‘You have three choices to your hotel: horse and cart, taxi or bike taxi.’ Bleary eyed, I scanned the sea of short dark men surrounding the door of the bus. I tried to summon up some 5am gumption.
‘I want the cheapest.’
‘Bike taxi.’
A black toothed, smiling man presented himself. His entire body width measured about the size of one of my forearms, all angles and sinewy muscles forced over small bones. He tried to grab one of my bags.
‘No, I’m okay.’ This guy didn’t seem like he could lift my small front pack let alone the 22 kilo monster backpack.
He led me over to his bike.
‘Oh no, that won’t fit me or my luggage!’
‘Yes, yes, ok, ok.’ He started placing my massive backpack on the back half of the ragged material covered seat connected to a rusty red two wheeled push bike.
‘No, no, I find taxi.’ I did not want this tiny man try and peddle me (and lets face it, I am not going to win any waif contests anytime soon), my 22 kilo backpack or my 12 kilo front pack. It would not be fair. And the truth is, I was not sure he could do it.
As I walked around asking taxi drivers and other tourists if I could share a cab ride into town, he became my shadow, all the while smiling a knowing smile.
‘Okay, no-one to share, you come me.’
‘Okay.’
The next 30 minute journey was both peaceful and impressive. This man, whose face told me he was in his 70s, but later realising that he was probably in his late 40s, (people age much quicker here), managed to steadily pump those peddles with all of my weight and weights past a couple of horse drawn carts to my Guest House.
I smiled all the way. After the chaotic and constant mess of Yangon, the dusty quiet of country allowed my shoulders to drop. Yes, I will stay here for 6 days. I need this.
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| Restaurant Street, Bagan. |
Bagan did not disappoint, in any way. Beside a few extra cars surrounding the main streets around 5 to 6pm, it was a calm, hot paradise. I stayed in Nyaung-U, an older part of town, about a 15 minute walk to the ‘restaurant street.’
‘Does it have a name for me to look out for?’
‘No, no name, it’s just called restaurant street because it’s got a lot of restaurants in it.’
In this VLOG I discuss my favourite, and not so obvious things to do in Bagan. I hope you enjoy it as much as I did!