Having arrived late in the day in Mandalay, I went around looking for some dinner. One of the places recommended by Lonely Planet was the Lashio Lay Restaurant, which was fortunately, just a few blocks from the Royal Guest House. It took me some time to find the place but when I got there it was not difficult to miss because of the huge sign they have outside.
Lashio Lay Restaurant specializes in Shan cuisine. Shan is one of the states of Myanmar and it known for its cuisine within the country. So I figured to give it a try. The restaurant itself looks more like an eatery than a restaurant. There was no airconditioning. But they had fans to keep everybody cool. The places has a surprisingly large number of staff making the place very busy.
Basically there are a lot of pre-cooked food on display and all you need to do if point at what you want. The guy at the counter spoke little English so I was able to find out what I was ordering. I ordered three dishes, a beef dish which reminded me to beef steak in the Philippines, some sourish chicken and lastly some bean sprouts. It was surprisingly tasty, probably the best meal I’ve had in Myanmar so far.
In the middle of my dinner, another power failure struck. However, the locals were already used to this and just went about their business. I had to eat in the dark having sat so far inside the restaurant. It was still light outside so it wasn’t totally dark. This was just another glimpse into the lives of the Burmese, which made me admire how strong these people are.
After dinner, I needed to access the internet to rebook my flight. I had seriously unestimated the amount of money I needed to bring here and from my calculations, I don’t think I would make it if I continue with my original schedule, apparently the costs here a quite different from what the guide books say! I heard this is quite common problem for visitors to Myanmar. Another thing going against me was that Burmese festival Thingyan was coming and I was told that there will not be any buses going to Yangon on that weeklong holiday. A whole week! This basically screwed up my schedule. I need to get back to Thailand to replenish my funds.
First I needed to find a flight out. Fortunately, I was able to book an Air Asia flight out of Yangon a few days ahead of schedule. It would be more expensive but it is better than being stuck in a foreign country with no access to funds. I was thankful that the Air Asia site was not blocked and that I had my credit card with me. I would be tough to find a travel agent on my own. This also means I need to get out of Mandalay as soon as possible. I would still have time to explore the ancient cities around Mandalay before leaving for the next town tomorrow afternoon.
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