Women's clothes for burma
 

Heading to Burma next week, Rangon, Inle Lake, Mandalay etc. and I note on Internet the weather is hot,80's - 90's F already. I'm a bit puzzled about modest wear for women. Are short sleeve T-shirts OK ? Do shirts have to be high-nicked or are v-necks OK if not too low? Can one wear short sleeves and put on a light wrap to go into temples? (and yes, I load on the sunscreen)
Re skirts, is just below the knee Ok or do they need to be longer? (Have pants also of course). I'm in the throes of packing and deciding what to take...
I do note cooler temps at night, will take sweater/jacket but daytime wear?? Advice please.

There's a cold front hovering the area. Daytime pleasant but night time it's quite cool to cold! I would be prepare for cold nights especially at Inle.

I wore cropped pants, and short sleeved shirts. V necked tees are fine. You want to be cool and comfortable and nothing too tight.

Your shoulders should be covered to enter temples, so a short=sleeved T is fine. Given the requirements of climbing in and out of boats at Inle, climbing in and out of your horsecart at Bagan and of climbing temples, you will be more comfortable in cropped or long pants than in skirts. V necks are fine as long as not revealing. At Inle, you will want to layer. We were out as soon as the sun was up, so it was quite cool. I wore a windbreaker-type jacket first thing in the morning. Make sure to bring a hat to keep the sun off of you, as the sun is quite intense, especially at Inle where you will have no shade, Most boats have umbrellas you can use for shade as well.

Have a wonderful trip!

I'm going to have to disagree with Kathie regarding pants vs skirts. I wore skirts, but a longer length, as well as pants and I found the skirts cooler and less restrictive when climbing in and out of carts, boats, etc.

The best shirts I had with me were loose short-sleeved rayon. The fabric is cool and dries fast and wrinkle free if you're rinsing things out in the evening which is, I found, the most practical way to keep myself in clean clothes.

I agree with Kathie--but I'm always more comfortable in pants and almost never wear skirts--anywhere/anytime. Shoulders covered, short sleeves fine, v-necks, scoop necks fine--unfortunately saw all too many female tourists who weren't as respectful of the cultural standards. Layers always a good idea--we had some REALLY cold nights and mornings in Inle (were there in late November). Be sure to bring sandals that are easy to slip on and off; tying and untying sneakers as you go in and out of temples gets to be very old very quickly. My DH NEVER wears sandals, but he soon broke down and bought a pair in one of the markets. I brought a hat, but far preferred the woven reed one that tied under my chin and folded up very niftily. I found it in the market in Naung Schwe, but you can probably find it in the Scotts market in Yangon, also. It cost next to nothing,has a nice brim, stays on when it's windy and is cute. I got a lot of compliments on it!!

Shoulders and knees covered will be fine, short-sleeved t-shirts and knee-length shorts. Buddhists aren't like Muslims, they just require no spaghetti straps or beach shorts, especially in the vicinity of temples. Signs at significant places tell you this in several languages.

We witnessed english-speaking guides telling European backpacker girls to cover their shoulders and have some respect. The Burmese guides were quite offended to see these girls undressed in holy places, and we couldn't believe these girls were so oblivious of the Burmese Buddhist culture that they would just wander through temples as if they were still at Phuket, about to go to a beach party. Bagan was the worst.

We returned home to Australia on Jan 7, from some very cold nights and mornings in the northern part of Myanmar. You need to take a fleece for early mornings, but by mid-morning the temperature is a very comfortable 26-28C.

Take thongs/flipflops for temple visits (hundreds of temple visits) to make your life easier.

Hope this helps.

You will see this sign near many of the pagodas and temples:

http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-SevFDJyE8f...0/DSCF0939.JPG

I presume "spaghetti blouse" relates to the straps, not the pattern.

>I do note cooler temps at night, will take sweater/jacket but daytime wear?? Advice please.

Although most places will be warm to hot it can get quite chilly at night in the highlands. I needed my jacket at the Taung Gyi balloons and it was pleasantly cool at night in November in Thazi and Kalaw.

Cheers, Alan