From YANGON with LOVE..... :)

We begin our journey with our honeymoon to a very "un-honeymoon-like" place.... Yangon.
We went on this trip between 16th - 18th January 2013

DAY - 1

Most people would settle on going to so called romantic places like island and stuff, but thankfully, my wife is as adventurous as me, so she was the one who arranged this trip. THUMBS UP! :)

 We flew to Yangon and had no arrangement whatsoever. The plan was....we'll figure it out when we get there.

A very unusual way to name the 'disable toilet' :P

When we arrived, I was actually down with flu. So, between trying to figure where we are and where to go next and juggling with my flu, it was pretty difficult. Lucky for us, we met a fellow Malaysian who was working there and he was nice enough to help us. In fact, he was very kind and helped me with my luggage.

We took a cab from the airport to his apartment

Then we took the bus from his place to the town center

Us trying to blend in with the locals :P

*** Taking the bus is a cheaper and more exiting alternative to move around Yangon. There are plenty of buses moving around so you need to know which number takes you where. We loved travelling around using the bus so much so that we only took a cab twice throughout the whole journey. Coming and going back to the airport! :) ***

Downtown Yangon

Sule Pagoda in the center of Yangon

Broken down bus is a familiar sight. Noticed that even the police helped to push

One of the big mosque in downtown Yangon

I think this is the courthouse

Chicken anyone? :)

My wife had earlier booked a hotel somewhere in the city center. However, when we walked there (YES, we literally walked I think six (6) blocks from the bus stop), it was too far away from the city center. So, we decided to head back and try to look for another hotel

*** One thing to point out, property prices are very high in Yangon hence the hotels are also expensive. The cheapest good hotel that we found online starts from USD150!!!. What we did was search for 'Guest Houses' which are cheaper. One thing to look for is there are several 'newly renovated' Guest House in the city center which offers a clean, modern and very economical place to stay. ***

After scouting around, we found a nice guest house which was cheaper than the initial hotel that we booked. It was newly renovated and it had an elevator!

See how nice and clean it is

It even come with a nice bathtub (Mark II chillaxing in there :P) 

After we finished settling all our stuff, we decided to take a tour around downtown Yangon with the help of our new friend.

Trying to sample the local delicacies

*** Tips to find HALAL food in Yangon: Unlike Thailand where you can spot a Halal restaurant from the "crescent moon and star" logo, in Yangon they use a different way to identify this. Instead of logo, if you find any restaurant/stalls with "786" written somewhere, then this is a HALAL restaurant and you can enjoy Myanmar's local delicacies ***  

Blackberries? Raspberries? Galaxy Note 25? :P

Classic! :)

The typical tour with tour guide leading waving his flag

Very cheap invitation card

Nice public toilet

We sampled the tea. Superb! :)

Lost? 

Bogyoke Aung San Market  where they sell jewels

Sule Pagoda at night

This was our dinner for that night

DAY - 2

After such an adventurous Day 1, we wonder what can we expect in Day 2.....and I am still wrestling with my flu. So instead of me yapping about whats nice and beautiful, I figured let the pictures tell the stories.After all, "a picture speaks a thousand words" :)

We began the day with some map studies :)

I stopped by at the local pharmacy to pick up some flu medicine. Notice how 'complete' their supplies are yet how simple the pharmacy is 

Breakfast time

Flu medicine

This is your public phone

Sule Pagoda....again :)

CHECK IT OUT! 

We decided to catch Twilight: Breaking Dawn 2 there since both of us have not yet seen it

Local Pet Store

We are back at the Bogyoke Aung San Market 

All the nice things they sell in Bogyoke Aung San Market 

Changing some money at the local bank. The guy in the background is the Bank Manager

Some antique items for sale

My Wife trying to look like the locals.... NOT! :P

In the cinema....watching Twilight

Later that night, I decided to dress like the locals. Complete with the umbrella. How do I look? 

Uncanny resemblance with the locals don't you think? 

We decided to have our dinner here. A Chinese Muslim restaurant

I'll fit in just fine! :)

DAY - 3

Again for Day 3, I will let the picture tell all the stories :)

We started the day with breakfast of champions! 

This is the name of our Guest House

Tourists sampling the local food

Food, food and more food

We decided to go to one of the famous Pagoda, the Shwedagon Pagoda. As usual, we took the bus because the pagoda is quite a distance from downtown Yangon (if you were to walk).

We walked from the bus stop to the Shwedagon Pagoda 

This is not it. 

We took a trishaw as my leg started to cramped up

Finally, we arrived at Shwedagon Pagoda 

*** One thing to point out, as you are approaching the steps of the Pagoda, you will be greeted by little kids offering plastic bags to put your shoes in. We thought it was free but once we have finished our visit, they came and hustle you for money! Believe me they are not cheap. We didn't want to pay at first but then I thought about these kids might have some bullies stand by somewhere, so reluctantly, we paid. BEWARE, you don't need the bags. just carry your shoes with you. ***

People crossing the busy street like there is no tomorrow

Guess where we are? BUS STOP! waiting for the best mode of transportation in Yangon, the bus :)

See how efficient it is 

And see how clean the streets are? I am impressed

Some shots from downtown Yangon in the evening: 

Surprised to see tourist looking for pirated DVDs :P

People rushing home from work

Apparently, there are some sort of festival the next day

Trishaw shots :)

DAY - 4

Finally, we have come to the end of our trip. This is Day 4.

Again, we started off with a very lovely breakfast

There's a hole in the taxi!!!! :P

Yangon General Hospital

One of the Mosque

"You want to buy newspaper Sir? "

We reached the airport and ready to head home. Yangon was such a memorable trip. We got to see the people, the cultures and sampled local food. Highly recommended to those who are adventurous and love to travel and learn new things. - KH