I started the day at the Palm Spring Resort Hotel in Myitkyina with a walk around the well-tended gardens fronting on the river then took breakfast in the large dining room. They opened at seven and clearly concentrated on providing for the Myanmar guests first – there was a range of Myanmar dishes, coffee and chilled water already laid out. Orange juice arrived a little later and a toaster for the white sliced bread much later. Despite the language problems, I managed to get two fried eggs, 'sunny side'.
Palm Springs Resort, Myitkyina.
On the previous day, I'd carefully explained to July my interest in railways so our first destination was the railway station. To my surprise, there was a train waiting to depart - the 8.00 a.m. to Mandalay headed by a sparkling reconditioned YDM4 "with fuel-efficient engine" only recently arrived in Myanmar. I took pictures as the crowded train left then studied other features of the track and signalling equipment before locating the Station Master. The Station Master's Office usually has a track diagram of the station and, once July explained my interest, he was happy to let me take pictures.
MR: Myitkyina: DF 1363 ready to depart for Mandalay.
Having discovered that there was a State Museum in Myitkyina, I was keen to visit it (although it was not on my pre-arranged programme). We agreed to see if it was open although that seemed unlikely since the day was what they call a 'Gazetted Holiday' (presumably a legacy of British Rule). The main gates were closed but July walked in through a side gate to make enquiries and before long returned to beckon the car in. By the time we'd driven round the building to the parking area, the front door of the modern building was being opened so I was able to spend a pleasant hour in the well-presented museum.
Kachin State Museum, Myitkyina: Display of ethnic costumes.
At a level crossing leaving the city, I spotted a nice example of a lattice post outer home signal so we stopped for pictures. The signal was 'off' and a couple of minutes later a long passenger train rumbled past, at the end of its journey to Myitkyina.
We then continued south with a slight delay at the roadside immigration desk when the officer couldn't find the entry stamp in my passport. July sorted it out and we carried on to Mogaung where we stopped for lunch at a Chinese-style restaurant, served by a young boy waiter about ten years old (but going on 28). The meal was accompanied by a xylophone and drum band in a three-wheel motor cycle taxi parked outside the restaurant, apparently connected with celebrations at a monastery along the side street. Their music didn't seem terribly good and was punctuated by celebratory firecrackers. These were periodically set off by a young lad in the taxi who each time, having lit and tossed the firework, covered both ears with his hands.
Before leaving Mogaung, we paid a brief visit to the station where, again, the Station master let me take pictures. He was clearly amused that I understood the principles of trapped key interlocking as he followed my simplified explanations to July.
MR: Mogaung: Trapped Key locking box.
We carried on to Hopin and here we made a pleasant visit to July's sister's and her three children.
Hopin: July with her Sister and Children.
Leaving Hopin, our route took us high into the mountains on a winding, difficult road across Nantmoon Mountain. When we stopped at a viewpoint to look back at the plain we'd left, just where we'd parked there was a large patch of the fascinating Sensitive Plant whose fern-like leaves fold up in self-defence when touched. There's more about this plant on Wikipedia here.
A little further on we came to the summit, this time with a viewpoint showing the hair-raising descent we were about to undertake leading us down to the plain on the Indawgyi Lake side of the Nantmoon Mountain. A crowd of happy Myanmar tourists were taking pictures around the large sign, in Myanmar language and English, reading 'Indawgyi Biosphere Reserve'.
Myitkyina - Lonton by road: A photocall at the sign for Indawgyi Biosphere Reserve.
The ground fell away from the viewpoint quite steeply but a small herd of mountain buffalo traversed the steep hillside with remarkable assurance for their size. Our 4x4 descended safely around the twists and turns to the plain but it was best not to look too closely at just how deep the drop was at the side of the road.
Passing through Nawn Ting Village on the plain, we came across what was clearly important football match between two village teams - Natgyikhone and Latpansayt. There were hundreds of motor cycles parked, some passenger-carrying pick-up trucks and a good selection of traders selling food. What the players lacked in talent was more than compensated for by their enthusiasm and the spectators whooped and jumped up and down at every pass. We watched the last ten minutes of the game as I found the atmosphere infectious. The local mothers all seemed to carry their young babies on their backs in a simple cloth 'sling'. One woman spectator was so excited, jumping up and down and shouting, I was sure her baby would be ejected from the sling! At the final whistle, the result was a win for Latpansayt 2-1 , the pitch was invaded by spectators, and some players took off their shirts and threw them high into the air. After this entertainment, we continued our journey together with large numbers of motor cycles taking spectators home.
Myitkyina - Lonton by road: Natgyikhone playing Latpansayt.
Finally, we arrived at the lakeside village of Lonton and our Guest House for the night. The description I'd been given of 'Very Basic' was accurate but, after a cold shower in the shared-use wooden bathroom provided with a western-style water closet, I slept soundly.
I first published a brief trip report once I'd arrived back in Mandalay, but I'm afraid putting my pictures on 'Flickr' had to await a better internet connection back in Yangon. I didn't catch up with 'embedding' a few pictures until January, 2018.
Related posts on this website
This is one of a series of posts describing my 12th visit to Myanmar. The post Starting out is the first post in the series.
Clicking on the 'Next report' link displays the post describing the next events. In this way, you may read about the trip in sequence.
Next report on this trip.
Alternately, clicking on the 'All my Burma-2017(2) reports' link displays all the posts on this trip in reverse date-of-posting order.
All my Burma-2017(2) reports.
My photograph albums
Where necessary, clicking on an image above will display an 'uncropped' view or, alternately, pictures may be selected, viewed or downloaded, in various sizes, from the albums listed:-
Palm Springs Resort, Myitkyina.
Kachin State Museum, Myitkyina.
Myitkyina - Lonton by road.
MR: Myitkyina.
MR: Mogaung.
[Minor changes and links to pictures added 16-Oct-2017: Pictures added 4-Jan-2018]
