Eating in Mrauk U, Myanmar

Mrauk U is a village and certainly not a culinary capital, though we found some good places to eat (and a bad one).

Happy Garden Restaurant



Owner U Min Cho and his daughter Bone Bone (pron. Bon Bon) are welcoming and friendly. Their service and the cute garden setting made this my favourite restaurant in Mrauk U.

The menu has a range of Myanmar & Chinese cuisine. Salads are 1,000-2,000 Kyat, chicken and pork mains are around 2,000 Kyat, Prawn and fish are 3,000 Kyat. We tried several items, which were all pretty good.






U Min Cho, the owner at Happy Garden Restaurant

U Min Cho struck up conversation with us, eagerly taught us how to speak in Myanmar and told us of his plan to build bungalows on the site, which he hopes to have ready by 2015. He plans to charge $15 USD for a single and $20 USD for a double.


Part of the Happy Garden menu. We gave the Crisply Fried Pork Colon a miss!



Pyae Wa  restaurant.

Pyae Wa
This local restaurant is on the main road across from the market. Their curries are Myanmar style, they have meat on the bone and are a little oily but they’re tasty and cheap.  There aren’t prices on the menu, but what they charge is reasonable.

The chicken and beef curries we had were 1,000 Kyat each and a serve of rice is 200 Kyat.

We ate here on our second day in Myanmar and were confused when we were ordered curries and were also served two soups each– a bean soup and a sour fish broth. We didn’t question it and ate them. The staff did charge us 200 Kyat for soup (normally it’s given for free in Myanmar) but we didn’t mind because the soups were tasty and only the equivalent of 20 cents.


Our HUGE bill... the equivalent of $5.10 US!

 

Triple One

This is a very popular place with locals, and is on the outskirts of town a few doors down from Shwe Thazin Hotel.

Their menu is cheap and strikingly similar to Happy Garden’s (same spelling mistakes and all)! It’s a relaxed vibe with the owner’s young son and daughter helping to take orders and wait tables.

 

Moe Cherry was listed as Top Choice in the 2011 edition of Lonely Planet. Either standards have changed or the LP journalist didn’t eat at many places. The curries were dry and not very flavoursome, I’m glad they upsold us some vegetables because the dry meat dishes and rice alone would have been difficult to swallow.
There are no prices on the menu, which is unusual for a westerner-friendly restaurant and it seemed that the staff made up the prices as they went along. Our bill included beers, grilled fish, chicken curry and pork curry, all of which we’d ordered. The vegetables and three serves of rice we’d ordered weren’t mentioned and I’m sure we were charged extra for the jackfruit dish and potatoes.

 

 

Mr. Rocky (Guide) - Mrauk U, Myanmar

Guide – Mr Rocky
0942 1720 168
rockymrauku@gmail.com

Kyaw Hla Maung, or “Mr. Rocky” is a historical researcher and a great source of knowledge on Rakhine history. Now in his sixties, he has led an interesting life. He’s studied and lived abroad and speaks English well (through a Myanmar accent).

A passionate historian, he commissioned research on the origins of the Burmese language, and proudly showed us a large chart of the findings at a temple that we visited. He has vowels and consonants tattooed to his body and as a young man used to secretly study ancient Burmese scripts in the forest with his friends. He was arrested several times as a student for using forbidden scripts. His personal stories are amazing.

Rocky’s knowledge of the area, English vocabulary and passion for history and archaeology make him an excellent guide. He accompanied us to Wethali and asked our driver to stop at an archaeological excavation site and a monastery on the way.

At the excavation site, we walked inside a 4^th-8^th Century religious building where Brahmin, Hindu and Buddhist statues have been found. As we looked around, at least 50 men and women worked to uncover walls that experts believe are part of a water management system. This site was buried during a volcanic eruption.

We made another stop at a monastery where the monks are building a Buddha Museum to showcase the ancient relics and Buddha castings that they have possession of. We were privileged enough to be shown the collection privately.

 

When you book Rocky as a guide you’ll need to book a driver with appropriate transportation too. A jeep or air conditioned van are best for the bumpy, unsealed roads around Mrauk U. You might get coated in dust in a jeep, but it’s all part of the adventure! The road to Wethali was a good sealed road, but the roads within the village were rough and at one point, our driver, Mr. Rocky and my partner even got out to move some large rocks aside so that our jeep could get through.
Your guesthouse should be able to help you book transportation.

Sleeping in Mrauk U, Myanmar

Royal City Guest House

Minbar Gyi Road, Aung Datt, Mrauk U.
Ph: +45 98502400
      +45 43-24200~5 Ext: 50257
Email: rivervalleyrestaurant@gmail.com 
Website: www.newpalacehotelsittwe.com/

Through the friendly waitress at River Valley Restaurant in Sittwe, we booked a bungalow at Royal City Guest Hotel for $35/night.

The bungalow and site were nicer than the hotel room we’d paid $55 for in Sittwe, so we were happy when we checked in. It was clean and fairly spacious with a TV, minibar and small table and chairs.

While Royal City have lights 24 hours a day, they didn’t have 24 hour electricity. In the searing heat of a summer day, my boyfriend and I lie on the tiled floor in our underwear in an attempt to keep cool. Relief from the heat seemed impossible; we had a fan and air conditioner that weren’t working and a shower that only ran hot because the pipes were in the sun.

Breakfast was supposed to be included, but at around 7:30am the next morning, there were no staff to be found at reception. The outdoor restaurant didn’t look like it had been used in quite a while; the tables and chairs were stacked up and had dust and cobwebs on them.

I believe that this could be a nice place to stay in peak season when the temps are cooler, business is in full swing and service is a priority. I really got the feeling that we were the only guests there and that the staff were in a lazy low-season mood.

Room types and rates

Shwe Thazin Hotel

Given how hot we’d been at Royal City, we moved to Shwe Thazin, which has a generator and therefore 24 hour electricity. We struck a deal with Jack, the manager; because we were staying for 4 nights and had stayed in their sister hotel in Sittwe, we paid $55US/night instead of $60US.

This bungalow style hotel is relatively new and the gardens and fountain give it a fresh, relaxing feel. The rooms have air conditioning, TV, a mini bar and a spacious bathroom with a bath.

The restaurant is neat, clean and air conditioned, but not very atmospheric. There was usually BBC news on the TV and not much else going on.
The buffet breakfast was fairly standard – toast, fruit, eggs, noodles, fried rice, coffee, tea, juice.
Note: in low season there will only be a buffet breakfast if the hotel has a certain number of guests. Most days we just had eggs, toast, fruit, tea/coffee and juice.
Their menu offers Chinese and Myanmar dishes at reasonable prices, though the food is often oily and quite average.

The manager, Jack, speaks English quite well and is very helpful. He called around to compare airline and bus fares for me, calculating different routes from Mrauk U to Mandalay.
Having worked in hotels in Yangon, he ensures that a high standard of service is provided by the staff.

Golden Star Guesthouse
116 Min Bar Rd, Mrauk U
+95 435 0175
+95 9850 1664  
+95 43 09 4967 4472

Off the main strip but cheap and next to Happy Garden, one of my favourite restaurants in Mrauk U, Golden Star is a good budget option.

Electricity 5am-midnight

Room rates
Single   $10US no fan         $13US with fan

Double $15US no fan         $20US with fan

All room rates include breakfast

Kyaw Soe Guesthouse

28 Min Bar Gyi Street, Taung Yat Qr, Mrauk U
+95 435 0003
+95 9421 734 799

Almost hidden away at the southern end of the main drag, this family run guesthouse was recommended by a friend as a cheap, clean and bright option.

Electricity 5am-midnight

Room rates

Single $7US with fan              $10US with fan and breakfast

Double $14US with fan         $20US with fan and breakfast

All prices are shown in US dollars, but can be paid in Kyat at a rate of 1:1,000

Travelling from Sittwe to Mrauk U, Myanmar

There are two options for getting from Sittwe to Mrauk U - boat or bus.

Boat
There are ferries running daily, it will just depend on the day that you travel as to which boat you'll take (timetable below).

We took the Aung Kyaw Moe Express ferry, which took 5 hours. The ticket was 10,000 Kyats which included a plastic deckchair on the upper deck of the boat and a bottle of water. It's quite a nice trip along the river

 

 

Tips:

• get there earlier than the given check in time. Our boat left at 6:50 and it was packed by 6:20am.
• try to sit in the middle of the chair area; the edges of the boat are exposed to the weather and people seated at the back are sprinkled with soot from the boat's smokestack.

Sittwe to Mrauk U Ferry timetable (current in April 2014)

Monday                    Aung Kyaw Moe Express Boat     Check in 6:30am

Tuesday                    Government Boat                          Check in 6:30am

Wednesday              Shwe Pyitan Express Boat            Check in 7:00am

Thursday                  Aung Kyaw Moe Express Boat     Check in 6:30am

Friday                        Government Boat                         Check in 6:30am

Saturday                   Aung Kyaw Moe Express Boat    Check in 6:30am

Sunday                      Shwe Pyitan Express Boat            Check in 7:00am

 

Bus
There's a bus to Mandalay that starts in Sittwe and passes through Mrauk U and Magwe among other places. I caught it from Mrauk U to Mandalay, which was 20hrs. It's another few hours on top of that and rumoured to cost 3,000 Kyat. Ask at your guest house for details on times and tickets, and if they tell you that you need a guide to accompany you, advise them that the rules have changed and you don't need one anymore. The bus company will back you up on that.

Eating and Sleeping in Sittwe, Myanmar

 

 

 

We were only in Sittwe for a night before heading to Mrauk U. We didn't see much of the place. I loved the old clock tower and enjoyed watching people riding in the golden afternoon sun on scooters, trishaws, and bikes. I was amazed by how straight the ladies' backs were when they rode their bicycles, and I found out why when I was in Mrauk U.

 

 

We stayed at Shwe Thazin Hotel. At the time I didn't think much of it for the price ($55US), but it was clean, we had a mini bar, TV, air conditioning, 24 hour electricity, buffet breakfast and everything was in working order.

We'd tried too get a room at Mya's Guesthouse first, but they were full. As we walked down the street with the dry, hot summer sun beating down on us, Shwe Thazin was the next place we came across. After being in transit from Kuala Lumpur since early that morning, air conditioning and comfort were our priorities.

We stayed at Shwe Thazin Hotel in Mrauk U too, it's a lot newer and nicer than it’s Sittwe sister. It's a totally different style of hotel, with bungalows and gardens.

 



Our Superior Double room at Shwe Thazin Hotel Sittwe.

 

We ate at River Valley Restaurant, which is tied in with New Palace Hotel in Sittwe and Royal City Guesthouse in Mrauk U. From what I've heard, this is the best tourist restaurant in Sittwe. They serve seafood, Chinese and Rakhine fare. The waiters there wear bow ties, which is a bit ridiculous because it's not a fancy restaurant. Our waitress was friendly and helped us learn to say thank you in Burmese. We ordered the vegetables with Indian spices and the "Cherry Prawn" dish, a sweet, tomato based dish based on her recommendations, and we enjoyed both.

 

Notes: Flights within Myanmar

·        Booking flights and comparing fares from outside Myanmar is not a simple process. Air Bagan are the only airline with an online booking system. Their online flight schedule doesn’t always match the days that flights actually run, so there can be a bit of trial and error in finding an available flight.
It’s difficult to find schedules and prices for the other airlines from outside Myanmar, and their airfares are often much cheaper than Air Bagan's. Flights with Air Mandalay, KBZ, Yangon Airlines and Asian Wings need to be booked direct with the airline (email, call or walk into an office), or through a travel agent.

·        Be aware that your flight time, or even your airline may change. Keep an eye on your emails or call your travel agent or airline directly the day before. I booked four internal flights with Air Bagan and only flew with them once. My three other flights ended up being with Asian Wings and Yangon Airways. Two of my flight times changed too.

·        When you check in, you’ll be given an airline sticker to wear on your shirt. A visible sticker can help staff get you on the right flight, as boarding announcements can be difficult to understand.

·        At Yangon Airport there’s a staff member who walks around holding up a placard for the flight that’s boarding. He/she will call out the airline, destination and flight number.

·        Seating may be “free” meaning first in best dressed, so if you want to sit with your group, be ready for the boarding call and placard guy/girl. My Asian Wings and Yangon Airways flights had free seating, Air Bagan had assigned seating.

·        Flight paths often include two stops (ie. Heho-Mandalay-Yangon). Make sure you get off at the right airport.

·        All three airlines I flew with provided refresher towels, lollies (sweets/candies) on short flights and a light meal on longer flights.

·        Planes can be small (only 11 rows), and the overhead lockers are… you guessed it… also small! Take as little on board as you can. If you’ve only got carry-on luggage, take something like your bag of toiletries out of your main bag – this worked a treat for me.

·        Many airports are also small, with a basic gate lounge and 1-2 simple cafés or shops selling nibbles. Arrival areas in these airports don’t have a luggage carousel; staff will bring your bags into a waiting area and you will have to hand over your baggage tickets (stapled to your boarding pass at check in) to get your luggage back.



Luggage waiting area in Nyaung U airport.

 

 

Arriving in Myanmar

 



Arriving in Yangon International airport, I was excited. While I'd been told a bit about Myanmar, much about it was a mystery to me. I quickly found that reality see-sawed either side of my expectations, and was forced to abandon all preconceptions and give way to discovery and learning (as any traveller should). 

 

My first stop within the airport was the visas on arrival desk. I already had a valid 28 day visa, but I was staying for 32 days and wanted to find out about the two week extension I'd been told about in Kuala Lumpur. The visa office in KL had signs indicating an extension was available and I was told by a staff member that I could apply for it in Yangon. Here in Yangon, however, I was told that the 2 week extension is only for business visas. I was casually told that I could just pay an overstay fee at the airport when I was leaving.

After going through immigration, I was surprised to be standing in a room lined with ATMs and money changers. I was with my partner, who travelled Myanmar in 2012 and had believed that back then there were almost no ATMs in the country. It looked like times had changed. MasterCard advertisements sat on the walls above almost al of the exits and I started to wonder whether our efforts to get perfectly crisp, flat, unmarked US dollar bills in KL was necessary.

Moving through the airport, my attention was drawn to the local men’s attire. They wore long longyis (sarongs), mostly in dark colours with a fine checkered pattern.  I’d seen men in longyis in India before, though I hadn’t seen them teamed with business shirts and flip flops. It’s an interesting combo.
Many women wore thanaka (a paste made from tree bark and water) painted across their cheeks, a somewhat primal choice of cosmetics in this day and age.

We were flying through to Sittwe and had a layover, during which I took a gamble and searched for a free wifi network. I connected to the free REDLINK_WIFI_YIAP network. After about six attempts, I managed to post on Instagram, but booking my flight from Heho back to Yangon online was impossible; the connection dropped out too frequently for me to complete the booking.

 

Yangon's domestic terminal is a beautiful old building with carved timber pillars and balustrades. The baggage scales are analogue and the check in desks are little stalls with fake flowers and vines strung along them – very sweet.

When we checked in with Air Bagan for our flight to Sittwe, I was surprised yet again – this time by my boarding pass. Two years before my boyfriend had been issued hand-written carbon paper boarding passes. While Air Bagan have upgraded to printed cardboard boarding passes with stamps on them, the stamps only detailed our flight number, our destination and the date. A sticker with a seat number had been added, but the gate, boarding time and flight times were left off. I found it funny that they had advertising on the back of their tickets, but on the front they' were missing many of the details a Westerner would consider necessary information.  

Boarding announcements were made in the gate lounge, though distorted and in Burmese. To back up the announcements visually, a man with a placard bearing the destination and flight number made laps of the area. We waited for the placard man to do his thing for flight W9309 and once he did, we boarded our plane.

Intrigued by what I'd discovered within a few hours in the airport terminals, I was eager to explore and find out more about Myanmar.