The Thorlitzer's Grand Adventures: Myanmar

Day two of our Bagan adventure was not as temple heavy but was more physically intensive as we rode bicycles throughout the day instead of relying on the horsepower to propel us around.

We rode the bumpy roads about 5 miles to Nyuang U in the morning (the closest so called modern town) to experience the local market and it was definitely an experience. The market was full of locals and a distinct lack of tourists, the smells and colors evoked so many other markets in Asia but the big difference was that we felt like we were in a time warp with vendors using scales with weights (no digital here) and a distinct lack of any running water or electricity nearby. The vendors were all expert bargainers but the smiles literally glowed from their faces when we walked into the market. This was place where the locals happiness infected us.

Roadside temples (had to stop for a photo break)

More Roadside temples

Thanaka Wood at the market

Handmade Cigars

Betelnut

After a hot, sweaty walk in the market we stopped by a local café for a drink of some hot, sweet spiced tea with the locals. It was an open air stall with hordes of men sitting around drinking tea and coffee. A nice respite from the market and the hot tea was just what I wanted. Yes I said hot tea was a good idea during a hot day in Bagan, I think I even like warm water now too! Just call me Asian.

After the tea break we attempted to call Carrie’s parents for their birthdays (but no international connection in town) and then made our way to the Thanaka gallery.

Tea Shop

Phone Operator

Thanaka is a yellow cosmetic paste that is used all over Myanmar. It is used mainly by women and children and is supposed to be good for sun protection and overall skin care. The paste is made from Thanaka wood, which is harvested in Myanmar, is sold in all the local markets. You literally can’t go anywhere without seeing women with yellow cheeks from putting on the Thanaka paste (usually applied twice a day).

The Thanaka Gallery is a museum that explains how Thanaka wood is grown, what is done with the paste besides just cosmetics, and also there are some carvings and different varieties of Thanaka in the gallery.

After the Thanaka Gallery we saw the most modern temple in Bagan, Shwezigon Pagoda.

Min Thu took us to a very local street side lunch that was delicious and then dropped us off to rest by the hotel pool before a couple more temples and an amazing walk through Min Thu's village in the evening.

Shwezigon Paya

Min Thu took us to his village, after our pleading with him, and it was quite fun to see how the locals live. They were busy cooking dinner, tending their livestock, and gathering around the center of town to swap stories. Everyone seemed happy to see us and the children loved to race us on their bikes, hold our hands, and shyly smile from around every corner. It was a great way to spend the late afternoon and I hope the locals know that we appreciated their hospitality and ability to join them in their everyday lives.

The last major event of the day was convincing Min Thu to take us to a stall for buying Paan to chew.
Paan comes in a variety of combinations depending on the area of Asia but our particular combination was a Betel leaf wrapped (like a very small burrito) around betel/areca nut, chewing tobacco, coconut with some slaked lime on the betel leaf. This entire package of paan is stuck into your mouth and slowly chewed similar to chewing tobacco. It is supposed to give you a little buzz and definitely gets your saliva going. My mouth turned into a overworked factory for salive that was trying to spill out of my mouth and induced me to spit quite often. The one fun thing about this is that the betel/areca nut makes your spit red and everytime I spit I could hear the red stains contaminating the roadside. (see video and photo of the making of Paan).

Following that delightful experience we headed back to enjoy the riverside dining before another very early wakeup call and flight to Heho and Inle Lake.