Less planning can lead to more memorable experiences – Myanmar case

It’s not for nothing that my mother likes to call me ”Last Minute”. People prefer to plan and organize things in advance to reduce stress, but in my case, it’s the opposite – planning stresses me out more than dealing with things at the last minute.

Specifically, when it comes to travels, I believe too much planning can even be an obstacle to learning opportunities, creativity and connection (plus, ironically, it can even cost more money). By planning everything out, we try to avoid any problems, which means we deprive ourselves from finding creative solutions. If we plan our travel route and activities in detail, we don’t allow enough space to explore and to connect with people in the settings that are not as attractive to tourists. The opportunities to relate to the locals and observe more authentic cultural features tend to be even greater in such places.

People also plan in order to make most of their time and to visit as many attractions as possible. I know this feeling and I guess it’s normal in any adventurer. However, I also think it’s important to analyze where this desire comes from and set the limits. Do we really need to see everything? Isn’t it stressful to keep up with those long check lists with hundreds of places to see squeezed in a couple of days or weeks? What is the quality of such traveling? Is it really fulfilling? Is there any time left to relate and contribute to the local culture?

After some years of traveling (and also more years on my back :D), I’ve learned the importance of going with my flow and focusing on things I want to do, rather than what everybody else does. Quite often I do end up in touristy places, but the spontaneous, organic way that I get there makes a difference for me.

When I came to Myanmar, I had little clue where I was heading. With little patience to read travel guides and more trust in the locals’ recommendations, I decided to take things easy and make most of my time by simply doing whatever I wanted.

I knew I wanted to travel by train because I saw it once in a documentary about Myanmar and it got stuck in my memory as something worth of experiencing. So, after crossing the border, the locals told me the closest city with the railway connection is Mawlamyine. That’s how I had my first destination on the horizon.

The sunrise at Kyaikthanlan Pagoda in Mawlamyine is colorful and quiet. It was in this temple that R. Kipling wrote his famous poem ”Mandalay”, describing a beautiful Burmese girl. (Click on each photo to enlarge.)

Mawlamyine is also famous for its colonial architecture. Its old houses and buildings along dusty roads evoke the ever-enduring past.

As I came to Mawlamyine, I came across a group of young taxi drivers who mentioned I should go to Mudon – a small city where precisely on that day the locals celebrated a birthday of a prominent monk and there was a huge party.

I couldn’t afford it, not even for the bargained price. However, one of the drivers insisted and I offered him probably the lowest price ever, but he agreed. Then I tried to talk him out of it because I knew he would lose money, but Soe didn’t care – he was so enthusiastic and happy about it as if my showing up there and the sudden trip to Mudon had made his day!

In Mudon we saw the world’s largest reclining Buddha (that I didn’t even know it was there), talked about Buddhism and had some typical food in a crowded and lively market. Soe even got thanaka wood for me and explained how to apply it to my face. The following day, Soe took me to his family’s restaurant for a traditional breakfast and showed me some of Mawlamyine’s attractions. He strongly recommended me to visit his hometown Mrauk-U.

The world’s largest reclining Buddha is in Mudon.

You could actually enter the Buddha statue and inside you find representations of different stages of Buddha’s life.

The main street leading to the Buddha image was full of people and stands with all sorts of stuff: food, clothes, toys…

Mrauk-U was way off the typical touristy routes, far in the north by the Bangladesh border.  Being a conflict zone made it even a less attractive destination for large majority. However, I decided I would travel by train across the country, as long as the railways permitted, with the final goal to reach Mrauk-U.

In Bago, one of my first train stops, I met Nyi, a local who took me on his motorbike around the city and the outskirts. He also invited me to visit his house – it was a traditional Myanmar wooden house. Among other things, from Nyi I learned about the hard life of young Myanmar immigrants in Korea because he was getting ready to join his brothers there. Before I left, Nyi also had a surprise for me: a traditional Myanmar dress (longyi).

On the train station to Yangon, I met a young Myanmar couple who had recently got married so I took the opportunity to ask about Myanmar customs when it comes to love, relationships and family life. The girl, Thinn Nwe, helped me improve my embarrassingly limited Myanmar vocabulary and to learn more about the traditional dishes.

In Yangon it was hard to find cheap accommodation. I was getting a bit desperate and I guess the guy working in the last hostel I entered noticed it. So, he offered me a cheap price to stay in a dorm that he shared with the other receptionist. We got along very well and soon enough they invited me to share a bottle of Myanmar whiskey with them. The following day, I put on my longyi and one of the guys took me out on a ”date”, just so I could experience the Yangon ways of courtship.

From Yangon I headed to Mandalay – from there I could also take a train ride over the 120-years old Goteik viaduct that I saw in the documentary I mentioned before. I didn’t want to miss that experience, but everything indicated that I needed two days to do it – two days I didn’t have because the same day I wanted to take the night train to Bagan.

I decided to risk it. The train was supposed to leave Mandalay at 4am and would cross Goteik viaduct around 11am. Hopefully, I would hitchike a ride till noon and be back in Mandalay till 5pm, just about time to catch the 7pm train to Bagan. At least, that was the plan.

In the end, the train was two hours delayed so we started only at 6am and reached Goteik only at 1pm. But I didn’t lose hope, not for a second. I started hitchhiking and half an hour later I was in a car with a guy that drove so recklessly along the steep mountain drops as if we were being chased by a hurricane. Luckily, I didn’t care – I was so exhausted by then that I fell asleep soon after we started the rally. After changing one more car, I was very lucky to reach Mandalay at 6.30pm and half an hour later I was on the night train to Bagan!

When I finally reached Mrauk-U, I understood why I met Soe at the start of my trip and why precisely this place had been planted in my mind from the beginning as my ultimate destination. One of the most memorable experiences I have lived so far happened right there. But that’s a story that deserves a post of its own so stay tuned.

What I want to illustrate here is that less planning doesn’t necesarily mean that something bad will happen. On the contrary, we might end up in adventures our mind couldn’t have put together. This is why I prefer to be carried away, not creating expectations and leaving all the doors open for anything to happen.

For example, If I had booked my accommodation in advance, I probably wouldn’t have ended up going out on a ”date” with a local guy. If I had depended only on the official timetables for the transport, I would’ve lost the chance to cross the unique Goteik viaduct! If I had planned buying a traditional Myanmar dress, it wouldn’t have been as special as the one I unexpectedly got from Nyi.

Such unpredictable things happen when we allow enough room for them – with more flexibility, less control and less expectations. I’ve mentioned here only some of the situations when, actually, on daily basis rather unimaginable coincidences and circumstances were taking place, making me feel more present, closer to Myanmar and to its people.

I admit, nonetheless, that sometimes planning in advance can be handy. If I had done any research before, I probably would’ve avoided going all the way back from Myanmar-Thai border to Yangon, on a 22-hour ride by bus that broke three times (but each time I fully trusted they would fix it – Myanmar people have a solution to everything)! Anyway, on the border, after a series of dramatic scenes, I got an expulsion order from Thailand for not having a valid visa.

Men playing a traditional game on the street in Yangon.

Street view in Yangon

It costed me time and money (neither of which I could really afford), but then again, I look back at this experience with a smile. The people on the border related to my ”tragedy” in such a way that they offered me and my friend free accommodation so that we could rest and start the return trip the following morning. Myanmar police said that they had never seen Thai authorities do such a thing for a tourist. Moreover, for the days necessary to issue a new visa in Yangon I was hosted by a nice Spanish guy. I had got his contact weeks before from some Russian travelers and, to be honest, I had never thought I would come to use it.

I don’t know if these things happen only by chance or we attract them subconsciously in our thoughts. If it’s thinking, then don’t think too much – the experiences that transmute to unforgettable memories are precisely the unthinkable ones.