We were headed for Kalaw from Bagan on the 8 hour night bus which had left on time at 10pm. Suddenly my eyes were open! The headlights on the coach were dim making it difficult to see the limitless bends in the road up ahead. We continued to move at a snails pace through the darkness, zigzagging upwards before continuing to slarlom down and around hairpin bends. It was impossible to make out which side of the road we were on.

My phone illuminated 3.20am and my confusion was multiplying with the mix of serene darkness outside coupled with the absolute blinding brightness of my phone, which persisted in burning my eyeballs. I attempted to identify our location on MapsMe tracing the route with my finger through squinting eyes. I was sure we were just 10 minutes at best from our destination. If I hadn’t been so tired I would have told the staff that they needed to update their timetables as this was already the second time we had arrived more than 2 hours before our expected arrival. However something told me they would not take too kindly to a remark about their unequivocal punctuality.

To off load the anxiety building up inside me, I nudged James continually until the top of his head and eyes appeared out from underneath the blanket he had masterfully tucked around his head to keep the light out. He looked at me grumpily which I ignored; and just then the bus came to a stop and the stewardess signaled for us to grab our belongings. We were the only two passengers to drag our sleep deprived bodies out of the coach at Kalaw. Unsure as to whether we could book into our hotel at 3.30am, we grasped our bags from the steward and looked around. On previous occasions the bus stations had been over-populated with taxi drivers, but in Kalaw it was different. Our surroundings stood still, the air was cold after being boiled by the 45degree heat we had endured in Bagan. Most notably…there was no one to be seen!

Soon enough a man appeared from the darkness ahead chanting “taxi-taxi”. I was panic stricken at his invitation for us to ride on his motorbike to our hotel. The thought of the two of us getting on a bike with our enormous backpacks was a recipe for disaster for sure. Having had many experiences in car taxi’s in Myanmar already where I had bounced about in the back while James had sat perfectly upright in the front seat protected by his belt. I was picturing us on this untamed motor bike lolloping up and down and from side to side unable to keep our bottoms on the seat. James was certain to slip off sideways, ending up slumped in a heap on the floor, and perhaps I would bounce so high off of the seat that I would fly up into the air before crashing to the floor also. I pondered for another moment, maybe I should have packed that parachute. Luckily James was already on the case scratching at his beard, whilst shaking his head and asking for a “car type taxi”.  

On the approach to our hotel “The Hillock” darkness greeted us once more, much like the scene only 10 minutes previous when we had stepped off the bus! There hadn’t been streetlights then either or any suggestion of life as all the hotels had towered above us in complete darkness. It was certainly mysterious… maybe the whole of Kalaw was closed? What would we do if no one answered the door? Would we ‘Rough it’ and simply sleep on the step using our bags for pillows? Would we go to another hotel and hope that they would be open and take us in?

Attempting to distract myself from my over-active mind I turn to face our taxi driver in the hope that he knows what to do. To my astonishment he’s already sauntered sleepily through the front garden hammering on one or two windows with his fist; something was telling me he had done this before. In a few moments he’s back again looking nonchalant and pointing at the front door, which of course remains tightly shut. Through the silence we hear footsteps and shuffling from the other side of the door; and eventually it carefully opens to reveal a friendly but clearly tired looking lady who we would later come to know as “San San”.

San San gracefully ushers us in with one arm while holding an electric lamp in her other hand. Tentatively we walk up the grand stone steps and move over the threshold with our heavy bags. Everything is still in darkness apart from the illumination from San San’s lamp. We watch as she fumbles around for a few moments before asking if we have a reservation? We nod eagerly “We’ll pay for an extra night though”, James whispers sleepily while hanging from his tired skeleton. San San gestures to us waving her hand and talking in perfect broken English “No it ok, it ok, I will show you to room! I’m sorry for darkness, the power cut, come back on at 6am”. Power cuts seem pretty common from our experiences so far in Myanmar so we refrain from asking questions and just climb into bed.

Standing in the front garden, pine trees stand tall all around us, mountains tower higher still depicting a rugged mountain scene. The smells and general vibe of this tiny little town remind us of South-West France. Like a beautiful summers day back home in the UK, there’s a cool breeze, it’s 28 degrees and almost zero humidity. The ability to breath deeply without an abrupt feeling you might cough out a large cloud of pollution seconds later, is remarkable. Our hotel ‘The Hillock’ is made up of 4 beautiful ‘Colonial’ style buildings. At ground level, vines have crept around the outside of the pillared balcony; on the outside of the first floor the victorian black and white structure resembles the famous black and white house in Herford City Center.  Each room is decorated with wooden walls and floors, cosy arm-chairs and wooden furniture; while paintings populate the walls in an artistic fashion, they all play a part in giving the space a sense of cosiness. This amazing ensemble is finished off with a sprinkling of beautiful staff whom work together with San-San and Uhn-Mar (the two amazing ladies who conduct the ensemble) to create a socially content atmosphere.

Our 3 nights have come to an end quite quickly. Leaving the company of Uhm-mar, San-San and the team is sad but inevitably we have no choice as the Hillock is a popular place and has been booked out for a wedding party. Our new hotel the ‘Kalaw Heritage’ is equally as beautiful dating back to 1903 it’s a mix of Victorian brick and wood and surrounded by unique gardens. As one of Kalaw’s landmarks you can expect to see, troupes of Chinese tourists pop up suddenly in between the different species of flowers ultimately using the location as a backdrop for a quick 5 minute photo-shoot and disappearing just as quickly.

Whilst sipping an evening beer we ponder the possibility of going back for breakfast at ‘The Hillock’ for the next two mornings after feeling so comfortable there. We write a quick message explaining our ideas to spend the next two mornings with them; to our surprise a message bounces back almost instantly from Uhm-mar, she’s delighted by our message and joyfully invites us back for breakfast free of charge. In absolute admiration of their hospitality, spirit and kindness we explain that we would like to pay, but Uhm-mar describes us as part of the family now. Instead we promise we will return to ‘The Hillock’ in the next year or so to see them.

So where exactly were we? We were in a place where we could enjoy epic bike rides taking us up further into the Shan State hills and higher than the 1320m of altitude we had already gained; we had the time and space to write blogs and dissertations, whilst sipping on artisan coffee and munching on plants, seeds and nuts from the local café ‘Sprouting Seeds’. Our first exposure to Myanmar really has taught us a lot about people and even more about importance of being uncomfortable on many occasions. We’ve noticed how we differ from many of our backpacking counter-parts; a common theme is to travel to as many different places as possible but for us this means leaving only a smidgen of time to soak up the cultural intimacies. As usual we were in the market for an experience that requires us to indulge in a human-to-human interaction and creating long lasting connections. In short we always end up staying much longer in each location.

At times we could have been in Europe or the winding roads in New Zealand. At other times we were clearly in a country still coming to terms with having only just opened up to the world after a Miltary Dictatorship. Returning here in the future is only a dream at the moment but I’m sure we can make it a reality soon enough, our hope is to learn even more about the cultural, social and political diversity, which so clearly divides some areas whilst uniting others. Our memories of Kalaw and indeed Myanmar will never fade. We hope to match the hospitality we have admired here one day when we have our own fully sustainable B&B. Watch this space!!!!

More photos to come soon, but for now lots of love,

Peaches xx