While Tun Tun wanted to
even leave by 3 am Myo Min suggested a much later get away. The former said
that the Daw Na Taung (mountain) could be a difficult attempt once the Sun goes
down. Finally, I took a call for a 4 am departure. Myu and Tun Tun said they
would be at the hotel by then. The hotel agreed to give me packed breakfast. It
was 4.30 am by the time we picked up Myu from near his house – he could not get
a taxi to reach the hotel, he said! The
initial stretch of the road was in excellent condition and the first 100 kms
was done in 70 minutes. I yearned for a coffee and we turned into one of the
convenience centres on the highway to Bago. The restaurant was not busy at the time,
but I still saw many chomping on fried rice and fried eggs at that early hour. It
seems that any time is good time for fried rice and fried egg in Myanmar! I ordered
a coffee and we shared the breakfast pack which consisted of two boiled eggs, a
sausage sandwich and a banana. Myu ordered an ‘egg platter’. It did taste nice,
but looked more like a fried omelette. The road condition continued to be good
right up to the Kaiyin State border. We drove past many rubber plantations, mostly
replanted ones. I was told that many of them belonged to the Police Department!
Myint joined us almost half
way to Myawady; he had gone in advance to check the road conditions. Once he
joined us we took the roads he suggested; as Tun Tun put it, “they are shock
cuss and safety, Sir”. Short of Kaw Ke Rek, where we were scheduled to have
lunch, on one of the short cuts, which every vehicle in Myanmar seemed to be
taking that day, an impassable traffic jam confronted us. Tun Tun got out of the
car, in searing heat, and said, “I will check it, Sir”. Believe me, had it not
been for his aggressive ‘policing’ we would have been stuck there till God
knows when. The jam was caused by the breakdown of a freight truck and road
repair just ahead of it. No one knew how to control the traffic both ways on
that narrow road. People who were stuck in the traffic for more than an hour
before us were most thankful to Tun Tun for his initiative.
We reached Kaw Ke Rek
around a quarter to one and Tun Tun, in his inimitable style, located a cheap
eatery. When he does that he announces, “cheap and tasty, Sir”. Cheap he may
have found out, but tasty how, I never knew. As it turned out the meal was
really tasty. I had a large portion of river fish curry and rice. Each of them
helped themselves to mountains of rice and all the accoutrements served along
with the meal. Soup and some vegetable side dishes are normally served with the
rest of the order, as the owner said, free. While we were at lunch the lady owner
of the restaurant broke the news that more than 500 vehicles are stuck on the Daw
Na Taung due to breakdown of a large freight carrier. Tun Tun said that it
would be difficult to fathom how long the hold up would last and suggested that
we carry packed food in case it was prolonged.
The Daw Na Taung was the
final frontier of Myanmar, as it were. Just a short while after Kaw Ke Rek
starts the mountainous climb that is steep and winding. The distance from Kaw
Ke Rek to Myawady is less than 70 kms, but the many breakdowns and poor road
conditions with work on in many stretches, makes nonsense of any distance time
estimate. All through my drive in Myanmar I have appreciated the road
discipline in the country. Well, the Daw Na Taung affected even that and discipline
of any kind was given the short shrift on the mountain, where it was most
required. It was three and half hours of nerve wracking drive, when it finally
ended. Breakdowns were many and every sharp bend of the road added to delays. Moreover,
the heat was too much for even the car to bear; air conditioning went on the blink.
The saving grace was the regulation that traffic is permitted only one way each
day. In the month of March it was the odd calendar day for going up the
mountain and the even day for going down it!
Once the climb was over and
the drive downhill began the traffic eased up. The road side was dotted with
many shops offering car wash facility. The dusty and axle testing drive does
take a toll on the car. We were stopped at the entrance to Myawady by the traffic
police; they waved us on once they were satisfied by the papers presented. We had
encountered many police patrols, particularly the ones on the state borders, but
were mostly allowed through due to the stickers on the car – Tun Tun was fond
of saying, “you are VIP, Sir”. At the approach to Myawady city the road
dramatically transformed into a beauty. Again Tun Tun supplied the information that
it was done up by a Thai company. He also directed me to fuel up with Thai diesel
at one of the fuel stations. Fuel in Myanmar had cost me between Rs. 40 and 45
per litre. They quote by the gallon; a gallon is 4 litres.
Just ahead of the city is
the EXIM Zone where traffic from and to Thailand is dealt. Cargo is passed
here, trading is done and freight meant for Myanmar and Thailand is transhipped
at this point. We decided to visit the border post and inquire about the
formalities to be completed the next day. An extremely friendly Immigration
official said that the border opens at 5 am and works until 8 pm. He even
suggested that I go through to Thailand just then! I could have, but did not want
to break the scheduled hotel bookings. On his board he even had pencilled my
return through the post on 4th May! I also met a youngster, Win, working
in Immigration arrivals who explained the departure formalities and gave me the
departure card to fill in and bring with me the next day. The border post works
from 5 am to 8 pm since January this year. Win explained that it is difficult
working a 15 hour day.
After checking into the Myawady
Hotel I took a round of the bustling night market and explored the smells and
sights, which needed a strong stomach and a blocked nose. Everything was on
sale from blossoms to blouses. On the way back I chose a road side shop for fried
rice and chicken. As I was about to eat the city suffered a power outage that
went on for the next hour. I sat it out in the hotel lobby with a bottle of Myanmar
Beer. Once the power supply came on I got to the sparsely appointed room for
rest and recuperation after the exhausting day.
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