Joanna James
Bordered by the Andaman Sea from its South is Myanmar, the largest of the Mainland Southeast Asian countries. Yangon, also known as Rangoon, is the largest city of the country, which also served as its capital until 2006. Here are several of the most interesting facts about Yangon, Myanmar!
Myanmar, or rather, Burma, is famed for its exquisite rubies, which are considered to be the best of its kind in the world. They can be found in numerous shades of red, such as blood red, vivid red, pinkish-red, and purplish red. The pigeon blood red ruby is hailed as the finest member of the Burmese rubies. The fact that Burmese rubies are held as the standard by which all other rubies are judged confirms its unrivalled status.
With a history of over 1500 years, Chinlone transcends beyond any sport that is played across the globe; it possesses an artistic blend of Burmese martial arts and dance. It is also the national sport of the country. Chinlone is a non-competitive sport that includes just one team of six players, where a ball made of rattan is juggled among all the players without the use of hands. The trick is to keep the ball from hitting the ground by adopting creative movements to pass it back and forth among the players.
Yadaya is a magical ritual or performance conducted to prevent, neutralise, or delay any misfortunes that might befall a person or the nation of Myanmar. The Yadaya rituals have influenced a myriad of government policies in the near past. One such instance is the unexplained decision to switch the road traffic to right-hand traffic in 1970, although most of the Burmese vehicles are manufactured for left-hand traffic. Another noteworthy example of employing Yadaya is the construction of 60,000 pagodas in 1961.
Tea is commonly associated with a beverage. But not in Myanmar! In this country, tea leaves are fermented and made into a delicious tea-leaf salad called Lahpet Thoke. The popular Burmese expression, "Of all the fruits, mango is the best; of all the meats, pork is the best; of all the leaves, lahpet is the best," shows the importance tea leaves have within the Burmese culture. Laphet is so loved that when the tea is harvested, the best portion is set aside for this dish, while the rest is processed for tea. Expect to taste Lahpet Thoke and a myriad of other Burmese delicacies when you dine at hotels in Rangoon the likes of Sedona Hotel Yangon.
Yangon is quite an old city that houses a myriad of ancient buildings, which were built before the time of elevators. Don't be surprised to see baskets that are tied up to the ends of long ropes hanging out of the windows. People have accustomed to a life without elevators by using this basket trick to access food and other essentials without leaving the building. All they need to do is put money in the basket and lower them to a passing vendor, and all they have to do is pull the basket up for all that they need. Brainy, huh?
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