Mandalay

Sara and I heard repeated lackluster reports about Mandalay, so it was with some reluctance that we boarded a propeller plane bound for the central Burmese metropolis and former capitol. Mandalay is a sprawling gridded city and largely uninteresting. On our first day we took a motorbike tour of the city’s outskirts, stopping at various important stupas, temples, and ruins. Some of it was beautiful, but much of our tour left me with a kind of “been there, seen that” feeling, perhaps because I’m a bit jaded after 6 months of templing in Asia.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

That evening we went to see the Moustache Brothers – infamous Burmese comedians who’ve been imprisoned more than once for their comedic bits that mock prominent government officials.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

They were hilarious. It was like no show I’d ever seen. They do this show every night out of their garage. Locals do not attend because government reps monitor attendance and tend to harass non-tourists who show up even for a quick peak. Sara and I watched the performance with our friend Marisa who we met in Bagan.

 

 

The next day I decided to spend my final day in Mandalay playing a round of golf. I was paired with a couple of local guys. I had not swung a club in over a year. We all had caddies, so there were 6 of us total on the course, and no one spoke English. For the first three holes I played beyond poorly. I attempted to engage one of the other guys in conversation, trying in some way to communicate that it had been a long while since I’d last played. He pointed to himself and said “Myanmar pro.” Wow. I’d been paired with professional golfers, which made sense because they were really, really good. Trying to lighten the mood I pointed to myself and said “USA pro.” Everyone, caddies included, doubled over in a fit of laughter that lasted perhaps a bit too long. I had a great time though, and after a few rusty holes I started to play well.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

That evening Sara and I took a night bus to Yangon where we chilled out for a couple of days before heading to the Thai islands. Burma was awesome and I was sad to leave. Oh well, on to an island paradise.