Bhamo is a city found in Myanmar on the border of China. It it is only accessible (for the time being) by taking an up river boat, after going on a 12-hour train ride and a one-hour bus ride on bumpy, hilly roads. Its military presence is very abundant, it is oppressively hot and it is one of the most beautiful places in Burma.
I started out running from the Friendship Hotel in the heart of town. There are a few guest houses in Bhamo, but only two are permitted by the government to host foreigners. Heading straight north takes you down a far stretch of land following the Irrawaddy River, which is quite beautiful, but I decided to head east.
I ran through the main street of town, past the 3-D movie theater and smiling faces of school children who had have maybe never seen a foreigner before. Their faces covered in pale yellow make up, they screamed “hello,” loudly, then ran away giggling, all the time sharing their incredibly beautiful smiles.
