(hope I got a photo of everyone in. Sorry if I missed..... got to get some sleep)
 Curtis

Wow, how
time has flown past. The trip has really snuck up on us. It has gone from
always seeming like an eternity away, like a commitment we’ll never commit to.
We say we’re going, but it seems like we never will. I think for a lot of us,
it has gone from seeing it get closer on the calendar or online countdown, and
then all of a sudden we’re standing in the airport of Myanmar trying not the
break down in front of the border security. The whole day of flights had been a
blur, leaving Australia, we laughed our way up to take off, obviously not tired
but high on our own excitement. Landing in Singapore, realizing I left my book
at home so I run around trying to find a book to read (settled on ‘Talking to
Crazy’) while everyone else tracks down the Crispy Creams! The flight to
Myanmar from there on was pleasant. I actually slept for a bit on the plane and
now I have a fairly embarrassing photo of me on Jenny’s camera.

Now in Myanmar, we’re still tired but it’s nice to be in a room of two people.
I’m not sure if everyone has yet realized we’re actually here. I know I haven’t
yet as well, but I think it’s because we’ve been tourists from the start.

 

Hannah – Day 1

We have been
here for 2 days now and it has been really interesting. After leaving the
airport in tears, to having slept on a plane for the very first time, there
have been a lot of new experiences for me. This is the first trip I have been
on without any of my family and it has been pretty hard. It seems like forever
ago that I was back in Perth but I have been having a great time. The trip over
here was very exhausting and took longer as expected, as we had both of our
flights delayed, meaning we arrived over 2 hours later than originally planned.
Myanmar so far has reminded me a lot of being in Bali; from cars constantly
tooting at each other on the roads to the road structures and humidity. My
highlight of the trip so far was definitely this afternoon. We went to an
amazing temple; it was massive and so beautiful, having being made of over 5
ton of gold. I loved seeing all of the monks praying and doing their thing,
whilst I walked around taking pictures of all of the buildings with Tamara. I’m
starting to feel a bit nervous as we just found out that we are actually going
to the village tomorrow instead of Tuesday.

 

Karen

So we arrive in Yangon and
realized this morning that we are actual celebrities! Who would have thought!
After Shannon, Hannah, Tamara and I were separated from the main group for
seating in today’s church service, we were seated down the front with no one to
follow and the service was in Burmese. 
Fortunately the super friendly people behind us helped us fumble our way
through the service, we rocked “hark the herald angels sing”! We all filed out
of the church to realize our newfound celebrity status. We were swamped with
cameras and people wanting photos with us……the blonde ones were the most
popular. This theme followed when we visited the Buddha sanctuary this
afternoon, our students sitting quietly and everyone wanting to come and chat,
take a photo and share their stories. The people are friendly and very
welcoming and they all seem to smile and enjoy life. Our group is strong with lots of friendships
being forged, loads of laughs and we are all a bit in awe of this lovely
country. This is another Jade country!!



Tegan- DAY 1…

Two days in and already the sense of myself is finally back! Today I realized
how much I truly missed being on pilgrimage. Lately it has been a bit odd for
me however, the city is quite similar to Manila; but I can’t let this illusion
distract me into assuming this is exactly where I am going tomorrow. Today I
finally got to worship again at church, I forgot how much I missed the
atmosphere of those when a hymn is sung or the creed is spoken. Emily and I
were very popular within the church with many stopping in the line of communion
to intensely stare at our hair! I have realized the effect government and
politics really have on religious groups. In Australia, Buddhism and
Christianity live together in a cohesive nature, whereas in Myanmar this is the
polar opposite. The Christian community, before the Lady begun to have an
influence, was the minority and many of their schools and land was taken by the
government. It just goes to show how politics really can determine our lives. Today
we took a tour around Yangon. It was pretty interesting to see all the colonial
buildings before Myanmar was shut off to the world for the past 50years. The
best part of today, for me, was the Buddhist Temple. The temple helped me to
calm down my anxiety about the community tomorrow due to the peace and serenity
of the little town. I find the temples to hold a sense of beauty, like a church
that can only be described as a devotion to faith. I enjoy learning about
Buddhism and applying it towards my life, just as I do with my Anglican faith.
It calms me to the point I know that what I am doing and how I am living my
life is all okay and that I know I can make a difference. The weather here is
not really to my liking, too humid and uncomfortable in the long pants but I am
sure I’ll be able to rough it for the rest of the trip! I can’t wait to get
into the community and begin to learn more about Myanmar through the town. It
will be interesting to see how our little group ends up at the end of this
trip; I can see the changes in people already. We all seem to be able to open
up to one another and be changing together in positive ways.

 

Sarah-

After spending all day on
planes and in airports and when we got to Myanmar going back in time it was an
incredibly long day. Today was such an incredible day which started at about
6am, we went to a church service. Just our luck, it was the one service in five
years that was in Burmese. So for the whole 2 hours we didn’t really understand
what was going on. We felt like celebrities after as crowds of people
surrounded us and grabbed our arms so that we would get into photos with them.
This continued all day in the streets and at the Buddhist temple we went to.
The temple was amazing covered in gold and amazing buildings, it was absolutely
beautiful. When we went to the markets to go shopping it was so weird having
all of these people come up to you and try and attract you towards their store,
although everything is so cheap. For example for lunch today I had a vegetable
curry and a can of sprite, this only cost me 6000 kyat which is only $6 US. It
just feels so weird that this is so little to me, but so much money for the
people who live here. When we drive through the streets they are full of really
new nice buildings as well as very old and dirty buildings, it is just insane
how we can see the change that is going on around us. It is going to be very
different in the town we are leaving for tomorrow, but I’m excited to see how
different it is.

 

Sam-

Star Log 2235: I write to
you here feeling that I am as apprehensive as I was when I got on my initial
flight. Not much has happened so far to change or touch me deeply yet but it
has not been uneventful. Today the group went to a pagoda after touring the
city and it was the first time I believe I realized where I was. In another
country, far far away from the comfort of my couch and my movies. The pagoda
was beautiful and humbling, even though it was made of gold it radiated an
effect of peace throughout the people there. The people treated it not as a
symbol of grandeur but with a personal warmth, as one would think kindly of a
fireplace or a mantelpiece. It gave me a
first look at the culture in which I was entering, and I appreciated it. This
group of people has already started to feel more tight knit and trusting of
which I am incredibly grateful to them and feel I can rely on them when things
start getting a bit heavier (psychologically speaking). Yet I am still
apprehensive despite this, being told that you will change from something and
then staring this experience in the face can be hard. It is in our nature to
fear change, but we must.

 

 

Emily-

The plane trip gave me a
lot of time to reflect on why I am here, what I am supposed to do, what God
might have planned for me here… After 15 hours or more in airports or flying, I
still had nothing. The food had changed from comfortable Western to Eastern
food I didn’t usually eat. I’d gone from the southern hemisphere, with
everything I was used to, to my first third world country. Myanmar from above
was a shock; I was expecting a sprawling city, and it is, but with none of the
planned, clean streets and new high-rise buildings that I was used to. It was
bumpy, pot-holed, with pop-up street stalls and strange smells everywhere.
Basically… any idea of a developing world, Myanmar city, was nothing like I had
expected. The various things we’ve done since, eating out, hotels, markets,
church, Buddhist temples, friends, immersing ourselves into the culture, has
been incredibly challenging. The entire culture is basically built on Buddhist
values, which really has shown me how the true God is really true, how He is
present, how He is real. As much as I have nothing against Buddhism, it really
has allowed me to see how various religions are very different in values,
goals, traditions, beliefs. They aren’t just “bits of the truth”, something I
had previously considered. So far, my time in Myanmar has really solidified my
faith in the truth of the Christian God, shown me what I definitely don’t know
about this wonderful culture and what misconceptions I had previously had
regarding people of different religions, cultures and nationalities. It’s
really opened my eyes, shown me how we are all different but we are all the
same in the end- people- and the reason why I am here is maybe to reconnect
with other people of the world and how can I serve them, expressing Christ in
my actions toward and sharing His love with others.

 

Spencer-

So we’re finally here, but
it still feels quite surreal. The lack of sleep was taxing on the want to gaze
upon the surroundings, but we all pushed through. So much is different here…
the smells are pretty odd – sometimes sweet, others delicious, and others just
plain wrong. The roads are pretty chaotic, with the cars having left hand
drives, however they drive on the right side of the road. Stress set in my
chest as we were exchanging our US dollars over to kyat, as most of my money
was ‘too old’, and they wouldn’t accept it. I was freaking out and almost in
tears, because of course it was me, but Mrs. Watts and I sorted it out, and all
was good. At the Buddhist temple, we were all in awe. The architecture and
structures were so grand, and were all a catalyst for reflection and respect.
There has been a few times were I have definitely felt out of my element, but I
do believe it is mind over matter, and just have to remind myself that I’m here
for a reason, and that reason is good. I’m looking forward to the upcoming days
even though I am slightly apprehensive, but it’s all a new experience and
should be worth the wait.

 

 

 

Helen –

For me, today has been a
day of reminders; of seeing the city of Yangon and acquaintances again after 12
months. It is a city of change and this is very noticeable in the streets with
new constructions and restorations in abundance. And so clean! We were told
that The Lady of Burma was a big influence when she challenged the people to
clean up Myanmar. The worship in the Cathedral reminded me once again that we
belong to a worldwide communion: we can attend an Anglican service and feel a
part of the community, even if we don’t understand a word. It was an especially
crowded Cathedral as our visit coincided with a Myanmar Church Weekend
Gathering of 2000 people, We were greeted and given seats in the Cathedral,
even though there were a few hundred who stood in the grounds for the service. The
roof was raised as our English singing blended with the Burmese singing of
traditional hymns.