Perhaps I should have done further research, but I’d like to thank Myanmar for screwing us before we even got there! Even the government site did not clearly state a letter of approval was required for a tourist vista. In addition to that, I unfortunately read Lonely Planet’s bit on Myanmar’s visa-on-arrival a bit too quickly and overlooked the outdated post of 4 years. Apparently Myanmar’s definition of visa-on-arrival means your pre-approved visa commences when you arrive! The words, “Holy fuck,” crossed our minds during our attempt to transfer from Chiang Mai to Yangon at the fly-through area in Bangkok when an AirAsia staff member asked us for our Myanmar visas. “You…

With only four days in Chiang Mai, I felt obliged to plan an action-packed itinerary. If we had more time, I would have liked to spend at least a week in Chiang Mai, followed by several days in Chiang Rai. Upon looking at the calendar I saw that we had less than two months for the remainder of our Southeast Asia tour and I reluctantly booked our flights to Yangon, Myanmar on June 1. Another sleepless overnight train left is longing for a nap and massage upon our arrival in Chiang Mai. It wasn’t until after a full day’s rest when we finally mustered up…