The last few weeks I’ve been traveling around Cambodia, but I’ve spent the majority of my time at the islands and beaches. In fact, I started at the beaches and loved them so much that after doing a loop through Cambodia, I returned to Otres Beach for my final week in this country.
I love Otres Beach for its waterfront cafes and restaurants. There are plenty to choose from and they don’t fill up with too many patrons, so you can easily find a quiet spot to yourself. I spend my days mostly writing and reading, something I desperately want to catch up on after moving around so much recently.
My other favorite part of Otres is away from the restaurants: the long stretch of silky white sand lined with large, curvy trees. Since most people frequent the restaurants and cafes, this white sandy paradise is nearly vacant. At any point in the day, you can have a whole section of beach- and a tree- to yourself. My favorite time to visit is at sunset.
I stood on top of a large temple with a group of fellow travelers, staring at the giant orange ball peaking above the horizon and surveying the tops of pagodas slicing through the silvery haze. I tried to imagine over 10,000 temples and pagodas surrounding me, the staggering amount that existed during 11th and 13th centuries. But I could barely fathom the 2,229 temples that were currently standing before me.
The morning prior, we had rented e-bikes at 5am, rode in the dark to one of the larger temples, slipped through a small opening of a gate, and climbed up two pitch-black passageways that led us to the rooftop. No one else was up there- we had the temple to ourselves and relished the fact that our spot was unique. We sat anxiously, peering in the direction of where both the sun and hot air balloons would rise. The sun came, but no hot air balloons. We found out later that the winds were too strong and the rides were cancelled that day.
Eager to see the balloons fly over the temples, we returned to our same secret spot the next day. After moments of anticipation, we saw the hot air balloons rising in the far distance. Slightly worried, we thought they might remain miles away. But as the sun rose higher, the balloons floated straight towards us. Eventually some of them passed directly overhead, close enough that we could hear the flame blasting into the mouth of the balloon. We waved to the people hovering in the giant basket above us and they waved back.
I smiled. In that moment, everything was perfect.
I’ve been in Myanmar for about 21 days now. The first half of my stay here was at the Dhamma Joti Vipassana center in Yangon where I participated in a meditation course for 10 days (one of the main reasons why I came to Myanmar). Vipassana is one of India’s oldest techniques of meditation and is described as self-purification through self-observation. My 10 days were spent in silence, 10.5 hours a day sitting and observing my breath and sensations throughout my body. Despite its seemingly simple task of breathing and observing, the upright, seated posture caused intense pain and my wandering mind proved utmost challenging to focus. But that was mostly the point- those aspects you worked hard to accept and endure. Each day seemed to drag on forever and I often felt as if I had signed up for prison life, but as the week progressed, I felt calmer, lighter. Ultimately, it was a 10 day confrontation with oneself ending in more clarity and a flowing sensation of serenity. I realized just how powerful meditation can be and plan to continue the practice regularly.
The first several hours after Vipassana were overwhelming: cars honking, people chatting non-stop, the hustle and bustle of Yangon city life. It was too much stimulation after a week of mental solitude and I soon got a headache. Fortunately, I had pre-booked a ticket out of the city that night with the assumption that I would need a slow transition back into the “real world”. I wanted to be in nature so I made my way Kalaw, Myanmar where I planned to go trekking through the countryside.
Once in Kalaw, I signed up for the trek and homestay with a couple from Sweden and 4 friends from all over SE Asia. We hiked a total of 35 kilometers (22 miles) from Lamine, a small village near Kalaw to the southern part of Inle Lake. After the first 19km, our group spent the night in the village of Pattu, home of the Paoh Tribe. Between the sprawl of farmland, the rustic villages, and the ancient pagodas, it felt as if we had entered an old world.
