Burma....thoughts??
May 13th, 2010, 08:17 AM
#41
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There are 2 one day boat trips from Mandalay to Bagan, the one I went on was supposedly privately owned!!!!
Balloons over Bagan have to be partially in the pockets of the generals in order to keep their permits, this was from my pilot.I truly would not fret about it.
IMHO both Mandalay and Rangoon deserve a lot of time, 2 days is just not enough.
Inle lake, I was very happy to have stayed in Nyaungshwe, to walk the market and eat locally. The 30 minute boat ride to get to the lake was very pleasant, then again I was a solo traveller and would have felt quite alone in one of the hotels at the lake.
You will enjoy Burma, and it may not be as hot this year as it was last year in November. Rangoon was not superhot when I was there last year.
Balloons over Bagan have to be partially in the pockets of the generals in order to keep their permits, this was from my pilot.I truly would not fret about it.
IMHO both Mandalay and Rangoon deserve a lot of time, 2 days is just not enough.
Inle lake, I was very happy to have stayed in Nyaungshwe, to walk the market and eat locally. The 30 minute boat ride to get to the lake was very pleasant, then again I was a solo traveller and would have felt quite alone in one of the hotels at the lake.
You will enjoy Burma, and it may not be as hot this year as it was last year in November. Rangoon was not superhot when I was there last year.
May 13th, 2010, 06:08 PM
#42
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Thanks Nywoman I appreciate your input. I loved your report by the way.
I know we are porbably not going to have enough time anywhere!! There is never enough time on trips! Hopefully we are coming up with a plan that is going to be good for us!
I know we are porbably not going to have enough time anywhere!! There is never enough time on trips! Hopefully we are coming up with a plan that is going to be good for us!
Jun 3rd, 2010, 05:18 PM
#45
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1. Weather: We were in Burma in Oct 2009 and it was still a bit hot; our friends who traveled in November had cooler weather.
2. We are great fans of mynmarfrangipani Travel and Tours (Goggle),alternate site [email protected] . The owner, U Min Lwin Oo , "Min Min", has a degree in physics but is detailed oriented , charming , fun and also an unpaid coordinator for orphanage support. He got us all the domestic flights ( at a very reasonable price) and had either himself of a guide get us through the airport chaos (Yangon, Mandalay) . We also visited one on the orphanages in Mandalay which enriched our trip. At Christmas Min Min sent us pictures from the Kyalklat Buddhist Orphanage for Girls in the Delta region where so many were killed during the cyclone. We brought in some school supplies, toys and educational materials which were much appreciated. Min Min can send you pictures if you are interested; along with his take on the current VISA situation.
In March this year we met the retired German banker in Honolulu, who has put together the consortium of German /European support for 3 orphanages . He winters here in HNL from Frankfurt but still visits Burma 2-3 times a year with Frangipani Tours.
3. We highly recommend a boat from Manadaly to Bagan- it was an extremely comfortable way to float down the Irriwaddy River and see the temples and countryside. Min Min/Frangipani arranged this ; it was certainly a no hassle way to travel and get a great sense of the country and of the might of the river.
4. We, too, tried to spend less for "government owned" places/travel and spread money to more ordinary Burmese . Some of this is unavoidable like flying on Bagan Air (You do want safe aircraft and western standards of upkeep for planes). It is a touchy subject and we don't know how much government spying/monitoring is going on in this site, also, so we are tending to be cautious.
All in all , we plan to go back in the future to see sites we did not get to such as Mrauk U. Burma/Myanmar is truly an enchanting place. All of the above feedback from multiple sources on the Forum indicate that practically anything you would do in Burma would bring you an exceptional travel experience.
Aloha
2. We are great fans of mynmarfrangipani Travel and Tours (Goggle),alternate site [email protected] . The owner, U Min Lwin Oo , "Min Min", has a degree in physics but is detailed oriented , charming , fun and also an unpaid coordinator for orphanage support. He got us all the domestic flights ( at a very reasonable price) and had either himself of a guide get us through the airport chaos (Yangon, Mandalay) . We also visited one on the orphanages in Mandalay which enriched our trip. At Christmas Min Min sent us pictures from the Kyalklat Buddhist Orphanage for Girls in the Delta region where so many were killed during the cyclone. We brought in some school supplies, toys and educational materials which were much appreciated. Min Min can send you pictures if you are interested; along with his take on the current VISA situation.
In March this year we met the retired German banker in Honolulu, who has put together the consortium of German /European support for 3 orphanages . He winters here in HNL from Frankfurt but still visits Burma 2-3 times a year with Frangipani Tours.
3. We highly recommend a boat from Manadaly to Bagan- it was an extremely comfortable way to float down the Irriwaddy River and see the temples and countryside. Min Min/Frangipani arranged this ; it was certainly a no hassle way to travel and get a great sense of the country and of the might of the river.
4. We, too, tried to spend less for "government owned" places/travel and spread money to more ordinary Burmese . Some of this is unavoidable like flying on Bagan Air (You do want safe aircraft and western standards of upkeep for planes). It is a touchy subject and we don't know how much government spying/monitoring is going on in this site, also, so we are tending to be cautious.
All in all , we plan to go back in the future to see sites we did not get to such as Mrauk U. Burma/Myanmar is truly an enchanting place. All of the above feedback from multiple sources on the Forum indicate that practically anything you would do in Burma would bring you an exceptional travel experience.
Aloha
