Middle-aged flash packers

Getting up at 4am is something I avoid like the plague. I once read a magazine article about someone who tried to be a milkman but gave it up after 3 weeks because he couldn’t stand the early starts. I don’t think I’d have lasted 3 days. But needs must and the journey to Mandalay…

Obviously we couldn’t just look at mount popa and it’s picturesque temple from afar, we needed to get up close and personal. The temple is a shrine to 37 nats, spirits that are worshipped alongside Buddha. They form the legends that underpin Myanmar’s ancient culture. I had already looked at a few blogs on climbing…

Today we moved on to Mount Popa, a designated national park area, about an hour’s drive east of Bagan. We had a little bit of trouble getting a taxi to our destination. The app equivalent of Uber didn’t come up with anything and a contact Jan and Nik had found wanted silly money. The hotel…

Nik and Jan decided to try out the e-bikes today. The bikes look more like scooters and Steve calls them the silent assassins as they don’t make a noise and sneak up behind you. We stuck to our own pedal power again but before we set off, we popped into the Shwezigon pagoda to see…

Our flight to Bagan had us up very early and on arrival our rooms weren’t ready so we toddled off to the Shwezigon Pagoda, just 5 minutes walk away. It was very busy and to be honest it didn’t really float my boat. I’m a bit of a philistine saying this as it’s a very…

We were all up surprising early considering what a late night we had. Having originally thought we’d have a lazy day, my thoughts turned to going on a cycle ride. Steve came up with the idea of cycling to a long bridge not too far away. Nik and Jan were up for it so off…

What an action packed day! We’d booked a boat trip yesterday. Usually I’m not a fan of these tours that pretend they’re cultural then take you to people’s shops selling stuff you don’t want. However, we were interested to see life on the lake and the delightful sales lady promised we wouldn’t be taken anywhere…

Fab day today. Started with breakfast presented on a miniature longboat. Fruit, yoghurt, dim sum and vegetable tempura. Followed by omelette, bacon, toast, pastries and jam. And avocado juice. And a carrot, orange and celery shot. The only chores we had to do today were sort out the laundry and find some transportation to the…

The homestay’s cockerel was a little premature with its crowing as it was still dark when it woke me up. My hips and backside were numb from the wooden floor. I fidgeted about for a bit before I gave up and started writing my blog. The village looked very misty this morning and there is…

After a very uncomfortable tummy in the night I decided to forgo breakfast and finish my blog and packing instead. We were all slightly nervous about the trek and how basic/hard it was going to be. We paid extra to go on a private trek and also to go on the less touristy trail. It…