Yangon, Myanmar 2019

YOU'RE GOING WHERE?

"You’re going where?"

"Myanmar? Never heard of it."

These were just some of the responses I received when telling people I was traveling to the city formerly known to the world as Rangoon, in the country formerly called Burma. With its borders only being open to US tourists since 2013, Myanmar is still relatively unvisited by the average tourist, which in my experience seems to be a mistake, however, one should take some ethical precautions while traveling.

Many of us try to stay away from the big stores these days, spend our money at the mom and pop shops, shop local as they say. Well in Yangon these sentiments ring even more true.

Still facing claims of ethnic genocide in many regions it becomes difficult to justify providing any additional money to the governing body of Myanmar. So take your cash, a crisp USD $100 bill will get you an uncomfortably large stack of bills, and head to the busiest small tea shop. Skip the fancy hotel, opt for the charming guest houses and get the cash into the local economy as often as possible.

Punctuating my quick trip to Yangon was the morning spent in the tea house. A dance seemingly inherited at birth preformed between patrons and the teens serving the primarily older male crowd, bombarded by sharp whistles sure to garish an extensive Buzzfeed write up if practiced in New York, culture in Yangon can be a little jarring to a western perspective. One need do nothing more than sit and take it all in to pass a few hours by.

Observation taught me that there is no right way to take your tea but there is always a unique take that goes far beyond just cream and sugar. While still only using cream and sugar. Everyone starts with a cup of tea, sweetened heavily and milky as can be, some sip to make room, others pour into the saucer, but fresh tea is always added to from the thermos situated at every table. A messy endeavor which no one seemed to mind the tea was always eventually consumed to the last third of the cup only to repeat the process again.

A trip to Yangon is encouraged, but with karmic caution. Do your best to know where your money is going. Spend a little more than you might need to, you'll be saving money as it's the budget trip for those on a budget in Thailand, and don't forget to spend some time in the tea houses, people in Yangon don't see many tourists in the smaller shops, so initiate a small conversation and give out some smiles you'll be sure to get them in return.