Walking in Yangon

Yangon is what the old city of Rangoon is currently called. In 1989 the military junta changed its name, as well as changing the country's name from Burma to Myanmar. The name changes business gets tiresome, but I guess since we changed the name of the Gulf of Mexico to the Gulf of America, we can't complain too much.   

At any rate, the walk is through some very busy main and side streets. There were a tremendous number of food stalls everywhere. In my post on eating in ancient Rome, it was stated that the Romans primarily ate street food because their apartments weren't really set up for cooking -- I wondered if that wasn't the case in this city?

The buildings were a bit run down looking, with burglar bars even on upper story windows which is never a good sign. However, the people were dressed in new looking clothes and there were nice cars parked about. I'm guessing it was a middle-class neighborhood.

 

On the water in Burma

This video starts out in a small market. We then board a water taxi and travel down a river, through a small town where we refuel, and then eventually onto the open waters of a lake. It looks like it would be pleasant day trip. 

In my title I called the country Burma, the film-maker called it Myanmar. So which is correct? It is actually been known by both names. The British, during their colonial rule, settled on Burma as its official name. After independence the country's name was changed several times. It was a military junta that changed it to Myanmar, with the US, UK and a few other countries not recognizing the junta's mandate for such a name change and still calling it Burma. Read What’s in a Name: Burma or Myanmar? if you're interested in further details on the back and forth of the country's name changes.