Starting off my brand new year trip for the year 2014 by visiting Myanmar. After we did the mini college gathering trip to Siem Reap, Cambodia last year, this year we did again by going to Myanmar. We choose Myanmar cause we managed grab the best deal which cost as low as RM138 for return flight eventhough it was during peak season. What a steal! Plus by visiting Myanmar, I officially unlocked all the 10 ASEAN countries – Malaysia, Brunei Darussalam, Singapore, Thailand, Indonesia, Philippines, Vietnam, Cambodia, Laos and Myanmar but not SEA countries yet cause one more left – Timor Leste and now I’m waiting for AirAsia to commerce new route to there.
After decade of isolation, Myanmar which also known as the “Golden Land” is now on everyone’s travel bucket list, offering an intriguing history, magnificent natural beauty and the edginess that comes with a country still in transition.
#1:Visited Shwedagon Pagoda in Yangon right after we reach Myanmar. Got free Wireless Internet!
#2: Watching sunrise with hot air ballooning over Bagan is one of the most breathtaking things to do in Bagan.
#3: With more than 2,000 Buddhist temples, pagodas and monasteries still standing, Bagan is one of South East Asia’s most awe-inspiring man-made spectacles. It is Myanmar’s very own Angkor Wat.
#4: Only can be seen in Inle Lake and I personally love this town.
#5: One of the floating villages in Inle Lake. It has been known as Venice of the East cause the local here only use boat as their mode of transportation.
#6: One thing for sure travel around Indo-China countries was totally lost count on how many hours for the bus ride. Bus ride from Yangon to Bagan took almost 9 hours, Bagan to Inle Lake for more than 9 hours and Inle Lake back to Yangon for almost 11 hours. Totally another #butthurt case again.
#7: My college friends which brought lots of laughter and fun throughout the trip. Now we are discussion where will be our next trip.
Although I done visited all the 10 ASEAN countries, I still love to return few of the above countries to visit number of cities or places which I haven't go such as Hue, Hoi An, Halong Bay in Vietnam; Phnom Penh in Cambodia; Chiangmai, Chiang Rai and Hua Hin in Thailand; Medan, Yogyakarta in Indonesia and more. Too many of my travel bucket lists that I'm not sure when I able to accomplish them but one thing for sure, I indeed had a great time with different people I travelled with.
Last but not least, I would like to extend my gratitude to Lily Riani from Globetrotter, Rusli from Ramble &Wander and also Jeff Chuah from Jeff’s Travel for the helpful advice and guideline for this Myanmar trip.