A Golden Experience

My last post on Myanmar....

A trip to Yangon is not complete without seeing Myanmar's chief landmark, the Shwedagon Pagoda. To prepare for the visit, Lara Stone and I wore longyi, the tube garment practically worn by everyone in Myanmar. Finally I had a good reason to wear a skirt!

The pagoda was walking distance from our guest house, we even had a view of it from our bedroom window. Because it was a Sunday, many people were heading there as well. Using the east entrance, the road leading to it is lined with food stalls and at the foot of the hill on which the pagoda stands is a market selling Buddha statues, other religious items, and some souvenirs.

As soon as we stepped on the stairs leading to the pagoda, we had to remove our slippers. The stairs are steep and it was certainly a long climb for us.

Because the shops along the way are a good distraction I was not prepared when we finally reached the summit.

My heart stopped the moment I laid my eyes on the pagoda. I swear my mouth dried and I felt my heart beat fast. I'm far from being a spiritual person, but the pagoda's sheer size had such a visceral impact on me. I did not expect it to be that HUGE! It helped that the place was in blinding gold (considering it was an overcast day), so I was practically on the brink of a transcendental experience.

The main pagoda is surrounded by dozens and dozens of pavilions, each as intricate and gold-laden as the other. The spires of the pavilions made me feel like I was in a forest with towering golden trees.

The pavilions were filled with worshippers, most of them facing the direction of the pagoda, while others were offering incense, bathing Buddha statues, chanting, or circumambulating around the pagoda.

We went back to the pagoda that evening. The atmosphere was a lot calmer by then because there were less people. Still, the place was very otherwordly as the pagoda was washed with light.

A monk showed me certain spots at the base of the pagoda where one can see the changing color of the diamond at the apex of the spire. At one time it is icy blue, and then you move a few inches and it suddenly turns either fiery red, orange, yellow, white, or green.

Prior to visiting the Shwedagon Pagoda, I deliberately did not read up on it. I wanted to see it with fresh eyes and somehow the plan worked because I was just filled with awe when I finally made it there.

That could be said as well of experiencing Myanmar finally, a trip I wanted to do since as far back as I could remember. There I saw inspiring beauty and felt the sincerity of the people I met. I know for sure I'm going back.

The Shores of Ngwe Saung

I just came back from a nine-day holiday in Myanmar with Lara Stone. I spent 4 1/2 days in Yangon and 4 1/2 days in Ngwe Saung. I have a lot of things to say about Yangon so let's set that aside for the moment, shall we? For now I'd tell you about Ngwe Saung, a beach town east of Yangon.

The five-hour trip took us through the Ayeyarwady Delta. The scene along the way was of endless plains of rice fields and the occasional village made of thatch houses. The delta was devastated by Cyclone Nargis a few years back but I didn't see any trace of the destruction.

We reached a town called Pathein, 29 kilometers away from Ngwe Sau. So we hopped on motorbikes for an hour's trip through winding roads over hills. Several times I thought I was about to die, thankfully we arrived safe in a guest house by the beach facing the Bay of Bengal.

As it was the low season, we had the resort pretty much to ourselves. The moment we arrived at the beach, Lara and I explored it while the tide was low. We walked towards a tiny rocky island that sits a few meters away from the resort. It was a bit cloudy, being monsoon season; and the waves were humongous.

The sound of the waves crashing on the shore easily put me on relax mode. I spent most of the time there sleeping, sipping coconuts or drinking beer, and then going back to sleep. It rained occasionally, and along with the soft breeze, the weather was just perfect for sleeping and nothing much else.

One morning, Lara Stone and I played in the waves. And then we rented motorbikes to explore the small village behind the row of expensive resorts occupying the village's beach front. I was surprised to see such swanky resorts there, it looked like Thailand instead of what I thought were unspoiled beaches of Myanmar.

At low tide, we rode our motorbikes on the shore, heading towards the fishing village. It was just the most exhilarating part of our time on the beach. We sped on the moist sand that reflected the cloudy sky. It felt like we were gliding over a sheet of glass, the salty air sweeping our faces.

After crossing a couple of small streams, which required our motorbikes to be loaded on wooden boats that brought us to the other side, we stumbled upon a couple of fishing villages. Fishermen were unloading nets from boats surrounded by a frenzy of ladies grabbing fish and piling them on small pails that they put on their heads as they walked towards the village. Some ladies were crouched on the beach, untangling shrimps from nets. We bought some of those shrimps and had them for dinner.

The rainy weather, the huge waves, the towering palm trees, and the scrumptious sea food in Ngwe Saung all reminded me of Siargao Island where I spent my childhood summer holidays at my grandmother's house.

Lara Stone and I were also very fortunate to stumble on Shwe Hin Tha Resort where we stayed for four nights. The people there were very accommodating and charming, they completely made us feel at home. The food is good overall, and they were even willing to bring our meals over to our hut. It helps a lot as well that they have the perfect spot on the beach with beautiful views and sunsets.

Lara Stone Returns

I did not know that I'm in fact fiercely territorial until Lara Stone started camping in my place for two weeks now. I would not necessarily call it "living together", after all he's only staying here for a month, but it's certainly a new "arrangement", for lack of a better term, for me.

Well of course I'm thrilled he's back and we have lots of time to spend with each other. Reading the Sunday papers while having breakfast in bed; going for a swim every afternoon; endless talks... you know the drill. It's fun and I'm certainly knowing him more and more.

At the same time, I'm knowing my self more. One major discovery is, as mentioned above, I am absolutely crazy about my space, basically made up of the four corners of my tiny bedroom. Everything has to be in perfect order; and like the cosmos, it has it own laws, any diversion from which would lead to imbalance - my mind mainly.

Nobody told me my very idea of order would be rocked big time with the arrival of Lara Stone.

First came the queen bed to replace my erstwhile twin bed. Consequently. the bedside table and baskets have to be moved a foot. Then came the working desk, supplanting the small bench by the windows. The table invited laptop cables and cell phone chargers, along with an army of papers, folders, boarding passes, keys, wallets, tote bags, cameras, and whatnot, to pile on it. And then mushrooming in the cabinet are small vials of face creams, lotions, and perfumes that block my bracelets and necklaces from full view.

Don't get me started on the bathroom. Well, there are now two towels hanging from the rack, but at least they are color-coordinated. But gosh, the sink counter! Lotions are invading the "dental care zone' (we are talking about a total space of roughly three square feet). And on the "shower zone", green bottles of shampoo and conditioner disturb the all-white color scheme of my body wash and shampoo dispensers.

My bookshelf, with its books carefully arranged according to size and colors and accessorized with travel souvenirs, has sprouted books that simply just don't belong there. They have elbowed their way into the space of the Vietnamese water puppet. Now my dry gourd form Laos is pressed between a frayed notebook and a damp map of the Skytrain. The horror!!!

Did I tell you already about the dirty clothes strewn on the floor? How can that happen when there's a hamper in full view?

I'm not saying that Lara Stone is a slob. In fact, he is very obsessive in doing the laundry and he also fixes the bed every morning. And oh, he cleans the bathroom, a task I can finally relegate to someone, thank God.

What I'm whining about is how my sense of order has been disturbed lately. I'm mourning how I lost the total control of my space. Fortunately, Lara Stone has positively responded, albeit slowly, to being trained at arranging bottles of moisturizers from the smallest to the largest, or that books of the same color stand together.