ON THE BURMA ROAD

The twelve hour journey brought us through fairly rough terrain. Some parts of the roads, actually nearly all, were a mass of potholes. We rocked all the way there. The locals reminded me of the Irish. Everytime we asked if we were nearly there, they smiled adoringly and replied "Yes, not much further." Not much further turned out to be four hours further but you know, it wasn't all that horrendous.

The landscape was magical..fields and fields of sunflowers......then a few miles later brought me back to Connemara with its browns and reds. A few more miles down the road and we were in yet another type of landscape..reminiscent of Hollywood's Vietnam movies. Needless to say, there was a sense of euphoria when we finally planted ourselves in this Shan State country village. A cold breeze welcomed us as we struggled down the main street of Hsipaw looking for accommodation. People stared and smiled...kids giggled and teenage girls eyed us up...trying to figure us out. We hardly resembled their idea of western womanhood with our messy looking hair, smelly clothes and heavy backpacks. Resigned to the fact that a hot shower was but an erotic dream, we trudged along to Charlie's guesthouse and settled ourselves in.

The following day, we heard about the fesitivities planned for the Shan State's New Year and decided to stay longer. Tears continually threatened us as we met with local people. They were very curious about our nationality and why we were in Burma. Most thought we were a little crazy. The babies had my biological clock working overtime. They were so cute!!!!!!!!!! I almost went off and got myself one!! We wondered about healthcare and the education system and how mothers managed. We didn't get all that much information though.

People in Burma don't like to talk. Full stop. Anything remotely to do with the government brings about a general slump in the conversation. You get into trouble for spouting off in Burma. Giving your tuppence worth lands you in Jail. It wasn't until I left Burma and started reading Aung San Suu Kyi's Book 'Letters from Burma' that I really learnt anything about the country. As a tourist, you don't really know what's going on. You see what they want you to see.

We were thinking of going further north to a town near the Chinese border on the infamous Burma Road but were warned that the government had sealed the town's borders. There was no point going there. Information on healthcare and the education system, although not surprising, still served to annoy me. The infant mortality rate is 94 per 1000 live births. The mortality rate for those under 5 is the fourth highest in the region. Government expenditure in health and education is falling steadily. In 1992, it was 5.9% of the budget down to 5% in 1995 and decreasing. The maternal maternity rate is the 3rd highest in the region. What with lack of access to health services, lack of access to safe water and sanitation and a lack of any sort of national programmes for childhood development and health education, both women and children have a hard life in Burma. When I think of all those wonderful people, in the warmth of my own room in my happy little existence in Connemara, it makes me think about life's unfairness. Survival of the fittest and all that doesn't do it for me. Anyway...I won't get into it !!!

We spent a fabulous two days in Hsipaw partying with the locals as they celebrated the arrival of their new year and from there, we took the train down to Pye U Lwin with two South Africans and an Israeli. A six hour journey yet again turned into a 14 hour one as the train derailed and lay waiting for two hours. We enjoyed the journey despite the wait and when we were back on track, we rocked along our merry way down to the hillstation town of Pye U Lwin. Disaster struck on our way to our hotel in Pye U Lwin when the Horse and Carriage in which we were all squashed into overturned. The poor horse simply lost his footing but we ended up overturned in a ditch. It was a pretty shaky experience to be honest as we weren't sure if Lynne had broken her arm or not. Luckily, all we had were a few bruises and lucky for the driver, we were really kind and worried about his horse and his future. The carriage was repairable and the horse was in grand shape thankfully. People arrived on the scene and demanded to know what had happened.....officials no doubt. We were all fine. The last thing we wanted was the poor driver to get into serious fatal trouble. Hurting foreigners in any way has serious repercussions in Burma. All WE needed was the guilt of getting a poor chap shot to death!!

Take care,
Ita