Myanmar, along with Laos and Cambodia, was one of my "must-sees" before leaving Asia. I decided that the best way for me to see the country was by bicycle. I toured with Spice Roads Adventure Cycling.
Before going on this trip, I did some gym cycling but no real bicycling. Needless to say I was not in shape for the mountainous terrain that we encountered. So...the ride played out like this:
Myo & Will rode together really fast up all the mountains, then waited for me at our snack or lunch place. Win (the van driver) drove the van behind me. Whenever my legs would not allow me to finish a hill, Win would be there. I'd put my bike in the van and ride in the air-conditioning. Worked for me!
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| Win (in the white shirt and traditional Myanmar longyi) - my guardian, snack supplier and savior |
Click here if you want to learn how to tie a longyi -
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yj4gb4K0s5U
Luckily, I got stronger as time went on. I relied on Win less and less and had some very enjoyable rides. The scenery was amazing! If I hadn't been there myself, I would not have believed that Myanmar was so scenic. A very nice surprise. The best parts were the smiles of the people and the kids standing on the side of the road giving high fives as we rode by.
The trip started in Yangon, but we did not ride bicycles there. Instead, I used my free day to ride the circular train around the city. The neatest part of the train was getting to watch the people, especially the hawkers who would walk through selling things. Some had very nice singing voices. Over the 3 hour ride, several hawkers came through selling these leaves and putting a white substance on them. It looked like glue to me. I wondered why people would want to buy this. Turns out they were khat leaves, and people chew them (I guess it's like chewing tobacco??!!??). Myo says it is what causes many cases of mouth cancer. More about khat here:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Khat
From Yangon, we visited Heho, Kalaw, Inle Lake, Pindaya, Mandalay and Mount Popa. Our last town was Bagan. Bagan...OMG...we definitely needed more days here!
I posted pictures on Facebook throughout the trip. I'll use those and a few more for the photos that follow. Enjoy! I sure did:-)
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| Yangon |
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| Circular train |
If you're interested, here's a link to another blog about the train (it has really good pictures):
http://www.bordersofadventure.com/riding-the-yangon-circle-line-train/
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| Will & Myo in Kalaw |
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| The snack/savior van |
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| Carrying harvested rice...on the way to Inle Lake |
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| Inle Lake Fisherman |
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For those with an interest in fishing, here's a link to information about the Inle Lake Fishermen:
http://www.myanmartravelessentials.com/activities/the-art-of-fishing-and-one-leg-paddling-inle-lake/
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| Buddhist Novices going to temple in Nyaung Shwe |
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| Shwe Umin Cave - Pindaya |
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| Spectacular scenery on the way to Mandalay |
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| The crew in Mandalay |
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| Popa Taungkalat Monastery from the hotel |
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| Monkey at Popa Taungkalat Monastery (as I was climbing to the top) |
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| Standing in front of Popa Taungkalat Monastery |
More about Mount Popa and Popa Taungkalat Monastery here:
http://www.go-myanmar.com/mount-popa
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| It seemed like Bagan had pagoda's everywhere |
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| Me among Bagan's pagodas |
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| The bike crew in front of Dhammayangyi Temple | |
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| Bagan Museum (a nice respite from the heat) |
