MYANMAR has long been known as a destination where travellers can explore and experience the mystical charms of Asia in all their diversity.

The well-known 19th century English writer, Rudyard Kipling, once wrote, “This is Burma [former name for Myanmar], and it will be quite unlike any land you know.”

Myanmar is unlike any other land in the sense that it is a country where a traveller can, in a single stop, see and experience rich archaeological sites, glittering pagodas, a wealth of diverse cultures, and colourful festivals and creative arts.

Myanmar’s 2832-kilometre-long coastline – from the mouth of the Naff River on the border with Bangladesh to the north, to the meeting point of the southern tip of Tanintharyi Division and Thailand to the south – offers an excellent variety of coral reefs and pelagic, or deep-water, areas for scuba diving.

“It is important for us to be able to rely on airlines because we need to schedule our programs at least six months in advance of tourists travelling to Myanmar,” said U Aung Myat Kyaw, the managing director of Orchestra Travel and Tours Company.

Putao itself is flat and contains no big trees, but it is becoming increasingly famous as a jumping-off point for trekkers who want to explore the region’s deep forests and snow-capped mountains, including the 5889-metre-high Mount Khakaborazi, the highest in Southeast Asia.

Since Visit Myanmar Year in 1996, hotels have been privatised and foreign investors invited to Myanmar, often under a ‘build-operate-transfer’ system whereby a 30-year lease is awarded to the investor, renewable for a further 15 years.

Among the chroniclers was Friar Sebastien Manrique, a Portuguese Augustinian missionary who visited the region during the 1600s. In mid-century he published book in which he wrote of witnessing the 1635 coronation ceremony of King Thiri Thudhamma. He was surprised, he said, by the large amounts of precious stones – diamonds, rubies and sapphires – being sold at the local market.

Monsoon-driven rains had turned otherwise gentle pathways into treacherous red clay bogs that threatened to suck the boots off the feet of anyone who dared set foot in them. High waters in area creeks made crossings difficult and in some cases even dangerous.

However, many travellers are constrained by money and time, but taking a vacation does not necessarily mean planning an extravagant weeks-long journey to the far reaches of the globe. There is plenty to see in and around Yangon that can be accessed with minimal planning, and only modest investments in time and money. These destinations offer proof that sometimes the simplest trips can be the best.

Tourism is a particularly tricky subject, since many countries are trying to increase visitation by foreigners as a means to generate revenue and show off their culture, and at the same time are concerned with limiting the influence of these same foreigners on the very culture that is helping to draw tourists in the first place.

The Burma Road ran from Bhamo to the Kunming in China, using part of a route built by the British during the 1920’s to connect Lashio in Shan State to Mong Yu on the Chinese border. An extension was built that linked Bhamo to this road via the town of Namkham, while the Chinese completed the route by improving an existing road from the border of Myanmar to Kunming in Yunnan Province.

The importance of safeguarding Myanmar’s rich biodiversity has long been recognised, with the first protected natural area established in 1918. By 2004 there were 40 parks and sanctuaries in the country’s protected system, more than half established after 1988.

“[The train] is quite slow but we don’t mind because we like looking at the countryside. We had a very good train ride from Kalaw [in Shan state] to Thazi [in Mandalay Division], which is a very good piece of railway. We very very much enjoyed the trip there,” said Mr Whittle, who is also an ex-major in the British Army.

This small restaurant may lack the ambience of some other places in Yangon, but it is well-known among locals and foreign visitors, and is always crowded with customers. Those who brave the lunchtime masses to find a seat at the simple wooden tables will find out why. The restaurant offers about 60 kinds of delicious Myanmar food. Meatless curries cost K200, while those with chicken will set customers back K700. Although desserts are not available, Aung Thukha does offer plain tea and laphet (pickled tea leaves). The restaurant is open daily from 8:30 am to 9 pm.

IN 2003 Myanmar had more tourist visitors from Thailand than any other country in the world, more than 20,000 according to statistics released this year by the Ministry of Hotels and Tourism.Myanmar and Thai people share many similarities, including appearance, culture and religion. So what makes them want to come to a place that in many ways is not much different from their own land?

The gardens also contain a shrine of Buddha relics that lies in a deep gully, surrounded by jungle-like plants. The trek down to the shrine is hard going but there are plenty of small refreshment stalls on the way to help quench your thirst. There is a pagoda hidden in the forest around the shrine, where many people claim to hear the distant roar of tigers as they pay homage.

With its flat, wide roads and relative lack of rain, Mandalay readily lends itself to pedal power. Most residents of the city use bicycles at one time or another to get around, and an increasing number of tourists are joining them on the streets to discover the freedom and independence associated with motorless two-wheeled transportation.

The number of participants represented a 70 per cent increase over the total delegates who attended PATA Travel Mart 2003 in Singapore. And the show – held at Queen Sirikit National Convention Center – took up 3571 square metres of net booth space, 54 per cent more than last year.

NEARLY all tourists, no matter where they travel, take photographs to document their journey and the lifestyles of the people they meet along the way.Myanmar is rich in the type of beautiful scenery and colourful culture that make perfect subjects for photography, and Mandalay in particular is full of landmarks worthy of committing to film or digital memory.

The training courses are offered about three times a year in an effort to continually expand the unit. Each course trains 40 selected police men and women stationed throughout Myanmar.The police force’s director of planning and training, Police Colonel Win Khaung, said most of the officers chosen for the courses were young lieutenants and second lieutenants.

About two miles east of the lake is relic hill that rises nearly 70 metres above the surrounding plain. At the top is a natural cave filled with stalactites and stalagmites. It is said to be a site where the Buddha – in a past life as a mythical Hinthar bird – rested with his retinue of 90,000 birds of the same species.