Remote Myanmar's Kayah State gets ready for tourism boom
After a decades-long blanket ban on tourists, Kayah State in eastern Myanmar has opened up to the outside world. Travellers are pouring in to get a glimpse of its untouched beauty. As Channel NewsAsia's correspondent Pichayada Promchertchoo reports, the remote state is hoping to develop a tourist industry without losing its charm.
Best of Burma. Myanmar highlights (Watch in Full HD!)
Take it as a trailer of some of the most beautiful and most visited places in Myanmar: Yangon, the Golden Rock, Bagan, Mandalay and the areas around them, up to the spectacular Inle lake.
Musica: Night owl - Broke for free
Visit Myanmar Now!
Now is the moment to visit this extraordinary land, scattered with gilded pagodas, where the traditional ways of Asia endure and areas previously off-limits are opening up.
Surreal & Traditional
In a nation with well over 100 ethnic groups, exploring Myanmar can often feel like you've stumbled into a living edition of the National Geographic, circa 1910! The country, for instance, has yet to be completely overwhelmed by Western fashion – everywhere you'll encounter men wearing skirt-like longyi, women smothered in thanakha (traditional make-up) and betel-chewing grannies with mouths full of blood-red juice. People still get around in trishaws and, in rural areas, horse and cart. Drinking tea – a British colonial affectation – is enthusiastically embraced in thousands of traditional teahouses.
Simple Pleasures
Thankfully, the pace of change is not overwhelming, leaving the simple pleasures of travel in Myanmar intact. You can still drift down the Ayeyarwady (Irrawaddy) River in an old river steamer, stake out a slice of beach on the blissful Bay of Bengal, or trek through pine forests to minority villages scattered across the Shan Hills without jostling with scores of fellow travellers. Best of all you'll encounter locals who are gentle, humorous, engaging, considerate, inquisitive and passionate – they want to play a part in the world, and to know what you make of their world. Now is the time to make that connection.
The Ethical Dimension
‘This is Burma,' wrote Rudyard Kipling. ‘It is quite unlike any place you know about.’ Amazingly, over a century later, Myanmar retains the power to surprise and delight even the most jaded of travellers. Be dazzled by the 'winking wonder' of Shwedagon Paya. Contemplate the 4000 sacred stupas scattered across the plains of Bagan. Stare in disbelief at the Golden Rock at Mt Kyaiktiyo, teetering impossibly on the edge of a chasm. These are all important Buddhist sights in a country where pious monks are more revered than rock stars.
Why I Love Myanmar
By Simon Richmond, Author
On a recent afternoon in Yangon I was invited into the shack-like home of Patrick, the great-grandson of Burma's last king. With his daughter he runs a humble English-language school in the shadow of Shwedagon Paya. As I chatted with this courteous, religious, eccentric man about his life, it underlined what I've always loved about Myanmar – meeting and sharing time with its charming people. Slow down, sit, listen and connect – it's the best way to appreciate what's truly golden about this land.
Modernisation
In 2013 Myanmar remained a Starbucks-free nation – but that could soon change. As the country makes tentative steps towards democracy, sanctions have been dropped and the world is rushing to do business here. In recent years conveniences such as mobile phone coverage, internet access and internationally linked ATMs have all improved or made their debut. Relaxing of censorship has led to an explosion of new media and an astonishing openness in public discussions of once-taboo topics, including politics. Swathes of the county, off-limits for years, can now be freely visited.
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Kayah Trip (2018)
Just a memory of the friendship trip to Kayah State, Myanmar.
Discover Kachin State Northern Myanmar
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MYANMAR | We Know Because We Go | STA Travel
Exploring the world and a passion for travel is a must for all of our travel expert and standing still is NOT an option. To make sure they can help you get the best out of your trip we send experts on regular FAM trips. This time they explore Myanmar!
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2 Weeks in Myanmar - A unique experience
Quick look back at our 2 week journey trough Myanmar. Its still a place where you can feel like an explorer. If you are looking for the old vibe of the Indochina, here it still lives. We stopped in Yangon, Old Bagan and Mandalay. Lots of temples and pagodas, lots of lovely people and some good food.
Music:
Outlove - Who I Am
On My Way Kevin MacLeod (incompetech.com)
Licensed under Creative Commons: By Attribution 3.0 License
Rainbows Kevin MacLeod (incompetech.com)
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Carpe Diem Kevin MacLeod (incompetech.com)
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Fretless Kevin MacLeod (incompetech.com)
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Carefree Kevin MacLeod (incompetech.com)
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Gymnopedie No. 3 Kevin MacLeod (incompetech.com)
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Myanmar/Beautiful INLE LAKE Part 48/48
Welcome to my travelchannel.On my channel you can find almost 1000 films of more than 70 countries. See the playlist on my youtube channel.Enjoy!
INLE LAKE:Myanmar/Burma
Inle Lake is a freshwater lake located in the Nyaungshwe Township of Taunggyi District of Shan State, part of Shan Hills in Myanmar (Burma). It is the second largest lake in Myanmar with an estimated surface area of 44.9 square miles (116 km2), and one of the highest at an altitude of 2,900 feet (880 m). During the dry season, the average water depth is 7 feet (2.1 m), with the deepest point being 12 feet (3.7 m), but during the rainy season this can increase by 5 feet (1.5 m).
The watershed area for the lake lies to a large extent to the north and west of the lake. The lake drains through the Nam Pilu or Balu Chaung on its southern end. There is a hot spring on its northwestern shore.Although the lake is not large, it contains a number of endemic species. Over twenty species of snails and nine species of fish are found nowhere else in the world. Some of these, like the silver-blue scaleless Sawbwa barb, the crossbanded dwarf danio, and the Lake Inle danio, are of minor commercial importance for the aquarium trade. It hosts approximately 20,000 brown and black head migratory seagulls in November, December and January.
The people of Inle Lake (called Intha), some 70,000 of them, live in four cities bordering the lake, in numerous small villages along the lake's shores, and on the lake itself. The entire lake area is in Nyaung Shwe township. The population consists predominantly of Intha, with a mix of other Shan, Taungyo, Pa-O (Taungthu), Danu, Kayah, Danaw and Bamar ethnicities. Most are devout Buddhists, and live in simple houses of wood and woven bamboo on stilts; they are largely self-sufficient farmers.
Most transportation on the lake is traditionally by small boats, or by somewhat larger boats fitted with single cylinder inboard diesel engines. Local fishermen are known for practicing a distinctive rowing style which involves standing at the stern on one leg and wrapping the other leg around the oar. This unique style evolved for the reason that the lake is covered by reeds and floating plants making it difficult to see above them while sitting. Standing provides the rower with a view beyond the reeds. However, the leg rowing style is only practiced by the men. Women row in the customary style, using the oar with their hands, sitting cross legged at the stern.
Fish caught from the lake - the most abundant kind is called nga hpein (Inle Carp, Cyprinus intha) - are a staple of the local diet. A popular local dish is htamin gyin - 'fermented' rice kneaded with fish and/or potato - served with hnapyan gyaw (literally twice fried - Shan tofu). In addition to fishing, locals grow vegetables and fruit in large gardens that float on the surface of the lake. The floating garden beds are formed by extensive manual labor. The farmers gather up lake-bottom weeds from the deeper parts of the lake, bring them back in boats and make them into floating beds in their garden areas, anchored by bamboo poles. These gardens rise and fall with changes in the water level, and so are resistant to flooding. The constant availability of nutrient-laden water results in these gardens being incredibly fertile. Rice cultivation is also significant.
Hand-made goods for local use and trading are another source of commerce. Typical products include tools, carvings and other ornamental objects, textiles, and cheroots. A local market serves most common shopping needs and is held daily but the location of the event rotates through five different sites around the lake area, thus each of them hosting an itinerant market every fifth day.When held on the lake itself, trading is conducted from small boats. This 'floating-market' event tends to emphasize tourist trade much more than the other four.
The Inle lake area is renowned for its weaving industry. The Shan-bags, used daily by many Burmese as a tote-bag, are produced in large quantities here. Silk-weaving is another very important industry, producing high-quality hand-woven silk fabrics of distinctive design called Inle longyi. A unique fabric from the lotus plant fibers is produced only at Inle lake and is used for weaving special robes for Buddha images called kya thingahn (lotus robe).
This documentary is a journey through the experience of Karenni refugees.
After decades of civil war, thousands of Karenni people survive as diplomatically stateless refugees along the Thai-Burma border.
As refugees, the Karenni people possess no official government documentation. They are not permitted to leave the refugee camp, and are unable to find legal work. They have little to no access to education, healthcare, or social development.
While some NGOs and organizations support schools and development programs, this support is dwindling in light of Thailand's declaration that all Karenni must return to Burma. However, families who have chosen to relocate to their ancestral homes have been unsuccessful due to a complete lack of infrastructure in Burma.
The Karenni people are uniquely affected by both Thailand and Burma’s incapacity to resettle them. In the face of a changing political atmosphere, their future is more uncertain than ever.
Few days in Indawgyi Lake - Burma (Myanmar) Dec 2015
Bienvenue dans le nord de la Birmanie, dans un petit village qui borde le plus grand lac du pays, le lac Indawgyi.
Petit aperçu de l’accueil que nous avons reçu pour la dizaine de jours passé sur place.