But to this day there are no beach bars and no rip-offs.

The village is still morally rural, women come together at the village fountain to fetch water, children play in the small front gardens, ox carts drive through the alleys. Then suddenly great excitement: The Hindus celebrate a temple festival with a lot of fanfare, dances and a colorful procession.

The colonial era has left its mark on Yangon

Colonial Yangon is located between the Sule Pagoda and the Secretariat of the British Colonial Authority, an imposing brick building, on Pansodan Road and Strand Road. The English colonial style has also been preserved in some of the smaller streets behind it, imposing as in the Secretary, where renovation work is currently taking place, inviting as in the Strand Hotel, and in picturesque decay as in the small streets behind Pansodan Road.

Difficult way to the Golden Rock

Golden Rock, the golden rock, is a very special place of pilgrimage. Just getting there is an adventure in itself. From the so-called base camp in Kipun, small trucks drive halfway up the mountain. In breakneck serpentines, around 50 people on the open loading area are shaken together and cling to the narrow benches on which they sit tightly. From the next station, tourists have to walk. The destination is about four kilometers away, the paved path leads steeply uphill. If you like it more comfortable, you can let yourself be carried up on a sedan chair like the Vietnamese did, who sat with us in the pickup truck. The sight of the golden rock, which seems to be about to crash and only balanced directly above the abyss, is amazing and almost dramatic after sunset.

Floating vegetable gardens in Inle Lake

Longboats with outboard motors rattle across the water. The one-legged fishermen typical of Inle Lake in the Shan Highlands haul in their nets. The gardener comes by boat to the floating vegetable gardens. On the bank, the hotels on stilts alternate with small villages. Shaky bamboo structures bridge the tributaries. An exotic monastery is reflected in the lake, over which Buddhist chants waft like a distant echo.

One of the main tourist destinations on Inle Lake are the pagodas of Indein, picturesquely scattered over a hill, most of them are falling into disrepair, others rather poorly stabilized with cement. As in Angkor, Cambodia, nature has taken back the building site, trees are rooting in the old stones and blowing up the stupas. Pieces of stucco lie in the grass, small Buddha figures. The Shwe Indein Pagoda is enthroned on the hill amidst new, golden whitewashed cement stupas.

The Kakku pagoda field looks like an enchanted forest

The drive to the pagoda field of Kakku, which is one of the most important holy places for the Pa O, is difficult. Behind Taunggyi, the perforated concrete belt of the road becomes narrow like a dirt road. Every oncoming car means a complicated evasive maneuver. The street meanders through a gentle landscape in which there are often still old Pa-O houses with walls made of bamboo. Cebus graze in the meadows, the yacaranda trees bloom blue, the flamboyant trees red. And then the pagoda field comes into view, more than 2000 stupas tower into the sky like an enchanted forest of stone.

Irrawaddy – The River of Fate of Myanmar

Today the broad river is mainly used by small cruise ships and huge wooden freighters. In the past, the Irrawaddy was a staging area for the British invaders, whose mighty navy the Burmese had little to oppose. For the historian Thant Myint-U, the Ayeryarwady, as the river is called in Myanmar, is not the touristic one "Road to Mandalay" but the "River of Lost Footprints" on which the history of the country was decided. The first Anglo-Burmese peace treaty was signed in the village of Yandabo.

Today the tourist ships stop here, the passengers can watch the women of the village making pottery and get a feel for everyday life in the village. 1500 people still live here almost like their forefathers. The village of Shwe Pyi Thar, where people share their huts with chickens and pigs, seems even more out of date. There is no electricity, but at least a few solar panels and fresh water sources. The children run together when tourists come to the village, because they keep their school, which is financed by donations, running. There’s a little song in English for that.

The legendary Mandalay is now just a shadow

The last capital of the Burmese kingdom still has a sonorous name, but little remains of the old city after the destruction in World War II by the Japanese and British. The Kuthodaw Pagoda, also the largest book in the world, is worth seeing: 729 stupas with the teachings of the Buddha carved in stone. The gold armored Mahamuni Buddha is also worth a visit. The statue, which almost disappears under the massive gold layer, is said to have been created during the lifetime of the Buddha, according to legend. The Mandagandayon Monastery is a special kind of place of pilgrimage. Tourists are carted there en masse to take pictures of the morning feeding of the patiently waiting monks.

The longest teak bridge in the world

The over one kilometer long U Bein bridge on high stilts is considered to be the longest teak bridge in the world. A good 1000 teak logs were used to build the bridge in 1874. On public holidays, crowds of people roll over the wobbly wooden planks, from the lake they look like paper cutouts in the sun.

Carriage ride to the Leaning Tower of Ava

For centuries Ava (Inwa) was the city of the Burmese kings. But the old splendor of the royal city on an island has long faded. A small ferry takes visitors over the Myittha Canal to Ava. The best way to explore the field of ruins is by horse-drawn carriage. A carriage ride for two costs 9,000 kyat (around 6.70 euros). But you bump through fields and meadows to the "Leaning Tower of Ava" the last remnant of the royal palace. The Nanmyin watchtower has been crooked since the earthquake of 1838. The Bagaya Monastery appears deserted and is supported by 267 huge teak logs. The carvings on the windows and doors are beautiful. In the middle of the fields, a couple of stupas resist decay.

Discover the temple complex of Bagan without the hustle and bustle

When the evening light makes the temple field of Bagan glow, the temples and stupas that grow out of the sand-colored ground look like from another world. But since the opening of Myanmar, Bagan has also been one of the pilgrimage destinations of the international tourism industry. Buses unload their cargo in front of the largest and most beautiful temples that are besieged by traders. Anyone traveling by bike, horse-drawn carriage or car can avoid the hustle and bustle and experience some temples in meditative silence.

Ngapali – an almost deserted beach paradise

Beaches are seldom so far, so white, so empty. Even though Ngapali was the first beach that foreign tourists discovered for themselves. But to this day there are no beach bars and no rip-offs. Most hotels include thai women for marriage loungers and umbrellas. Every now and then the fruit woman comes by, balancing a basket with fresh fruit on her head, which she sells for little money. Souvenirs are available in the shops along the street. Here you will also find rows of inexpensive restaurants where you can eat well and are served in a friendly manner. During the season, people here have to earn enough to survive the monsoon season. From mid-May to mid-October they are alone in Ngapali.

Unique island world of the Mergui Archipelago

The Mergui Archipelago consists of around 800 densely forested islands in the Andaman Sea on the west coast of Myanmar. During the military dictatorship in the Southeast Asian country, the region was sealed off from the outside world. Thanks to the years of isolation, the Mergui-Achipel is one of the last largely untouched island landscapes in the world and has a unique biodiversity. Only the Moken people, who are also known as sea nomads, lived there for a long time. Visitors were not allowed to enter until 1997, today tourists can stay overnight there and book diving tours and yacht cruises.

More information on Myanmar

Travel agent: Myanmar has been the shooting star in long-distance travel since the political opening. Large and small providers have the Asian country, which was formerly called Burma, in their program, including TUI, Gebeco, Studiosus or Geoplan (www.geoplan-reisen.de). Arrival: Yangon Airport is served by Thai Airways, Singapore, among others Air, Austrian Airlines, Air Berlin and Condor.

Photo show: Myanmar, the land of contrasts Photo show: Islands of the Mergui ArchipelagoThe Governor’s Residence: In the luxury hotel you feel like in Kipling’s time, only more comfortable (www.governorsresidence.com). Myanmar Inle Treasure Resort: From the stilt houses in the first row you have the most beautiful view of the sunset (www.myanmartreasureresorts.com/inle.html). RV Paukan 2007: cozy boutique ship with space for 55 passengers (www.paukan.com). Amazing Ngapali Resort: well run hotel in beautiful gardens with food at reasonable prices with a view of the sea (www.amazingngapaliresort.com). Ngapali Bay Villas & Spa: exceptionally tasteful and comfortable beach hotel in a lush garden landscape with a spacious pool and beautiful views (www.ngapalibay.com) Amazing Bagan Resort: located a little away from the temples on the golf course. Marionette performances in the evening, attentive service (www.bagangolfresort.net).

When it comes to dairy products, women who want to have children should not go for a lean but a high-fat one. A study by the American Harvard University has shown that the chance of getting pregnant is significantly higher if women consume fat-containing dairy products. Conversely, when women went on a reduced-fat diet, they had an 85 percent higher risk of ovarian dysfunction. Which foods increase the chances of having children and which do not.

Pregnancy Myths True or False?

Data from 18,000 women evaluated

The scientists around Dr. Jorge Chavarro compared the eating habits of 18,000 women who tried to become pregnant between 1991 and 1999. Every two years, women reported whether they had tried to conceive for more than a year and how they fed themselves. Around 438 women experienced difficulties conceiving. When the numbers were compared, it was found that women who had problems conceiving ate mostly low-fat dairy products.

Ice cream better than skimmed milk

The figures also showed that the more fat the dairy products contained, the lower the risk of infertility. Ice cream proved to be particularly effective. Women who ate ice cream twice a week had a 38 percent lower risk of ovarian dysfunction. The researchers have not yet been able to clarify why this is so. They suspect that high-fat milk contains more estrogens. These are hormones that promote fertility. The researchers recommend women who want to get pregnant to rely more on high-fat dairy products instead of lean ones.

Fats in french fries are harmful

French fries, burgers, chips and chocolate also contain a lot of fat. But Dr. Exit Chavarro. Because these are so-called trans fats. They are manufactured on a purely industrial basis and are mainly found in fried foods and ready-made meals. The 438 women with fertility problems frequently ate foods that were high in trans fats.

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