I’ve mentioned before that I spent nine months volunteering in Thailand with two Burmese organizations, living with my Burmese colleagues for three of those months, so it’s a little crazy that it took me until now to actually visit Burma. But perhaps crazier still is that… I didn’t really want to go at all.
I started working with my first Burmese organization in 2012, just as Burma was starting to open up again. We watched sanctions being lifted, NGOs start to move from Thailand back into Burma, and travel articles start to list Burma as the new “it” destination. It was great.
Except that in our enthusiasm to reaccept Burma into the international community (and take advantage of its rich resources and market potential) we ignored many of the major problems that continued to plague the country. Funding for Burmese organizations based in Thailand was cut as donors decided to send money directly to Burma instead, and refugees were told that soon they would have to move to camps back inside Burma, the same place they had so recently fled.
Since then the situation has improved (while sadly Thailand has been moving in the opposite direction) and I’ve loved reading about other travelers’ trips to the country. But somehow I still felt weird about planning a trip to Burma as a tourist, so Dan and I decided to skip the major sites and just visit Yangon for a week, where we could stay with our friends Jon and Aileen and meet up with a bunch of Dan’s former students.
I’ll write another post about what I did in Yangon, but let’s get to the important part first: the food! Because mmmmm. I was a huge fan of Burmese food while living in Chiang Mai, so I was pretty excited to see what Yangon had to offer.
All of my friends agree that Burma’s best dish is Lahpet thohk, or tea leaf salad. It might actually be the world’s best dish.
Coming in a close second for me would be Shan tofu noodles. I’ve actually written about these noodles before, and tasting them in Burma was a true treat.
Shan food in general is delicious, and I ate different variations of Shan noodles pretty much every day I was in Yangon.
I had heard Aileen rave about Lucky 7 Tea Shop on 49th street, which is popular amongst expats as it has an English menu, and oh my goodness, I wish I could have breakfast there everyday. This was one of the first photos I took in Yangon, and every time it popped up on my camera my mouth started to water. 
We also stopped in The Strand Hotel, one of downtown Yangon’s fanciest hotels. It felt like stepping back in time to colonial era Yangon, with the hotel’s big wicker chairs and ornate ceiling fans. The coffee and cake was pretty delicious too.
Jon really enjoyed the lemon tart.
But after sitting in the dining room for a while surrounded only by other Western visitors we started to feel a little uncomfortable. It’s funny how much we can romanticize a period in history where Europeans actually were doing really horrible things to other countries. Once the guilt set in we quickly left the hotel for a cup of fresh sugar cane juice at a small street side stall instead. Phew.
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Rebekah says
I love this post because so many people just talk about Burma for its temples and its lack of massive crowds but ignore the political realities. Tourism can be really good for a country but it can also SO bad too and I often feel its not addressed enough. I hear you about feeling out of place in a colonial hotel. When I lived in Zambia we used to see vestiges of colonialism and never seemed like something we should romanticize.
Silvia says
Yeah it really was horrible to realize that we were totally romanticizing the past, when actually it involved lots of horrible things for Burma! I’m glad that more tourists are heading there, but the country still has sooo far to go, I also worry that people are ignoring a lot of its problems.
Vanessa @ The Travelling Colognian says
It is a shame that most people, even those who are visiting Burma, don’t know anything about the problems the country was and is still facing, Silvia. We should all be more attentive. But I am glad you had the chance to visit your friends in Yangon and I am looking forward to read more about your time there. Your post and photos are really watering my mouth. I definitely need to try burmese food next time I am in South East Asia, although it might take a while till I will visit Burma.
Silvia says
Burmese food was a favorite of mine while living in Chiang Mai, so you should definitely try some next time you’re in Thailand (or Burma!).
Stacie @ SImplySouthernStacie says
My cousins lived in Thailand for several years. I am so sad that I was young at the time. Otherwise, I would have loved to have visited them. It seems like such an interesting country.
Silvia says
I hope you eventually get the chance to go, Stacie!
sheila says
thanks so much for the tips. im headed there next week and cant wait to stuff my face 🙂
Silvia says
I’m jealous, I want to stuff my face again!
Victoria@ The British Berliner says
I’m glad that the international community is beginning to address the issue of Burma’s past, which is as complicated as it gets. The Shan noodles and lemon tart looked delightful by the way!
Silvia says
It sometimes feels like the international community is so eager to take advantage of Burma that they’re ignoring its continuing problems, but at least progress is (slowly) being made!
Marie @ Marie Away says
Ahhh everything looks soooo good. It makes me slightly depressed that I’m unlikely to have easy access to such deliciousness here in Edmonton.
Silvia says
I don’t know what I’m going to do without my weekly Shan noodle fix!
Amanda says
Mmmm, I loved Lucky 7. I ate there both mornings I was in Yangon and still think about that place. I also couldn’t believe how cheap it was. I had to have the waiter repeat the price like 3 times because I thought I was misunderstanding him. Nope, it was really that cheap….
Silvia says
I was also surprised how cheap it was! If I lived in Yangon I would probably eat there everyday, haha.
becky hutner says
i really respect your sensitivity towards travel in burma. you’re so lucky to have friends there — i would have appreciated a more insider perspective although i’m not knocking the amazingly well spoken & forthcoming cabbies, guides & randoms who freely offered their 2 cents!
a week in yangon is a bold choice. the salads & noodles were my favorite burmese eats although did you find the shan noodles a bit stinky? maybe it was the heat???
Silvia says
Haha the noodles were a bit stinky, but I tend to be a fan of strange smelling food! I also loved how friendly the cab drivers were – especially compared to Thailand!
Emma @ banquets and backpacks says
Food and travel, my favourite combination! Myanmar’s my dream destination and as a chef (and food obsessor extraordinaire) I think I really have to add Myanmar to my travels this year.
Silvia says
Burmese food really is so delicious, and really unique as well!
Robyn says
I love your work and nominated you for The Liebster Award! Keep it up, and good luck! http://www.thetechgypsy.com/the-liebster-award/
Silvia says
Thanks, Robyn, that’s so sweet of you!
Yosemite says
Legit comment: I am curious how this is similar/different to how you feel about traveling to Iran?
Not-legit comment: Can you please stop hanging out with Alicia without me, and also please bring me some Burmese food immediately. You can find me slowly going crazy eating a banana at the Istanbul airport. Thank you I will be awaiting your arrival.
Silvia says
1. The main difference to me is how foreigners tend to view each place. Most Westerners seem to think Iran is scary and dangerous, which makes it more important for tourists to actually go there and see the positive sides of the country and how amazing Iranians are. Burma on the other hand is being advertised as an up and coming tourist destination that everyone should get to quickly so as to beat the crowds, so I think it’s important to remind people of the negative sides of the country a bit more.
2. Alicia and Bryce just left, are you happy now??
CL (RealGunners) says
I think this post could be a classic example of the saying: “Where the large monuments and beautiful scenery failed, the food will succeed in luring potential visitors to the country!” 😀
I hope to visit Myanmar myself one day. I almost went with my mom last year, but then she decided to go with her bunch of Buddhist friends and it became some sort of a religious trip and I was not interested. She said the same thing about the tea leaf salad!
Silvia says
You definitely need to make it to Myanmar if only to try the tea leaf salad. I promise it’s worth it!
Emma says
So, like me, you said you didn’t initially want to go to Myanmar, and like me, you went and loved the food in Yangon – but my big question is are you glad you went?! X
Silvia says
I am! I’m actually a little bummed that I spent so much time in Chiang Mai when I probably should have just moved with everyone else to Yangon, haha. Hopefully one day I can see more of the country, but this time just going to Yangon was perfect.
emma says
And yes, Burmese tea leaf salad is actually the best food in the entire world. Seriously.
I bought some packets when I was in Myanmar, but they didn’t last long on my return to the UK sadly! 🙁
Silvia says
If I weren’t backpacking I would have bough kilos of it. Soooo good!
Kaleena's Kaleidoscope says
That food really does look mouthwatering! But you make a good point about traveling in Burma, one I hadn’t really considered. I’m planning to visit this summer some time but I’ll do more research on ethical ways to travel there. I’m curious about which organizations you volunteered with when you were in Thailand? I really want to do some volunteering on my upcoming trip since I have about 6 months in SE Asia. Would appreciate any info and recommendations! 🙂
Silvia says
I volunteered with the Karen Office of Relief and Development in Mae Sariang, where I lived with my colleagues and had free room and board (a great experience, though also a little intense!) and then in Chiang Mai with Equality Myanmar, though they’re now only based in Burma. I’d recommend emailing some organizations you’re interested in directly and seeing if they’re looking for volunteers (Chiang Mai has tons), though most places only really take people who can commit to at least a month. And never pay to volunteer, because that’s almost always a sign that they don’t actually need you to do anything for them and that giving a donation would be much more helpful!
Leah says
OMG these photos make me wanna jump on the next plane back to Southeast Asia! I had forgotten how much I goddamn love the food from that region. Latin America’s variations on rice and beans are starting to get stale.
Silvia says
Haha SE Asia really does know what’s up when it comes to food. I’m really sad to be leaving (except I’m super excited to be returning to the land of bread and CHEESE!!).
Sarah says
Interesting read! I was in Myanmar for three weeks and the first thing that springs to mind when it comes to food is: meh… I did have some really great dishes there but I guess I got tired of the local cuisine very fast. Maybe because there weren’t THAT may different options to mix things up? I should have had cake and coffee at the Strand, that would have probably cheered me up! 😀
Silvia says
I was really lucky to have locals showing me around Yangon, and they always ordered for me at restaurants. Otherwise I can imagine having a lot of misses while eating out!