Mandalay, Myanmar (27.06.2013)
First impression of Myanmar? Fantastic!
I’m staying at Nan Bwe’s beyond welcoming Yoe Yoe Lay Homestay. When I arrived to Mandalay she mounted the bus with a big sign and a bigger smile and started shouting my name. Her laugh is infectious and her generosity knows no bounds. A very happy arrival in Mandalay indeed.
Cycling around town this afternoon I stumbled across this amazing famished Buddha statue and spent half an hour sitting in the shade of a tree with the eccentric and wonderful man who built the statue and neighbouring pagoda, just so the neighbourhood would have a place to pray. With his 10 words of English, my non-existent Burmese, a lot of hand gestures, and warm enthusiasm, we managed to communicate a great deal. He was a rotund and quirky man who drives an old blue jeep and has tattoos of Buddhist prayers fading down his arm.
The friendliness of the people here in Myanmar really shocks you, even after months of travelling in the continent of smiles.
the wonders 