About a week after I went, but here is a collage of my pix from Schwe Dagon Pagoda (oldest Buddhist Statue in the world). Sorry, it's not interactive.
Tuesday, March 20, 2012
Monday, March 19, 2012
1st weekend in Myanmar - experiencing it like a local!
So the weekend was here, and all of us were so excited for a day off...we had been working since we landed pretty much. We were excited to adventure out and go exploring around the town.
I woke up in the AM and went for a run with my new running shoes - it was about a 30 min run/walk and boy did my legs need that! I felt GREAT afterwards!!!
Then, Kerry and I had made plans to meet up with my assistant teacher, Teacher Yoon - so we met her at the school around 1pm. She took us out to the mall and the market and we heard about her life. It was VERY different that what we expected:
- Her schedule is go to school, then go home. Go to school, then go home.
- She lives with her parents, and had to ask for permission to come out with us on Saturday.
- Her dad doesn't let her wear trousers.
- She has never in her life (she's 29) been to the3 cinema! (we have made plans to take her)
During the day, we finally got our Avocado shakes, and they were DE.LISH.OUS!!!! I also got to practice my Burmese, and Teacher Yoon helped me out on some of the pronunciation. We also all got Longyi's (the sarongs they wear as skirts here), and bought one for Teacher Yoon to say thank you. She was excited :) Then we had lunch, and headed back to the house.
On Sunday, Kerry and I headed to brunch by the River, and our housemate Jess came and joined us. We then took the ferry across the river to the town called Dalah - and on the ferry I practiced my Burmese with a local, and he we chatted the whole ride (which was about 10 minutes). Once off the ferry, he (Koko) started pointing things out in the town, and then before we knew it, he was our tour guide for the day! He took us to the Pagoda and we made friends with a volunteer there (he was 19) and he showed me the animal for the day I was born (Tuesday = Red Lion!). Then we left the Pagoda and we kept walking us around town - and then the young man from the Pagoda came and found us on his bicycle! He let us ride it a little, and spent the afternoon with us. Once he left us, Koko introduced us to his Dad, one of his little brothers, and one of his little sisters. He also took us to his mom's shop and she made us Ginger Salad (AMAZING!) and put Tanaca on our faces (a gold looking lotion made from tree bark and water) and we felt super Burmese! Then he took us to the orphange, and they sang us songs and we played with them for a while. On our way out of the town, it was "Water Hour" and we saw everyone getting their daily allowance of water - the wells are only open for 1 hour each day. None of the houses (which look like huts) have running water, so they use their water buckets for everything from bathing and drinking to cooking and laundry.
As we left, we all were practicing our hello's and how are you's, and everyone loved that we had Tanaca on our faces. We all plan on going back, so we will make sure to let Koko know when we do (he gave us his phone number).
The experience was what I thought Burma would be like, not like the mansion and spoils we have been lucky enough to have. It was an AMAZING adventure to have on our first weekend with free time.
Minglabar!!
- Apes :)
I woke up in the AM and went for a run with my new running shoes - it was about a 30 min run/walk and boy did my legs need that! I felt GREAT afterwards!!!
Then, Kerry and I had made plans to meet up with my assistant teacher, Teacher Yoon - so we met her at the school around 1pm. She took us out to the mall and the market and we heard about her life. It was VERY different that what we expected:
- Her schedule is go to school, then go home. Go to school, then go home.
- She lives with her parents, and had to ask for permission to come out with us on Saturday.
- Her dad doesn't let her wear trousers.
- She has never in her life (she's 29) been to the3 cinema! (we have made plans to take her)
 | |
| Avocado Shake!! |
 |
| My hand painted Longyi |
On Sunday, Kerry and I headed to brunch by the River, and our housemate Jess came and joined us. We then took the ferry across the river to the town called Dalah - and on the ferry I practiced my Burmese with a local, and he we chatted the whole ride (which was about 10 minutes). Once off the ferry, he (Koko) started pointing things out in the town, and then before we knew it, he was our tour guide for the day! He took us to the Pagoda and we made friends with a volunteer there (he was 19) and he showed me the animal for the day I was born (Tuesday = Red Lion!). Then we left the Pagoda and we kept walking us around town - and then the young man from the Pagoda came and found us on his bicycle! He let us ride it a little, and spent the afternoon with us. Once he left us, Koko introduced us to his Dad, one of his little brothers, and one of his little sisters. He also took us to his mom's shop and she made us Ginger Salad (AMAZING!) and put Tanaca on our faces (a gold looking lotion made from tree bark and water) and we felt super Burmese! Then he took us to the orphange, and they sang us songs and we played with them for a while. On our way out of the town, it was "Water Hour" and we saw everyone getting their daily allowance of water - the wells are only open for 1 hour each day. None of the houses (which look like huts) have running water, so they use their water buckets for everything from bathing and drinking to cooking and laundry.
As we left, we all were practicing our hello's and how are you's, and everyone loved that we had Tanaca on our faces. We all plan on going back, so we will make sure to let Koko know when we do (he gave us his phone number).
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| Tuesday - Red Lion! |
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| Jess, Kerry, and Apes |
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| Ring the bell 3 times: 1) health 2) finances 3) luck |
 |
| Biking in Burma! |
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| Getting painted like a local! |
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| Koko's little brother was not impressed with me. |
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| The kids at the Orphanage, singing to us |
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| A totally awesome picture: Pagoda, Cow, and a Burmese man on a motorbike. |
The experience was what I thought Burma would be like, not like the mansion and spoils we have been lucky enough to have. It was an AMAZING adventure to have on our first weekend with free time.
Minglabar!!
- Apes :)
St. Patrick's Day 2012
Whelp - one of my favorite holidays came and went, and I spent it in Myanmar. I was afraid I wouldn't be able to celebrate it over here - but I was W.R.O.N.G!!!
The girls in the house all went to 50th Street Bar to meet up with the rest of the teachers, as the bar had a St. Patty's Day celebration happening. They had pitchers of green beer, green balloons everywhere, and even St. Patty's drink celebrations. They also had 17 Irish men there!!
Here are some pix to highlight my night:
Hope everyone had as good of a St. Patty's Day as I did!!!
Minglabar!!
Apes :)
The girls in the house all went to 50th Street Bar to meet up with the rest of the teachers, as the bar had a St. Patty's Day celebration happening. They had pitchers of green beer, green balloons everywhere, and even St. Patty's drink celebrations. They also had 17 Irish men there!!
Here are some pix to highlight my night:
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| Looks like St. Patty's Day!!! |
 |
| Jameson Shots |
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| BenD's first Irish Car Bomb....EVER!!! |
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| The late night girls: Laura the Adpi, Kerry the roommate, and Stacey |
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| This is my roommate - I'm sure if she ever sees this, she'll kill me. |
Minglabar!!
Apes :)
Tuesday, March 13, 2012
A picture is worth a thousand words
..and if that's true, here's a collection of fun picture with some background on them. ENJOY!
Minglabar!
Apes :)
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| Drinking like a local :) |
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| I came home from school - and our house mom and dad put mosquito tents on our beds! CAMPING INSIDE!!! :) |
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| The house's first day of school :) |
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| Inside a normal Taxi...yup. |
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| After our first day, the house mom and dad made us dinner. We had already eaten 3 plates by this point. |
Apes :)
Myanmar has "an Oracle"
I am not really sure what the means, but I do know the results of it.
- Rangoon used to be the capitol of the country. Then the oracle said bad things would happen if it stayed there, so it was moved.
- People used to drive on the left side of the road, then one morning it was stated that the Oracle said bad things would come if people continued that way. So now they drive on the right side of the road....BUT no new cars were made, so the steering wheel is still on the right side. For buses, there is a driver, and a caller. The caller stands beside the driver, and watches the blind spot.
Pretty weird, huh?
Minglabar!
Apes :)
I am not really sure what the means, but I do know the results of it.
- Rangoon used to be the capitol of the country. Then the oracle said bad things would happen if it stayed there, so it was moved.
- People used to drive on the left side of the road, then one morning it was stated that the Oracle said bad things would come if people continued that way. So now they drive on the right side of the road....BUT no new cars were made, so the steering wheel is still on the right side. For buses, there is a driver, and a caller. The caller stands beside the driver, and watches the blind spot.
Pretty weird, huh?
Minglabar!
Apes :)
Sunday, March 11, 2012
Myanmar: Day 1...what I've learned
So today we had breakfast at the school….french fries, beef
roti, fruit, cheese sandwiches, noodles. Um, DELICIOUS. (the heads of the offices here are all Middle Eastern - and their food is GOOD!!)
Then we were off to
learn about Myanmar (from now on, let’s call it RM – Republic of Myanmar). We learned about our school, the camp, and
then went on a tour of Rangon (the old capitol, also where I now live). Here’s
the highlights of what I’ve learned/seen…
- -
RM people were lotion on their cheeks that look
like gold paint; it makes them age well
- -
The biggest RM note (chet = K) is only a 5000
one
- -
Taxi’s use meters: a “mouth meter” which means
you bargain before you get in
- -
EVERY.ONE. wears a skirt sarong (I forget the
actual name) but for boys they wear the knot in the front, and the girls wear
them to the side. If the man wears it to the side it means he’s gay
- -
Schwe Dagon is the OLDEST Buddist statue in the
world
- -
80% of the country is Buddhist
- -
SIM card for a phone is $250 (no, I will not be
getting a phone here)
 |
| Schwe Dagon |
 |
| Apes at the Schwe Dagon! |
 |
| HUGE LION!!! |
And I’ve already learned how to say some things in Burmese:
- -
Ne kong le = how are you
- -
Sa pi bi la = have you eaten
- -
Be thaw me le = where are you going
- -
Jesu tim badee = thank you
- -
Hogget = yes
- -
Mahoboo = no
- -
Paiset sche-mae = check
- -
Why bee-bee = already bought
What’s even cooler about knowing how to say those in
Burmese? I ALREADY CAN SAY THEM IN THAI!!!
Minglabar,
Apes :)
My house...in the middle of the street
5 women picked to live together….sound familiar? Yup – it’s
REAL WORLD style!
Our house is 2 stories, and comes with the following:
Huge Kitchen
Huge dining room
Huge living room with 4 couches
Game room with Table Tennis
2 huge rooms downstairs
1 Downstairs full bathroom (including Western toilet)
3 huge rooms upstairs
1 Classroom
1 Bathroom that houses 5 showers, 3 toilets
1 bathroom that houses 1 shower, 1 toilet
HUGE balcony to watch BOTH the sunrise AND sunset
AC above each bed/in every room
2 burmese couples to do our cooking and cleaning
Sheets/Towels/Toiletries/Blankets for each of us
Huge dining room
Huge living room with 4 couches
Game room with Table Tennis
2 huge rooms downstairs
1 Downstairs full bathroom (including Western toilet)
3 huge rooms upstairs
1 Classroom
1 Bathroom that houses 5 showers, 3 toilets
1 bathroom that houses 1 shower, 1 toilet
HUGE balcony to watch BOTH the sunrise AND sunset
AC above each bed/in every room
2 burmese couples to do our cooking and cleaning
Sheets/Towels/Toiletries/Blankets for each of us
Yeah – our accommodation is PRET-TY amazing. Whelp, except
the ccold showers and no internet. BUT I get internet at school, so I only
worry about the cold showers.
My roommate is Kerry and we both live in Southern Thailand (she’s a Krabi girl) and are both from the south part of the US (she’s a SC girl as well). Turns out we are teaching partners, and area desks face each other at school. We’ve agreed not to hang out outside of work/home since we will be with each other so much already – but we both get along well so we keep ending up together when we go out!
My roommate is Kerry and we both live in Southern Thailand (she’s a Krabi girl) and are both from the south part of the US (she’s a SC girl as well). Turns out we are teaching partners, and area desks face each other at school. We’ve agreed not to hang out outside of work/home since we will be with each other so much already – but we both get along well so we keep ending up together when we go out!
Minglabar!
Apes :)
Apes :)
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