Yangon turf and surf >> Travel: Laos, Myanmar, Thailand 21

Oct 19: Night, Yangon

It was a dark, stormy night.

Oh yes, another. Just like the wet evening that greeted our arrival not too long ago. What is with Yangon and storms?

I am now writing by torchlight. Another power failure. I guess modern tourist-class hotels are as vulnerable as small guesthouses.

After a long and grimy ride (16.5 hours), we checked our stash of FECs and realised we still had a fair bit to contribute to the national economy. Hence, our splurge in this hotel - aircon, ensuite with bathtub and marble vanity, king-size beds, cable-TV and a panaromic view of downtown Yangon. From our window, the rows and rows of train carriages at the railway station looked like Lego blocks.

The trip from Bagan to Yangon was as lengthy as our previous bus ride from Yangon to Mandalay. I could never sleep well on overnight bus trips, but there was plenty outside my window to occupy my interest.

I think we crossed at least one dried river. That part of the terrain was very sandy and, in the dark, the lighter-colour sand reflected what light there was to form an errie, faintly glowing stream, disappearing into the distance on either side of the bus as the vehicle rolled by, bumping a little on the tiny granules. When we reached the end of the sandy passage, I looked up and saw houses perched above us. I guess if the river was flowing, the land we had been travelling on would be underwater.

Then, there were the bridges we crossed. They did not feel very firm. If there was another vehicle, our driver always waited for the other party to get to the other side before he moved us across, gingerly.

Our bus was packed. There were people sitting on the aisle. These people sat on small, squarish chairs, contraptions attached to the normal bus seats. When needed, the user simply pulled one out and unfolded it. The driver turned off the aircon after our 2.30am pit stop. For the rest of the journey, we sat with open windows, enjoying the night breeze.

At the Yangon bus station we arrived in, we encountered another racket. We were looking for a taxi and this guy told us he had one. From the way he spoke, we thought he was the driver. Turned out he was the racketeer. Once he brought us to the taxi, he collected 20% of the fare he had negotiated with us from the driver, whose vehicle was parked in the direction we had been walking towards before the racketeer waylaid us.

Why should we pay such exorbitant rates, or anything at all, to someone who had not rendered an iota of useful service? The driver shook his head, said that was how it worked here. My guess is, even if we took his cab at our own initiative, he would still have to cough up that fee.

Budget (for two in US$ or kyat as indicated)

Oct 18
Lunch >> K1,900
Sandwiches >> K1,050

Oct 19
Taxi to hotel >> K2,500
Room >> US$30
Tip >> K200
Lunch >> K1,320
Magazines >> K550
Dinner >> K1,140
Coffee & doughnuts >> K765

Next... Road block on Sunday