charge much more for upcountry trips than drivers from provincial areas. All depends on your budget and available traveling time. Traveling by car with driver makes particular sense if you're in a traveling party of 2 or more travelers.
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next to last would be rent a car and driver,
cuts you off form the locals .... NO THANKS
i'll take trains, boats and motorcycles
Half the fun of travelling n Myanmar is the boats and train ( Have u taken ur car an driver from mandalay to Khamti down the chindwin or Irrawaddy river? or travel from Yangon to Kwathoung? ) to cut that out, i'll just stay home
cuts you off form the locals .... NO THANKS
i'll take trains, boats and motorcycles
Half the fun of travelling n Myanmar is the boats and train ( Have u taken ur car an driver from mandalay to Khamti down the chindwin or Irrawaddy river? or travel from Yangon to Kwathoung? ) to cut that out, i'll just stay home
"We are turning into a nation of whimpering slaves to Fear—fear of war, fear of poverty, fear of random terrorism, or suddenly getting locked up in a military detention camp on vague charges of being a Terrorist sympathizer." HST
Wonderful photos once again, Richard, thanks a lot for making them available!
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There couldn't be a better way of getting to know a local than to let him drive for you and be your guide, you can learn a lot just from spending time in the car together. That's assuming the driver can speak your language well enough, which is highly recommended if you're going to be together for any length of time.Phuket2006 wrote:next to last would be rent a car and driver,
cuts you off form the locals .... NO THANKS
i'll take trains, boats and motorcycles
Half the fun of travelling n Myanmar is the boats and train ( Have u taken ur car an driver from mandalay to Khamti down the chindwin or Irrawaddy river? or travel from Yangon to Kwathoung? ) to cut that out, i'll just stay home
I like it how people claim that catching trains, buses, boats, motorcycles etc. gives them more access to locals. How? It's unlikely you'll find anyone you can communicate with and most people just want to sleep, rather than engage in some difficult and extremely basic communication with a foreigner on public transport. The key ways of getting to know locals if that's what you want includes visiting tourist sites, cafes/restaurants/hotels and other businesses. Perhaps catching the odd local transport too.
It's quite possible to drive all the way down to Kawthoung from Yangon, though it's a long haul - boats are not everyone's thing, for me anything other than a short ferry ride across a river, a tourist boat ride down the Irrawaddy or a half day trip to a nearby island is potential uncomfortable seasickness. I've made it down as far as Dawei and back. Had a fantastic time getting to know my driver. BTW the longest journey I've done in Myanmar (by car with driver) along with a friend and the driver's friend was Myawady (Thai border) to Mu-se (Chinese border) and back and all places in between, including Yangon, Mandalay, Pyin Oo Lwin, Hpa-an, Mawlamyine, Naypyidaw etc.
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