Stepping Back in Time in Myanmar
Dramatic Myanmar (Burma) is an intrepid traveller's dream. This is a land where holy men clad in traditional longyi are revered, thousands of ancient, religious stupas rise out of flat plains and floating-village life ebbs and flows upon Inle Lake. For a glimpse of old Indochina, there isn't a more eye-opening destination than this mysterious country, which only began allowing Western travellers into its borders in recent years.
Experience the best of Myanmar, with Abercrombie & Kent, from tranquil Inle Lake to the thousands of stupas in Bagan, pausing to explore Shwedagon Pagoda with its shimmering gemstones; ascending Mount Popa, where you walk among the devout; and discovering the bustling Five Day Market as colorfully garbed locals procure their daily necessities.
Yangon, the country's largest city, is a beguiling mix of British, Burmese, Chinese and Indian influences, from its timeworn colonial architecture to its unique cuisine. In this deeply Buddhist country, pagodas pockmark the land, and some of the most impressive ones can be found in Yangon, including the Shwedagon Pagoda and the Sule Pagoda.
Travel to Mandalay, Myanmar's major commercial center, and explore sites such as the monastery-studded Mandalay Hill, a pilgrimage site for Buddhists for nearly two centuries. Perhaps the best way to experience both the romance of the colonial era and see the Burmese people's day-to-day realities is by cruising on the Ayeyarwady River - aboard the new 'Sanctuary Ananda' - all the way to Bagan, disembarking at temples and viewing life along the river.
If Yangon and Mandalay are Myanmar's capitals of culture and commerce, then Bagan is the country's spiritual center. Over 2,000 pagodas, stupas and temples dot the golden plains of Bagan - a once-in-a-lifetime sight to behold, best seen from above by private hot air balloon, which can be arranged by A&K Myanmar Travel. Other highlights include the Ananda Temple, the best-preserved in the city, and Mount Popa, a stunning volcano that doubles as an ancient Buddhist pilgrimage site.
For more inspiration on Luxury Tailor Made Journeys to Myanmar:
abercrombiekent.com
Yunnan | Wikipedia audio article
This is an audio version of the Wikipedia Article:
Yunnan
Listening is a more natural way of learning, when compared to reading. Written language only began at around 3200 BC, but spoken language has existed long ago.
Learning by listening is a great way to:
- increases imagination and understanding
- improves your listening skills
- improves your own spoken accent
- learn while on the move
- reduce eye strain
Now learn the vast amount of general knowledge available on Wikipedia through audio (audio article). You could even learn subconsciously by playing the audio while you are sleeping! If you are planning to listen a lot, you could try using a bone conduction headphone, or a standard speaker instead of an earphone.
You can find other Wikipedia audio articles too at:
You can upload your own Wikipedia articles through:
The only true wisdom is in knowing you know nothing.
- Socrates
SUMMARY
=======
Yunnan (云南) is a province of the People's Republic of China, located in the far southwest of the country. It spans approximately 394,000 square kilometres (152,000 sq mi) and has a population of 45.7 million (as of 2009). The capital of the province is Kunming, formerly also known as Yunnan. The province borders the Chinese provinces Guangxi, Guizhou, Sichuan, and the Tibet Autonomous Region, and the countries Vietnam, Laos, and Myanmar.
Yunnan is situated in a mountainous area, with high elevations in the northwest and low elevations in the southeast. Most of the population lives in the eastern part of the province. In the west, the altitude can vary from the mountain peaks to river valleys as much as 3,000 metres (9,800 ft). Yunnan is rich in natural resources and has the largest diversity of plant life in China. Of the approximately 30,000 species of higher plants in China, Yunnan has perhaps 17,000 or more. Yunnan's reserves of aluminium, lead, zinc and tin are the largest in China, and there are also major reserves of copper and nickel.
The Han Empire first recorded diplomatic relations with the province at the end of the 2nd century BC. It became the seat of a Sino-Tibetan-speaking kingdom of Nanzhao in the 8th century AD. Nanzhao was multi-ethnic, but the elite most-likely spoke a northern dialect of Yi. The Mongols conquered the region in the 13th century, with local control exercised by warlords until the 1930s. From the Yuan dynasty onward, the area was part of a central-government sponsored population movement towards the southwestern frontier, with two major waves of migrants arriving from Han-majority areas in northern and southeast China. As with other parts of China's southwest, Japanese occupation in the north during World War II forced another migration of majority Han people into the region. These two waves of migration contributed to Yunnan being one of the most ethnically diverse provinces of China, with ethnic minorities accounting for about 34 percent of its total population. Major ethnic groups include Yi, Bai, Hani, Zhuang, Dai and Miao.