Havana of South-East Asia

There was an early-morning feel when I stepped out of the hotel after breakfast at 0830. Businesses and stalls were just starting to open up and the air was still very cool in the shade.

Walking to the Botataung Pagoda, it becomes apparent that Yangon is the Havana of SE Asia when it comes to grand but crumbling old buildings. Only some, eg. the Strand Hotel have been lovingly restored to an immaculate condition.

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At the Botataung Pagoda, I walked past the foreigner ticketing counter (intentionally this time). This Pagoda has a hollow base which can be entered. It was a gilded labyrinth filled with many Buddha statues. The centrepiece is a relic of Buddha’s hair. Next to the main pagoda was a small housing containing relics of his teeth (a few small chips).

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I walked to the market which was closed yesterday. A nice two-storey block served as the frontage to several warehouse-sized buildings which house many jewellers and fabric stores. Myanmar is famous for gems and jade and they jewellers must get a lot of interest from Chinese customers. Walking around, some of them speak perfect Mandarin.

There wasn’t much else I wanted to see (in terms of actual sights) so I rested and spent the evening walking around absorbing the atmosphere of Yangon.  The street markets set up around 1600 and seem to pack up around 2000.  Not much happens after 2100, which is fine by me!