Ironwulf.net: En Route – The Philippines, Travel, Photography Blog

By this time, I had been used to the constant nagging of vendors. Initially they would eye you like a prey, ask where you are from, then give some trivia about the place or temple you are visiting, even accompany you around and finally ask to look at their wares without obligation to buy. On my way out from Nan Paya, I encountered this young persistent girl who tried to sell her lacquerware. I did look at the items she’s selling but decided not to buy the pair of owls (man and woman) that interested me that I found so expensive at 8000 kyat. As I head to the steps she was pleading. Telling me it would be good luck if I’ll be her first customer. She followed me to the exit with a face almost in tears.

Stepping into a foreign land can be intimidating and exciting. Expect some degree of culture shock as one learns the rope of a place. The ease of getting used to a foreign land depends on one’s first few steps are. In my case, I can get by with mid-range to budget hostels and inns when I travel, much like Motherland Inn when I went to Burma. They were so friendly and helpful on a personal level that I quickly adjusted. But for the Philippines who’s not really accustomed to hostels, sleeping at dorms with strangers, communal bathrooms, I was glad to learn that there is already a growing number of backpacker friendly hostels and one of them is Our Melting Pot Hostel in Makati.

Day 4 of my journey in Myanmar has been great so far, especially with that magnificent sunrise over Old Bagan. We made our way to the village of Myinkaba, just along the road between Old Bagan and New Bagan. Breakfast was the first order of the day and it was also a great way to observe the locals on their more relaxed pace. I noticed the similarity with Myanmar’s neighboring Indo-China country like Laos and Vietnam who likes to have breakfast at the streets, particularly tea houses. I pulled out a chair and sat down with Mime and ate like how the Burmese eat.

It’s one of those trips that I just said yes without knowing exactly where I was going. I was yearning for a downtime after a somewhat busy week that I was ready to escape anywhere. It was an invitation to check out a resort in Batangas but I only knew of the details that day when I got into the car onto a road trip down south. We were going to Balayan, a town virtually out of the radar among four of us in the car. So following a crudely drawn map, a series of instructions and some pictures landmark as puzzles, we rolled on with a sense of adventure to find the resort named Blue Dolphin.

The chill of the early morning wind was really pleasant in Bagan this time of the year. Yes, I got up early and got out of the hotel just in time when Mime and Chune just arrived at the front gate exactly 5am. We started our ride again to the direction of Old Bagan while I survey the surroundings, now familiar even under the sheaths of darkness ready to wake up any moment. I have no idea which temple Mime plans to take me for the sunrise except that it’s somewhere between Old Bagan and Myinkaba, the next village. He has proven to be very reliable and knowledgeable as a guide aside from being just a horse cart driver so I’ll trust his recommendation this time.

My sleep was so deep. It felt like only a second passed since my eyes closed until the moment I woke up. My senses were getting accustomed to the living world when I wondered why my alarm didn’t go off. I reached for my watch and was shocked to see it was already 4:30pm! I jumped off the bed and grabbed my things like there’s no tomorrow. I asked Mime to fetch me at the hotel at 3:30pm for out afternoon expedition at the Central plains including a sunset at Pyathada Paya, but an hour had already passed. So much for the planned itinerary for the afternoon, I haven’t even had my lunch yet.

There is one temple in Bagan which is highly recommended by guides and people there, it is Ananda Pahto, and there are good reasons why – it’s one of the largest, finest and most importantly, the most-preserved temple in Bagan. Coming from the road on the north plain this was the main temple on the east, outside the walls of Old Bagan. It’s very popular so the presence of the vendor stands leading to the Pahto’s main entrance is expected. Beyond them I marvelled at the beautiful white-washed temple with a golden corn-like stupa glimmering at the mid-day sun.