Our last day in Yangon started with a curry and rice for breakfast. It turns out that the little brown lumps in the rice are in fact soy beans!
This was followed by a quick pack and an episode of ‘The Disappearance of Madeline McCann’ to make the most of the TV.
Following checkout we took off to Junction City Plaza to utilise the air conditioning. While exploring the levels we stumbled across a Samsung store which had a VR headset with a motion chair. Kyle was keen to give it a go, what and what a sight to behold! The VR headset showed a roller coaster ride and the same image could be seen on a TV screen above Kyle, who was strapped in to the motion chair. The chair moved to simulate the feeling of being on the roller coaster, what fantastic facial expressions we were treated to! A large crowd gathered to watch Kyle’s ride but dissapated quickly once he was out of the chair. It made him feel pretty ill.
After hitting the grocery shop and getting some cash money from the ATM, we parked up at the bakery on the ground floor. Everytime we had walked past this ace it had been absolutely packed so we thought we’d better give it a hoon. One custard donut ($1) and an almond cream bun ($1) later, we we’re two happy campers.
Before picking up our gear from the hostel we returned to Smile Curry House for “Linner” (lunch dinner). I had the tempura shrimp soba noodles ($5) while Kyle demolished the teriyaki chicken set ($4) which included miso soup and salad on the side. Of course we also started with sushi, who wouldn’t when it’s only $1 a plate!
Checking out from the hostel was a little awkward… When we were moved from the suite due to the rodent issue were ”downgraded” to a double bedroom. We had already paid in full for the suite and a refund for the difference in price for the two rooms hadn’t yet been offered. However, after a quick phonecall to his boss the staff were happy to refund the difference.
The bus station was located surprisingly far from the hostel, considering we were located in the middle of the city. It cost $10 using Grab to get there, luckily another very friendly driver.
We used the JJ Express bus service which was a bit more expensive than others at $19 USD ticket. However, we had large comfy chairs with a screen to watch films / listen to music (all illegally downloaded lol) and were given drinks (water and soda), a snack box and a blanket, which were key on an overnight bus! We also had the bonus of using the VIP lounge while waiting for the bus at the terminal. It was pretty empty so was nice to have the space, but it got pretty hot as the air conditioning wasn’t so flash!
Around an hour into the journey we had a 30 minute stop and it was compulsory to get off the bus. Naturally Kyle stumbled straight into KFC. With fries and a Coke on the side I wasn’t too hesitant to help demolish the meal (another zinger burger).
All up the bus ride took around 9 hours and we arrived in Kalaw at 3 am. Luckily our homestay allowed us early check in and offered to pick us up from the bus stop. Needless to say, following the tuk tuk ride we straight into the classic shower, sleep routine.
Kyley on Tour 