The Luxury Travel Bible - NEE NEE MYINT (Myanmar)

Nee Nee Myint (Myanmar)
Company: Zarmani Tours (Myanmar - formerly Burma)
Luxury Travel Adventures in Myanmar (Formerly Burma)
Myanmar is on many The Luxury Travel Bible readers' wish-lists this year (despite its recent troubles) and who better to explore the country with than Nee Nee Myint , one of the most knowledgeable guides in Myanmar.  Through her depth of experience and understanding of the country, clients are led on enchanting journeys on highland lakes to see picturesque villages, traditional markets and floating gardens, up rugged mountains to colourful hill tribe villages, into inland deserts adorned with pagodas and vibrant monasteries and sailing on the serene waters of the Ayeyarwaddy River.
Nee Nee offers very special holidays in Myanmar, each one tailor made to suit the client's specific needs and interests. What comes a cross on any tour is  Nee Nee 's deep  love and appreciation  of her country. She offers insights that make clients  feel that they have a window into the mysterious Mynamar.  Her clients come back time and time again, to feel the tranquility and to begin to understand the tremendous sense of identity that the Myanmar people have.  
My most luxurious and adventurous trip:
My story begins in the fabled city of Bagan on the east bank of the great and gentle Irrawaddy River. This is where we boarded a gorgeous riverboat and set off downriver past broad sandbanks and tall sandstone cliffs headed to Salay. A light lunch of simple Burmese dishes followed by fresh fruit was served on the upper deck as the banks of the river unfolded around us. In the late afternoon we bustled ashore and walked through the riverbound town of Salay and its beautiful monasteries. Then as the sun set we continued gently downriver on board the riverboat to moor at dusk against a sandbank in the middle of the Irrawaddy River. The river is incredibly tranquil in the evening and a traditional dinner was served on the upper deck looking over the flat starlit expanse of the river at night.

Luxury Travel Adventures in Burma

In the morning we rose early to find the riverboat already underway. And just as the dawn broke we disembarked and climbed aboard horse-carts for a gorgeous ride through fields of sunflowers to an ancient and seldom visited town called 'White Elephant Island'. Ground transport was waiting for us there and we continued by road to Salin. In Salin we had breakfast on a pagoda platform right in the middle of a gorgeous lake and were transported on trishaws to Salin's bustling market. From there we continued by road past expansive rice paddies, quaint villages and World War II Bailey Bridges to the Barwut (Frog Croaking) Monastery for a light lunch on the temple terrace. In the afternoon we crossed the fabled Mone River and rode a bullock cart through fields of sesame to a nearby village, and had tea with the people and learnt about their daily lives. Then in the gorgeous light of the late afternoon we entered the incredible Kyaungdawyar Monastery - reputedly visited by the Lord Gautama Buddha himself! We toured the monastery's libraries with the red robed Chief Abbot and soaked up the atmosphere on the pagoda platform. Then in the late evening we floated gently down the Mone River in traditional canoes to its confluence with the Irrawaddy River where we rejoined the riverboat, and had a Burmese barbeque dinner by a fire on a sandbank in the middle of the Irrawaddy River.

My favourite place in the world:
Definitely The Irrawaddy River. Arising deep in Myanmar's Himalayas the river tumbles through forested mountain gorges and fertile farmland, then luxuriates across dry and dusty plains to the many mouths of an expansive delta from which it spills into the Andaman Sea. It is Myanmar's main trading route and gateway to the interior, and its waters irrigate expansive paddies in the delta making one of the great rice bowls of Asia. The first kingdoms of Central Myanmar were established on its banks and their glittering monuments still line the river's shore. Today the river's fertile floodplain supports the majority of Myanmar's population and as always the river is an inextricable part of their daily lives. For me, to feel the rhythm of this wonderful river is to touch the hearts of its gentle smiling people.
Posted 1/7/13
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