Statues from the temple in Thanlin, Myanmar
There we were on an overcrowded, aging bus heading back to Yangon with people crammed in every nook and cranny that could be found. The bus, devoid of what would could be considered "shock absorbers" is probably at least 50 years old and is being driven in the same way that a teenager would drive if given the keys to a new corvette. I was sitting in the "aisle" seat with two other people crammed between me and the window, although because of our completely average girths, my portion of the seat supported about one half of my left butt cheek. The rest of my body weight was underneath my right leg, which was propped in the aisle. This meant that anytime someone needed to move through the crowded bus, my foot was inevitably the first thing that was stepped on. A couple of smashed toes is not so bad to deal with, but that feeling, piled on top of my headache, cold, and mild case of diarrhea, was a little too much. At these moments it's hard not to think: why am I doing this to myself? Couldn't I just go back home and live a comfortable life?
To start, let me explain why we were on the bus in the first place. Both of us had gotten a cold or a flu at least once since being in Yangon, as well as some sort of stomach bug. We decided that we needed a break from the city, so we found that the closest possible escape was to an area called Thanlin. The Lonely Planet guide book describes it as a place where you can get the feel of rural Myanmar, which to us sounded like a respite from all the movement of the city. So, we headed to Thanlin and went to the local temple.
The temple is not an unspectacular place. There is a large golden zedi in the middle, surrounded by smaller temples with Shan architecture. It was the middle of the day, though, and the heat, compounded with my body's relentless urge to cough and sneeze all substances out of my body, made me particularly lethargic. We walked around the zedi, in much the same way that an aging couple would. Walk 50 feet. Stop. Rest in the shade. Walk another 50 feet. Stop. Rest in the shade....
There was nothing particularly spectacular that we saw. I watched some young kids ring the temple bell, then watched as they walked home down the stairs, through the lions guarding the east entrance. We saw how a compass, normally used to draw perfect mathematical circles, was used to make the Myanmar letters on a trash can. We responded to a couple of "hellos" to the amusement of the local people. Mostly, we just slowly wandered around a fairly normal place, trying to stay out of the sun and keeping my runny nose under control.
From the temple, we headed to the sprawling market in town. Normally, I love a good market, but my energy was sapped and instead of engaging myself, I shuffled around, only glancing at things as they passed. On one side is a pile of pungent dry fish. On the other are whole stalks from a banana tree. In front of me, are piles of wicker baskets stacked nearly to the ceiling. But really, the only thing I was thinking was "Can I go back to bed?"
The bus ride back, I've already told you about. Now back to why we subjected ourselves to all this for what turned out to be a disappointing day.
The fact that the trip was disappointing and didn't turn out how we thought it would, is not such a bad thing. When we do new things, part of the excitement is not knowing how they are going to turn out. Sometimes things don't turn out so great. Other times, it couldn't be more perfect. Not knowing what our day is going to be like is an exciting experience, even if we do know that we might have a terrible time.
So, yes, we could have a nice apartment with well-paying jobs just about anywhere in America if we wanted. We could settle down to a comfortable life and I'm sure one day we will. But for now, we like keeping our future open and keep seeing what comes our way. Sometimes, we are thrown lemons and other times, people bring us a perfect glass of lemonade. So, for now, we'll keep waking up excited every morning to find out what will happen to us that day.
I wonder what tomorrow holds....
We're silly and adventurous, computer geeks and yoga peeps.
February 24, 2011
Dan Dana
February 26, 2011
Kyle
February 24, 2011
shawna davidson
Love
Shawna
February 26, 2011
Kyle
February 24, 2011
Sheila Newton
February 25, 2011
Kyle
February 24, 2011
Rose P.
February 26, 2011
Kyle
February 24, 2011
Amelia
February 26, 2011
Kyle
February 24, 2011
Donna
February 26, 2011
Kyle
February 28, 2011
Michael Proulx
Thanks for taking the time to share some Thai suggestions with my friends.
Hope you're feeling better soon.
March 05, 2011
Linda
March 18, 2011
Rebecca