Mandalay Streets, Markets and Plans for the Irrawaddy

So I didn’t finish yesterday’s post because I wanted to get today’s post done, although yesterday’s post was done today and talks about what we did yesterday. Damn! I wish I could figure out how to set the calendar on this blog site to more accurately reflect the real-time stuff I want to talk about.

Oh well. Anyway, we had a great day today. As was mentioned yesterday (today), Mandalay is a very nice city. We strolled the streets, back lanes, markets and shops and had a wonderful time. It is such a cool place.

We stopped in a store and I bought a new pair of shorts—high-end, Joyce tells me—for $21.00. Made in, guess where? Yes, China, so maybe they are knockoffs. I also bought the local attire, a longyi, a men’s skirt, but I really need to learn how to tie it properly. Otherwise, I’ll be wearing shorts underneath, which kind of defeats the purpose.

I’ve worn one twice so far and it just doesn’t stay tied up for some reason. No one else has this problem, but no one else has a beer belly, so maybe this is the reason? Probably, and I can’t wear a belt. More pics of this outfit to follow soon, I’m sure.

We had a great day wandering the streets, meeting the locals and stopping for lunch at a little food stand, where we had a delicious bowl of vegetable noodle soup with the locals—a couple of whom were getting drunk on this beautiful Saturday afternoon.

We left today open so we could wander the streets and arrange boat transport for a trip up and down the Irrawaddy River. Time was ticking and we really needed to get something organized.

Yesterday, our hotel did a little research on our behalf and came up with two options: a two-night/three-day cruise and a three-night/four-day cruise to Bagan. Our dates didn’t fit the schedule, so we opted for a private boat.

We’ll meet the boat people 🙂 tomorrow to finalize our itinerary, and we look forward to a great river journey on the Irrawaddy River. Three nights and four days, with only the two of us deciding where to go and when to stop. Perfect—just how we like it!