Don Gilliland’s travel blog has some bewitching photos of Myanmar, capturing some of the spirit of Myanmar people as they go about their everyday lives
While I’ve been plannng my trip to Myanmar, one of the blogs I’ve kept returning to for inspiration is Bangkok Dazed, which is written by Don, an expat American who owns the Dasa secondhand bookshop. While Don documents his Bangkok life running the bookshop, he has also written some great posts about his frequent visits to Myanmar. For Don, getting a cheap flight to Yangon for a long weekend is an ideal way to relax and get away from the madness of Bangkok – and his blog is full of fascinating photos of the people he has encountered in Myanmar. Many of these pictures are portraits of individuals or groups of people that are quite candid. Having made friends with several Myanmar families, Don has managed to get pictures of feasts of local Myanmar delicacies, Myanmar monks going about their day, life on Inle Lake along with some great snaps of Myanmar people and kids (ever inquisitive!) he’s met along the way, along with temples and people going to market. There’s something very evocative about Don’s pictures – they seem to capture quite a lot of the personality of the person framed within them. I’m not usually a fan of looking at other people’s holiday snaps, but scrolling through the Burma photos on Don’s blog is a real pleasure.
Besides Don’s blog, I’ve also been reading more of the excellent Irrawaddy.org, one of the most respected Myanmar news websites that is full of analysis and debate about various Myanmar issues. One recent article I took to heart was written by Emma Larkin, author of Secret Histories: Finding George Orwell in A Burmese Teashop, which is one of my chief inspirations for going to Myanmar. (I reviewed Secret Histories previously). Larkin has written Travelling In Burma, a somewhat alarming crash course in the realities of travelling in Myanmar that brings the reality of the country’s dire political situation and lack of freedom fully apparent. There’s still another week and a bit before I go, so if you know of any other good Myanmar related blogs, do let me know.
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