The second time was a few months later when I was stalking my friend Katie's Facebook page, looking at her travel pictures. She had a picture of her and her husband in front of this stunning gold pagoda-thing, and another with her sitting and eating with some young monks. It looked like one of those beautiful, gritty places like India that I love so much. "Where is this place?" I gushed, "I have to go there!" "Myanmar," she replied, and I was sold, telling David he didn't have a choice. We booked our trip way in advance, to coincide with my Thanksgiving vacation days.
I was gleefully telling my friend Margaret about our upcoming trip, when she looked at me with something between irritation and pity. "Um, I have to tell you that I'm secretly judging you right now." she said. "What? Tell me why?!" "Because all their tourism dollars go to supplying arms to their military, none of it goes to the people, and they have major human rights violations, that's why!" Really, I had no idea. "But if you do go, can you buy me rubies? You can get really good ones there."
I'd better brush up on my reading, apparently I know nothing about this place I was visiting. I bought a travel book, and the first chapter was titled "Should You Go?". A few things that I learned:
1.) Myanmar used to be called Burma. (Oh yeah, isn't that where the last Rambo movie took place?)
2.) It's governed by a "military junta", and the leader holds the title of "Chairman of the State Peace and Development Council". I never knew a military dictatorship could sound so harmless. There's no judicial branch of the government, which means that you can get arrested for anything, anywhere, and they can hold you for no reason at all for any amount of time.
3.) It's 90% Buddhist
4.) An "expensive" meal is one that's over $5
5.) Snakebite is the most common injury requiring medical treatment
What did I get us into?
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