Here and There


Sneaking out onto the tarmac at Heho Airport for a sunset photo. (by sneaking I mean no one batted an eye)


The last month has been quite busy! Evelyn and I travelled to the coast to Ngwe Saung with Tara as she was doing a triathlon. It was a six hour drive there and back on Saturday and Sunday but man was the afternoon of quiet at the beach nice. The water was so warm and I got to dip my toes in the Bay of Bengal! 

Ugo and Evelyn at the Yangon Sailing Club for Friday drinks

In Ngwe Saung


Spectacular sunset over the Bay of Bengal


After returning back to Yangon on Sunday, I then left for Taunggyi on Monday morning with my colleague Seng Myaw.  Seng Myaw and I spent the week delivering training on the IDLO's sexual harassment in the workplace policy at the different Rule of Law Centres. I had a lot of fun getting to see each ROLC location and it was nice to see everyone again.

Taunggyi (where I went for the balloon festival) is located in Shan state, which is known for its food and Sengy Myaw and I made the most of it! We went out for Thai hot pot, which was delicious. Honestly, I don't know why all hot pot isn't this way - there's a grill in the middle for meat and soup in the moat around the edge for your vegetables. So good!  For lunch the next day I floated the idea of dumplings or Shan noodles, so Seng Myaw proposed both. However, the noodles at the dumpling shop aren't the best, so instead, we picked up dumplings and brought them to the noodle shop! According to Seng Myaw this is something she does all the time. Obviously, my Western sensibilities were initially shocked but I was quite happy to have my cake (well noodles and dumplings) and eat it too!



After Taunggyi we went to Mandalay and then from Mandalay to Myitkyina (kind of pronounced Mi-cheena) which is in Kachin State. Kachin is in the far north of Myanmar and many people who come to visit (or even live here) don't make it there - so it was really special to be able to travel to Myitkyina. I spent the weekend doing a bit of sightseeing that I'm going to do a second post about - so stay tuned.

Out for dinner in Myitkyina. Yes the restaurant is outside and yes it is cold - like 15 degrees, which means winter coats are necessary. Don't judge.

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