First a geography/history lesson: Myanmar ( pronounced me-en-mar) is formally called the Republic of the Union of Myanmar. Until 1989 it was known by it former name, Burma. Both names have linkage to the majority (68%) ethnic group living there, Bamar, and both names are still commonly used when referring to the country. During the British occupation (1824-1948) Burma thrived, but WWII devastated the country and its economy. It gained its independence from England in 1948.  Myanmar has a population of about 54 million people and the predominant religion is Buddhism. It’s main product is rice although it produces 90% of the world’s ruby gems.

Yangon, formerly known as Rangoon, is the capital of the Yangon Region of Myanmar. Yangon served as the capital of Myanmar until 2006, when the military government relocated the capital to the purpose-built city of Naypyidaw in central Myanmar. With over 7 million people, Yangon is Myanmar’s largest city and its most important commercial center.

Yangon is an amalgamation of British, Burmese, Chinese and Indian influences, and is known for its colonial architecture and remains an almost unique example of a 19th-century British colonial capital. Yangon boasts the largest number of colonial-era buildings in Southeast Asia and has a unique colonial-era urban core that is remarkably intact but in much disrepair. The colonial-era commercial core is centered around the Sule Pagoda, which is reputed to be over 2,000 years old. The city is also home to the gilded Shwedagon Pagoda – Myanmar’s most sacred Buddhist pagoda.  End of lesson for today.

We went to breakfast around 7 AM, hoping to see my brother, Gerry, and wife, Sue, who had been scheduled to arrive late last night. They were not there, but by the time we were ready to leave they walked in and joined us. They did arrive in Yangon around midnight only to find that Sue’s luggage did not arrive with them!  Bad start to their trip, but she is an experienced traveler and will make do until it’s scheduled arrival tonight.

We met our tour guide, Nyi Nyi, at 10 AM to begin our tour of Yangon. Our first surprise of the day was the vehicle we would be riding in.  It was a “tricked out” van with posh seating, fancy sound system and mood lighting. It was quite a vehicle.

Our first tour stop in the city was a visit to a local convent and monastery to see how both females and males live as novice monks and nuns. Monasteries and convents are basically religious based schools and are havens for children from small villages to receive a free education. Children range in age from about 5 to 16. Girls live and study separately from the boys. Although the schools are religious based most of the children leave once they receive their primary and secondary education. They appear to be similar to our religious schools, but the main difference is that the children live at the school full time.

Boys at the monasteries go out daily to “receive (not beg)” gifts of food from the local population. (Note: the girls do not go out looking for food; they rely on benefactors to provide them with food).  It is considered important in the Buddhist religion that people assist the novice monks by providing them with food. People often “sponsor” these students as they receive their education at the monasteries. The young monks return in time for their main meal which occurs at 11:30 AM. The only other meal they have is breakfast very early in the morning. We were able to observe the students gathering for their meal, praying before they began and then eating in relative silence. Again, only a small percentage of the students remain as monks once their studies are completed.  We learned that there are literally hundreds of such monasteries and convent schools in the city.

After our visit there we went to the former home of Major General Aung San, considered the Father of Indepence of Burma, and a martyr as he was assassinated 6 months before the country formally gained its independence from Britain. His former home is now a museum, containing information and artifacts about his life.

Lunch was at the Padonmar restaurant that served typical Burmese food. It is somewhat famous as there were pictures of celebrities on the wall including one of John McCain who dined their in 2011 and 2012. No one offered to add our picture to the collection!

At 1:30 we had a tour of the former British parliamentary building complex which is currently under major restoration and will eventually become a national museum. It is also the site of where Aung San was assassinated and we toured the area where it all happened.

The last activity of what became a very busy day was to go to the most famous and most important Buddhist temple, the Shwedagon Pagoda at Sunset to see the reflection of the sun’s rays off the 3 tons of gold leaf on the 99 meter tall stupa, which supposedly contains relics from four former Buddhas. What appears to be a single stupa from the distance is,in fact, a major complex of various sized pagodas dedicated to Buddha. It was a “WOW” moment for sure. We spent an hour there ( barefooted as that is the custom at Buddhist temples) obeserving people praying and offering gifts of flowers, incense and candles to Buddha. There were hundreds of people at the site. A monk was continuously reciting Buddhist scripture over a loudspeaker while we were there. We were told this will occcur 24 hours a day for one week.  Tonight there was also a ceremony where 13,000 candles were being lit to honor Buddha. It was quite a sight.

We arrived back at the hotel about 7 PM and everyone said they were too tired to even consider dinner and we called it a night.

Several initial observations about Myanmar and Yangon.  People seem genuinely friendly and warm. We have been impressed with the staff at the hotel and their willingness to help.

Traffic is a nightmare in Yangon, even worse than Seattle! We were surprised at how clogged the roads were most times of the day.  However, there was no horn blowing or evidence of road rage and politeness in allowing people to change lanes or make turns was the norm.

No one seems to wear “real” shoes. Everyone is in flip flops or walking barefoot.  I even saw construction workers walking around barefoot on the job! Many men (young and old) wear their  country’s equivalent of a sarong, called a “longyi”. Women wear a female version of the clothing which is different in design and material.

Tomorrow is another’s day of sightseeing here in Yangon, then we head to Bagan, the main reason we are here in Myanmar.