Traveling

Where is the Love?

(Retro post)

There's so much love in Burma. I don't know why I feel this way. the men walk down the street with one arm draped over their friends shoulder. Older brothers play with little ones. The men are always playing with their children. That being said, the women are always working. It feels like women are seen as equals here. Really. They carry heavy loads (on their heads) as much or more than men do. But it seems a welcome habit, not an oppressive one.
Christina says she thinks there is so much love here because the people are simple. They go to the market on market day, farm every other day, and hang out with their family.
It's just such a great country. The people genuinely smaile at you when you wave or smile at them. Such beautiful huge smiles.

I also love how people sing all the time. Everywhere and at the top of their lungs singing, not just humming.
People are loving, the views are beautiful, towns small, there isn't the obssession over money (yet).

Everywhere you go, they give you oranges. At the hotel, at restaurants, and just randomly. And never enough- if you are 4ppl, they give you either 3 or 5 oranges.

Music blaring from homes. I like it. It;s not harsh- it just seems like someone is having a great time listening to their music. Loud.

Went to the jumping cat monastery and someone asked the monk why he teaches the cats to jump.
Monk: "For fun".

Favorite scene: On Inle Lake. Took a boat out for the day to check out the floating villages.
"No problem" the driver tells me as I turn around to look back at the motor and he's banging it with a brick.

The buses here are really cool. They are raised so that the stock goes underneath and you rest your feet on top of it. Its ok, but sometimes it gets a little cramped. Also, all the buses come with a drivers assistant bc the steering wheel is on the right side, but the cars drive on the right side also, which makes for an interesting situation when one wants to turnleft. So these little drivers assistants hang out wither the side or the back of the bus/ pickup and are another set of eyes for the drivers. They also run out to give money to thew officials at the check points. Very useful.

The longyi are really cool. Just a tube of fabric that en tie together in the middle to fit. The men just undo them and tie them back up. I have never seen so many mens' bare legs.

I bought peanuts the other day. They were still in the shell and were warm and wet. the woman scooped them into a plastic bag with an old tin can. Henry said they had been boiled in salty water. They were quite good.

I think the best part about traveling is meeting people from so many different places. You get to learn about so many countries from ppl who live there. If I were to go to say, Singapore, I would not experience or learn as much as I have traveling for a week with Christina. I would be in Singapore and I would be a tourist and do tourist things. I got to actaully learn about what it's like to live in Singapore (and Israel, and Slovenia and Korea...) I have enjoyed that more than actually traveling and seeing sites in Burma. I am not one for sites anyhow, I prefer to watch ppl everywhere (true Montrealer) but getting to know little insights into ppl and their countries- countries I may never visit- has just opened up my mind.

posted by jjoollee @ 10:28 PM