Log in
Join travelers community
Your Profile
Logout
It was one of my last nights in Myanmar.
Myanmar 2001 - Part One - Yangon and Bago
Dougburnett2003-11-23 19:04:33
Displayed times (last time: )
It was one of my last nights in Myanmar. I had just returned to Yangon after 10 days of bumpy roads, more pagodas than I could count, and smiling Burmese at every turn. The weather had turned hot but I wasn't interested in the air-conditioned bar at my hotel. I wanted some spot in the steamy streets to sit while I put some thoughts down on paper.
There was a little restaurant just down the street from my hotel. I walked over to see if they had the three things I needed: a chair large enough for my long legs, a cold beer and, most importantly, a tape player where I could listen to my country music tape. I love a little taste of home in a strange land and it's also fun to see how the locals react to country music.
The player was in the back by the kitchen, above the cash register. As the manager put the tape in he asked, "Which side?" I shook my head. "It doesn't matter." I was planning on staying long enough to hear it all. When my beer arrived I got up and, after asking, "OK?" I turned the first song, by Vince Gill, up real loud. Other diners turned to look: I nodded and sat to write. I had a lot of feelings and images I wanted to capture from my stay among these incredibly happy, friendly people.
The walls of the restaurant were covered with a few posters of travel sights in Myanmar and beer promotions with pretty girls, but mostly it was empty pop and beer cases that decorated the place. There weren't a lot of people inside. Most sat at tables on the sidewalk where it was cooler.
As I wrote, the rhythm of the restaurant revealed itself. There were two waiters who were constantly carrying trays of food and piles of dirty dishes back and forth. Each time I looked up they seemed to be looking at me too. One always smiled and nodded: I think he liked the music, Patty Loveless was singing just then. The other seemed to be trying to figure out what I was up to. He
...
See photographs from:
Burma (Myanmar) Gallery
