The Golden City

Going to Myanmar is not about booking a flight, packing and leaving. The visa is very important as otherwise you will not be allowed to enter the country. You can get the visa from the Myanmar embassy or online and the fee varies. You can get a 24 hour express service for extra money. I will call Myanmar a “cash only country” as there were only a handful of places that accepted credit cards and there were hardly any ATMs around. So you need to carry cash either the US dollars or Burmese Kyat. You can bring the highest end mobile phone or laptop over to

Myanmar and not use it at all because of the poor telecommunication network in the country. Point to note is – don’t ever travel on a tight schedule as there possible chances of vehicle breakdown or delayed arrival of a driver.

The first unusual thing I saw in Yangon after we landed were all the people walking about with a yellow powder on their faces. Majority of the women had this powder on their face and various patterns. At first I thought it was sandalwood powder but the following day I found out that it was called “thanakha” and it is a kind of skin care product made from the bark of a tree. It is supposed to keep the skin cool and protected from the sun and also gives a smooth complexion. Whether they are rich or poor, most Myanmar ladies have it on their face. I guess the Body Shop would have already studied this product!

Yangon is all about lakes, parks, traditional Burmese architectures, temples and more temples and pagodas at every turn as well as some colonial buildings. During the numerous walkabout trips I did in Yangon, I came across men who had almost burgundy coloured stained teeth and who were chewing betel nut leaves and betel nuts and I found messy red splodges on floors, roads and walls! There are stalls almost at every street corner selling betel nut – mostly in the form of quid – a quid of betel leaf is usually with creamy slaked lime, wafer thin slices of dried betel nuts, a dab of cutch and some shavings of tobacco folded into a triangular shape. Sometimes other ingredients like fennel or dried mint was added too. The Indians called this paan and in Myanmar they call this “kun-ya”. My father used to chew betel leaves after a meal, always telling us that betel leaves are a good source of calcium, carotene and iron and also that it helps in digestion. When I was old enough to read books, I read that betel nuts contain cancer causing carcinogen and told father to stop adding betel nuts to his betel leaves. Do you know that after nicotine and ethanol, betel nut is the fourth most widely used drug in the world!? I found out that in Myanmar, eating of betel leaves was a social enjoyment – something you would give your guests or something you would chew and sit with friends and chat.

The majority of people, both men and women of Myanmar wear their traditional garment – the “longyi”. A longyi is basically a sarong – a long piece of material sewn into a tube and then slipped over the head my men or stepped into by women and tucked at the waist. Men fold the garment at the waist and then tie a knot. Ladies wear more of a wrap-around longyi tucked at the waist – it is usually wrapped from left to right or vice versa. Men usually wear cotton longyi with squares, checks or lines as patterns. Ladies were patterns of checks, stripes; flowers, butterflies etc. and the longyi are usually very colourful. For special occasions like weddings and events, longyi made of silk or satin is worn.  The Buddhist monks wear from saffron to brown to burgundy coloured robes.

Myanmar has diverse geographical features with favourable seasonal conditions and is naturally endowed with fertile soil and water resources and therefore it boasts an abundant supply of food in a great variety all year around. Rice is the staple food of Myanmar. There is a great influence on the Myanmar cuisine by the Indians and Chinese and you can see it clearly although Myanmar people still cherish their own food, ensuring that its essence and uniqueness remains unchanged.

At meal time, the dishes are all laid out on the dining table and everyone help himself to the food. There are no appetizers or hors d'oeuvre, and no wine or spirits served at the meal. Myanmar people eat with their fingers, but dishes are provided with serving spoons to be handled with the clean left hand only. Soup is usually placed in the centre for all the diners to share. The soups are usually clear and will have chunky portions of vegetables or meat; are sour with tamarind juice or gongkura leaves or spicy like tom yam soup. Salads are served at every meal and a salad is usually a combination of raw, boiled or preserved vegetables, cooked meat, thick slices of onion, tamarind juice, chilli powder or flakes, fish sauce, fried shredded garlic in cooked oil, and pounded dried prawn, all mixed thoroughly by hand – sometimes overly smelling of dried prawns. Dessert is usually fresh fruits like mango or a piece of jaggery.

I found food in Myanmar generally very oily but Myanmar cuisine is something I will not discount from my life – it is very nice.

One outstanding dish was the Laphet or pickled tea leaves. This is a popular dish and snack with pickled tea leaves, assorted nuts and pulses, fried garlic, chillies, dried prawns and sesame seeds. Apparently tea leaves are very important during ceremonies and court cases those days. It seems court cases are considered settled when the pickled tea is shared. In Myanmar, the plucked tea leaves are steamed and then pack tightly into bamboo jars and these is buried for about 6 months – hence the delicate flavour. Laphet is prepared differently in each of the provinces of Myanmar.

All over Yangon I found snack shops selling all kinds of food – savoury and sweet and I think one day is not enough to experience the sweet sights, inhale the tempting smells and have a bit of the tantalizing tastes! All these stalls are well patronized. From pancakes, to samosas, fried chickens, donuts, stick rice, yoghurt, noodles and betel leaves…….you see it everywhere. Some of the stalls are located at the most unhygienic areas but you will not suffer from food poisoning if you buy food that is cooked and served piping hot.

I enjoyed my trip to Yangon and I know there are going to be more trips to Myanmar.