On
the road in front of us, a line of people are walking behind a hot pink
coffin decorated with gold trimmings as part of a Buddhist funeral
procession.
Before we have time to digest the sight, a procession for a monk initiation ceremony passes in the other direction.
The lead jeep is decorated in tinsel, with a tray of bananas and a small Buddhist statue on the hood.Welcome to our michael kors outlet online shop! Here we sale Michael Kors Bags, bags, purses, wallets with very low price. Join us quickly!
Young girls and boys dressed like princes and princesses in elaborate costumes with bejewelled crowns sit on plastic chairs in the back of the utes, surrounded by family members.
As we step aboard the side cars of the waiting tri-shaws and ride through the small town of Magwe, children with big smiles and their parents and grandparents stand alongside the road outside houses and shops waving and calling "mingalaba", which means hello.Shop our selection of designer shoes, including Manolo Blahnik, christian louboutin shoes.
In a country such as Myanmar, which was closed off to the world for many years, foreigners are still a novelty in many places.Shop the latest from Michael Kors Handbags. Totally free shipping and returns. Some children hold their hands over their mouths and giggle at the sight of us.
We suddenly realise we are part of our own "tourist procession" and I feel like the Queen waving back.
When we arrive at Myat-thalon temple, built of solid gold bricks, San asks us each our birth date and works out what day of the week we were born using a special calendar to find our animal sign in the Burmese zodiac.
I discover I was born on a Monday, meaning I am a tiger, so in the temple I pour water over a Buddha statue above a tiger.
It is a surprisingly pleasant and calming experience.
The monk initiation lasts for two days. We spot the young novices again in the temple, with the celebration continuing in a marquee near our boat afterwards.
After dinner on board we stroll up to watch. Locals sit cross-legged on bamboo mats while two comedians and a band entertain.
Other than one comedian repeatedly hitting the other over the head with a cymbal we don't understand what is happening, but it is great to hear the intermittent raucous laughter from the crowd.Shop the latest from Michael Kors Handbags. Totally free shipping and returns.
Suddenly the lights go out - a common occurrence in Myanmar - and we Westerners become the entertainment while a new generator is sourced.
After a while we head back and find we are being escorted by three military police, there to protect us.
The new generator arrives after we leave and music continues until the early hours of the morning. At the break of dawn the next day we hear a gong, signifying the day's celebrations are to begin.
We wander back up after breakfast and find several young boys crouched outside the marquee having their heads shaved by their mums and aunties, flowers in their hair, with disposable razors.Welcome to replica louis vuitton outlet online store and buy latest Cheap Louis Vuitton handbags. Siblings tip water from silver buckets over the boys' heads.
The women's faces are painted with a yellow-ish cosmetic paste known as thanaka, which is the ground-up root of a tree and is used to lighten their skin, protect them from the sun and as perfume.
One boy sits, eyes closed, as locks of black hair fall on to his knees and the ground.
It's a rare moment in travel when I am moved to tears, but I find myself welling up to be witnessing such a momentous moment in a young Burmese boy's life.
The wide, shallow Irrawaddy River starts in the Himalayas and flows south for more than 2000km to the Indian Ocean.
We travel north along what Rudyard Kipling dubbed the "road to Mandalay" aboard the 60-passenger teak riverboat, the Orient Pandaw, a replica of one of the flotilla of steamers that plied the river in the 1920s and '30s, before being sunk in World War II to stop the Japanese getting their hands on them.
The river is the lifeblood for millions of Burmese and travelling by boat is a great way to witness traditional life and visit small villages which see few foreigners.
We sit in cane chairs on the deck and watch the sun set behind gold, pink and white Buddhist temples, known as pagodas.
We watch as men bring ox-drawn carts down to river to wash the animals while families bathe together in river at sunset.
It is the height of the dry season and the temperature is over 40C, and I am tempted to jump in with them.
We have another fortunate encounter on the way to the small town of Thaket-Myo, which is not even in our Lonely Planet guide book.
As we ride down the dusty street on a horse-drawn cart, we come across a Nat (spirit) ritual taking place in a tent by the roadside.
We are warmly welcomed inside and offered chairs and shade.
Ladyboys who are spirit mediums dressed like palace courtiers with gold crowns dance in a circle while wide-eyed children sit cross-legged in the front row. Money is pinned to the mediums and they sniff trays of fruit being used as offerings.
Afterwards we explore the markets where people selling dried fish, chillies, eggs, fish paste and coconuts smile and greet us as we pass.
Before we have time to digest the sight, a procession for a monk initiation ceremony passes in the other direction.
The lead jeep is decorated in tinsel, with a tray of bananas and a small Buddhist statue on the hood.Welcome to our michael kors outlet online shop! Here we sale Michael Kors Bags, bags, purses, wallets with very low price. Join us quickly!
Young girls and boys dressed like princes and princesses in elaborate costumes with bejewelled crowns sit on plastic chairs in the back of the utes, surrounded by family members.
As we step aboard the side cars of the waiting tri-shaws and ride through the small town of Magwe, children with big smiles and their parents and grandparents stand alongside the road outside houses and shops waving and calling "mingalaba", which means hello.Shop our selection of designer shoes, including Manolo Blahnik, christian louboutin shoes.
In a country such as Myanmar, which was closed off to the world for many years, foreigners are still a novelty in many places.Shop the latest from Michael Kors Handbags. Totally free shipping and returns. Some children hold their hands over their mouths and giggle at the sight of us.
We suddenly realise we are part of our own "tourist procession" and I feel like the Queen waving back.
When we arrive at Myat-thalon temple, built of solid gold bricks, San asks us each our birth date and works out what day of the week we were born using a special calendar to find our animal sign in the Burmese zodiac.
I discover I was born on a Monday, meaning I am a tiger, so in the temple I pour water over a Buddha statue above a tiger.
It is a surprisingly pleasant and calming experience.
The monk initiation lasts for two days. We spot the young novices again in the temple, with the celebration continuing in a marquee near our boat afterwards.
After dinner on board we stroll up to watch. Locals sit cross-legged on bamboo mats while two comedians and a band entertain.
Other than one comedian repeatedly hitting the other over the head with a cymbal we don't understand what is happening, but it is great to hear the intermittent raucous laughter from the crowd.Shop the latest from Michael Kors Handbags. Totally free shipping and returns.
Suddenly the lights go out - a common occurrence in Myanmar - and we Westerners become the entertainment while a new generator is sourced.
After a while we head back and find we are being escorted by three military police, there to protect us.
The new generator arrives after we leave and music continues until the early hours of the morning. At the break of dawn the next day we hear a gong, signifying the day's celebrations are to begin.
We wander back up after breakfast and find several young boys crouched outside the marquee having their heads shaved by their mums and aunties, flowers in their hair, with disposable razors.Welcome to replica louis vuitton outlet online store and buy latest Cheap Louis Vuitton handbags. Siblings tip water from silver buckets over the boys' heads.
The women's faces are painted with a yellow-ish cosmetic paste known as thanaka, which is the ground-up root of a tree and is used to lighten their skin, protect them from the sun and as perfume.
One boy sits, eyes closed, as locks of black hair fall on to his knees and the ground.
It's a rare moment in travel when I am moved to tears, but I find myself welling up to be witnessing such a momentous moment in a young Burmese boy's life.
The wide, shallow Irrawaddy River starts in the Himalayas and flows south for more than 2000km to the Indian Ocean.
We travel north along what Rudyard Kipling dubbed the "road to Mandalay" aboard the 60-passenger teak riverboat, the Orient Pandaw, a replica of one of the flotilla of steamers that plied the river in the 1920s and '30s, before being sunk in World War II to stop the Japanese getting their hands on them.
The river is the lifeblood for millions of Burmese and travelling by boat is a great way to witness traditional life and visit small villages which see few foreigners.
We sit in cane chairs on the deck and watch the sun set behind gold, pink and white Buddhist temples, known as pagodas.
We watch as men bring ox-drawn carts down to river to wash the animals while families bathe together in river at sunset.
It is the height of the dry season and the temperature is over 40C, and I am tempted to jump in with them.
We have another fortunate encounter on the way to the small town of Thaket-Myo, which is not even in our Lonely Planet guide book.
As we ride down the dusty street on a horse-drawn cart, we come across a Nat (spirit) ritual taking place in a tent by the roadside.
We are warmly welcomed inside and offered chairs and shade.
Ladyboys who are spirit mediums dressed like palace courtiers with gold crowns dance in a circle while wide-eyed children sit cross-legged in the front row. Money is pinned to the mediums and they sniff trays of fruit being used as offerings.
Afterwards we explore the markets where people selling dried fish, chillies, eggs, fish paste and coconuts smile and greet us as we pass.
没有评论:
发表评论