So on my last full day of my week off, up in the town of Taungoo, I wasn't quite sure what to do.
I had seen on the Google Earth images of stuff that Google Maps didn't show. Namely, the amazing lake at Pakaung. I saw that. Similarly, there was a golf course in the military extension of Taungoo, a few miles north.
Knowing how protective the military is here of their facilities, I didn't even attempt to go there. Instead, it was off into the countryside east of Taungoo to visit a couple of remarkable pagodas.
The mystery behind the secret lake has been solved. It exists. It is not in some secret military zone. It is a jewel of blue in the otherwise brown and arid Bago Hills. It has a name - Lake Kabaung. How did this place come to my interest? Jimmy Grant noticed it first.
Here's what the start of
the road from Taungoo to Pyay (a road I've traversed before) looks like
on Google maps. Not much detail, befitting the rural, featureless road
that it is.
Look now at the same are on Google Earth
.
Wow. What is up with this extensive lake that otherwise isn't recognized? This isn't the first lake I've encountered heree in Myanmar that doesn't exist in Google Maps. There be a communication breakdown somewhere along the line. See, it's not that Kabaung Lake is secret or restricted or anything.
Sure, there was a gate, but I could have gone through the village and avoided it. Kabaung is completely unspoiled. It's a nugget of Yoma Hills that is beautiful, but entirely unvisited.
This beautiful mountain lake is but a mere 100 miles from Yangon - a few hours by car. Might this be the undeveloped place I build my retirement job of expat guesthouse owner? I may be the first to have made a video of the place. Music by Matisyahu.
I said goodbye to my girlfriend, got on a late night train
and ended up in Taungoo. What is it about Taungoo? This was my fifth time
visiting this small city, by far the most frequent visitation spot outside
Yangon.
Well, on this instance, my purpose was clear: I wanted to
visit my motorbike. As much as I enjoyed Myawaddy, I was frustrated by having
to rely on taxis and such. I wanted to go where MY Kenbo 125 was located. I say
my, but I’ve somewhat sold it to
Barbara, a fellow teacher in Yangon who makes a couple visits a month to
Taungoo, 175 km north of Yangon, as a volunteer English teacher to students at
the Taungoo Education College. I’ve agreed to sell it to her, but we’ve never
agreed on a price or anything, so it’s still mine.
Again, this was my FIFTH time in Taungoo, but the first time
I’d be spending more than one night there. This meant I could dig into themes I
hadn’t before. Namely, I wanted to see the walls of ancient Taungoo. See, for a
while, from about 1700 to 1780, Taungoo was the Rome of Southeast Asia.
The biggest of many Burmese empires over
the centuries was the Taungoo Empire, reigning over all of Thailand and parts
of India, Malaysia and Laos, and Taungoo was the capital. This little getaway from
Yangon had an old history…
Along with the old city walls, I also wanted to look for a
new lake up in the Bago Hills. This lake is not on Google Maps, but it is on
Google Earth… I wanted to go find it. Gosh… I found it. But the lake deserves
its own blog and video…
Monday, November 5, 2018
"I'm giving you head," she said whilst repeatedly headbutting me in the forehead. This was her idea of a response to my infrequent requests for head. Oh. THUNK THUNK THUNK THUNK
I mentioned a few blogs ago about how Nicki makes me feel young again. It's not just in who she is or her age or anything, it's about the playfulness. Even though I'm occasionally annoyed by it, on the whole, I really enjoy our play... Enjoy Part 4 of the Myawaddy trip.
You know there’s one thing about walking down a city street
with Nicki Rangoon, my 6’0” TG gf, is that if she’s walking in front of me,
nobody is looking at me. And that’s
just fine. You see, pale-skinned foreigners are a rare sight outside of the
tourist areas of Myanmar, and so the people here naturally watch me wherever I
go. Stare at me, even. This somewhat provincial behavior doesn’t really bother
me. You wouldn’t last long being a foreigner anywhere in SE Asia if it did.
Having
Venus-like, full-hipped, wavy-haired goddess sauntering through the crowded
street market in front of me – every head turns. Even though I was in a dusty
little border town, somehow, nobody was interested in the white guy following
behind.
Other than the casino (returning there while the day was still
young seemed inappropriate), there wasn’t much left to see or do there in
Myawaddy by day 3. That said, one place you can always turn to for a full
sensory experience anywhere in SE Asia is the open-air market. Turned out,
Nicki had some business to conduct there as well – imported things are
remarkable less expensive there on the border than they are back in Yangon.
Eventually, we headed out for a final evening at the
casinos. Mind you, I had done some of research on the town beforehand, and
whereas Myawaddy Complex was by far the most mentioned and visited gaming establishment
there on the river, there were others. A place called the Sun City Casino
looked interesting. I’d seen it on Google maps. There were pictures of it,
although I couldn’t identify how to get there from the Myanmar side of the
river. Like Myawaddy Complex, this place specifically targeted Thai customers
via a short boat-ride across the border. No passport stamps or visas or
anything like that. After going entirely the wrong way, we eventually ended up
in the area of Sun City; I even saw it at one point down the river a ways. It
was a weird district filled with junk shops.
Used Thai merchandise, broken and
ready for recycling, makes its way across the border to be sold on the cheap in
Myanmar. Although the journey was interesting, we never did find a land route
to Sun City. I concluded it was only accessible by boat from the river.
Over the years I've been here in SE Asia, I've heard many comments from other expats along the lines of: "if you've seen one pagoda, you've seen them all." In other words, they've been less than thrilled by visiting places of worship for a religion they don't hold. Whereas I can understand how others might feel that way, I've always enjoyed visiting the spectacular pagodas here in Myanmar, even if I've not understood the functional religious aspects of the temple parts. And they're all different in one way or another. I know to bang the bell three times. I know to find the Buddha statue corresponding to your weekday of birth and pour water on it. I'm not Buddhist. I don't know all the details.
This is why it was so cool to visit the big pagoda there in Myawaddy with Nicki. She'd never seen the place before, so it was interesting for her too, and she was able to provide lots of comments about her religion and its meaning. Even when I disagreed. It's a pika, not a mouse. I think. After the big pagoda, we went to the crocodile monastery, another of the few attractions in Myawaddy.
Disappointing. Every part of it outside the common walkway was closed. Do not climb women OR men!
After our early morning visit to the religious sites, Nicki left to cross the bridge into Mae Sot, Thailand. Again, the only reason the casinos existed there, and the only reason I was visiting, was because of it being a border town with "neutral zones" when it comes to gambling.
While Nicki explored the malls of Mae Sot, I got to play a game I've enjoyed since I was a kid, but haven't played in a while. The perfect game to play on holiday: GOLF!
I'm not very good at the game. One of these days, I'll score a bogey. Maybe. I'm getting older. At least I broke 100, for nine holes. Anyways, I highly recommend the Myasandy Golf Club.
Waiting for the taxi to the casino
That evening, it was time to return to the casino that had so thoroughly defeated me the night before. I wasn't confident I'd be able to get back to where I started, so I needed a good luck charm. I told Nicki I would stake her 2000 Baht, and if she lost it, so be it. If she won, she needed to pay me back the 2000 and whatever she won, she could keep. The joy in her face for winning 1000 Baht (after paying me back) is palpable in the video. As for me, I lost another 2500, but it didn't matter seeing the excitement in my GF's face. Enjoy the video.
I'm happy right now, albeit mutedly. Today is the last day of the first week of my holiday season. For six months of the year, I am not allowed to take any time off. It's our high season in the education business. Then, I get 8 weeks off of 26. The long slough of teaching is over; I'm already looking forward to the next holiday at Xmas time when my parents are coming to visit.
I read an article in one of the local English language magazines about the newly emergent casinos complexes on the Thai border at Myawaddy, and I knew I had to go. I'm a gambler. I admit it. But even when I lived in a state where a casino was only a 45 minute drive away, I knew how to limit my gaming. I never lost too much that I was at a hardship. I won a lot too. Anyways, my girlfriend and I got on a bus and headed up to the Thai border to the town of Myawaddy. The casino is literally ON the border. 99% of visitors arrive by boat from the Thailand side of the river. Thai is the language being spoken in the casino and the Thai Baht is the currency being gambled. Gambling is strictly prohibited in both Thailand and Myanmar. The casino is located on land owned by the Border Defense Force and the investor is Thai. Lots of money is being made, and the local political leaders are upset because it's all entirely un-taxed.
First night results: 6000 Baht ($180) loss. Amount of fun: Much
In my 5+ years living in SE Asia, I've seen all kinds of critters and parts of critters being sold as food that would take the average Westerner by surprise or even disgust. Asian cockroaches, for example (not their disgusting American cousins mind you), grasshoppers, scorpions and tarantulas. I've never had sufficient reason to overcome the cultural aversions I've had for these bugs to go ahead and eat them (scorpion, one time, being an exception)
Well, I'm in the midst of a road trip with my girlfriend, and she was very excited to tell me at the outset that she'd ordered the perfect road food: crickets! 100 of them, in fact.
One of the first ones I ate taught me an important lesson: don't talk with your mouth full of invertebrates. They've got nasty spines on their exoskeleton that can end up in sensitive parts of the mouth.
As you might have noticed by the output rate on this blog,
I’ve been rather unmotivated lately in regards to my productive leisure
pursuits. This summer, I’ve made an occasional ukulele vid, a single beach
excursion video and written practically nothing. It seems like every time I sit
down to make a video, I quickly lose focus and the mouse wanders over to click
on my favorite video game instead.
I dunno exactly what’s caused this unmotivated malaise in my
video-making hobby as of late, but I suspect I’m getting tired of making the
same style of video over and over with just different footage and music in the
background. Yeah, that’s it.
Last April/May, I went on a long motorcycle journey through
the northwest part of Myanmar. That was five months ago, and only today have I
finished making the final video of the series, Part 21. And even then, I didn’t capture the best part
of the last day: my argument with the golf course people who at first would not
allow me to play because I was wearing a button-down shirt, and after I had
gone and bought a sport shirt, then objected to my track pants. I was angered,
and left, but I still want to play the links at Pyin Oo Lwin, purportedly the
best golf course in all of Burma.
We’re nearing the end of the long slough of English teaching
here at my school. From May to October, we get lots of students. Big classes
are normal, and every teacher is needed, so there’s no vacation time available
for any of us. As that’s coming to an end, I get 8 weeks off out of the next 2.
The first week of which is next week. I
can’t wait, but unless I can think of a new way of making the videos, I may not
share anything but pictures.
I dunno. I dunno.
We’ll see, but I think the funk I’ve been in is best
characterized in the last clip of the video below in which I say “So finishing
up three weeks of vacation and I feel… I dunno. I dunno”
_____________________
I wrote that a week ago and it’s taken me that long to work
through the computer problems I’ve been having to fix it. In the end, it came
down to removing almost all the time manipulation I used on the motorbike
footage. Nearly none of the fast-mo and slow-mo which have sort of defined my travel
videos over the last couple years.
Maybe it’s a blessing in disguise.
Enjoy what might be the last of this style video from me...
It's taken me ages to make these last few videos, nearing the end of the chronicle of my long journey through Chin, Sagain, Kachin and Mandalay. In Episode 17, the tour was over and I had a few days to kill in Mandalay. Whereas Mandalay is a nice enough town, it was brutally hot, and the cool air of Pyin Oo Lwin were but a spectacular motorcycle ride away.
Pyin Oo Lwin (formerly known as May Myo) is a wonderful town. If I could choose to live anywhere in Myanmar full time (other than Yangon) it would be "POL". No place in the country is more amenable. And in POL, the most famous attraction is the Kandawgyi botanical gardens. The heavy rains resulted in an amazing event you only get here in the tropics. There are several species of insects that have a remarkable life cycle. They spend most of their lives as grubs, cocooning themselves late in the dry season. Come the rain, they all emerge on the same day, live one day as a flying insect, fuck, lay eggs and then die. I got to witness one of these events.
Well, it’s
been a while since I’ve posted here on my blog. I’ve decided that I’ll take a
break from telling the end of the story of my last motorcycle journey, which has
got kinda stale in my mind, and which has showed in my enthusiasm and effort in making compelling videos. Instead, I’ll share some
from my most recent exploits
A little
more than 3 months ago, I met Nicki. Although I’ve mentioned her before on this
blog, I think this video is the first time you’ll see her on my camera. We’ve been
dating, and as there was a holiday this week, I asked her to come with me to
Ngwesaung, which is a nearby (5 hour bus ride) beach destination on the Bay of
Bengal.
It’s said
that you don’t really get to know how well
you get along with someone until you travel with them. It’s only when you’re on
the road together that you learn how you work as a team. I totally agree with this
thought. I’ve travelled tens of thousands of kilometers on my own because I
like to do what I want to do. If that freedom is impinged upon, no matter how young
and nubile the impinger, I’m not likely to react well. Outwardly, I may enjoy
travelling with you, but inwardly, I know I’ll never do it again.
Well, Nicki
and I have passed the travelling test. At least from my perspective, I think we
got along well, and that bodes well for future travel.
What I
noticed most about how we played together was that there was a lot of just
that, play.
I’d like to think that at 48 years old, I’ve still
maintained a youthful mindset. My attitudes are young and I enjoy playing
around in the mental and verbal spheres. But actual play? As defined by what kids do? It’s been a long time since I’ve
played that way. In the pool with Nicki, she reintroduced me to a kind of play
I love, but have somewhat forgotten: imagination.
I AM
POSEIDON! RULER OF THE SEA! WHERE IS MY MERMAID?!
Oh, Poseidon! I’m your mermaid!
[two bodies chasing
each other through the water…more role playing ensues]
I guess what
I’m getting at is that I really enjoyed how she made me feel like a kid again.
The unbridled imagination and play
that we feel as children is something we can still easily access in our 20’s,
but in later years, it fades. I can do it in my head, but that combined imaginative
and physical kidlike play… I want to thank my new gf for bringing me back to
where I can play imagination games in the pool.
On the other hand, using every muscle to its most trying to chase around
someone half my age in the pool, all while trying to impress her physically –
ouch, are my muscles sore.
Over the years I've been here in SE Asia, I've heard many comments from other expats along the lines of: "if you've seen one pagoda, you've seen them all." In other words, they've been less than thrilled by visiting places of worship for a religion they don't hold. Whereas I can understand how others might feel that way, I've always enjoyed visiting the spectacular pagodas here in Myanmar, even if I've not understood the functional religious aspects of the temple parts. And they're all different in one way or another. 
