Field Report: GYU Secretary's Report on the Trip to Myanmar 11/19/2000

Obviously, Ms. Iimori is the one on the right

Yet, to tell the truth, I was actually nervous. "I may possibly be confined or get dragged into the people's revolt or something!" Despite that the head of GYU, Mr. Daichi, assured me that it would be safe, I was giving full scope to my unnecessary imagination. It was because regarding this country, I have only seen articles with negative impacts such as about the military regime, forced labor, cruelty in prison, a foreign reporter in confinement, Aung San Suu Kyi under house arrest, and so on. There even was a person volunteering to accompany me as a bodyguard, and I could not help but feel that it would be such a dangerous place that I must prepare for the worst.

Despite that Myanmar was a country we were aiming to establish a relationship in future; it was such an unfortunate thing that I could not help thinking badly like that even before really meeting it. Yet, as in contemporary Japan, we only have such stereotypical information available concerning Myanmar. (I suppose the situation is pretty much the same also in the United States as well as in Europe). Still, I was aware that the reality often comes out different from advance publicity. Then, fortunately, my impression of Myanmar turned out completely different after the trip.

Garden City/Rangoon
Sitting down at the roadside, men are amusing themselves by chatting and playing games. A female shopkeeper at a market is waiting in the shade for customers. Under a tree by a temple, there is a couple having a talk quietly with each other. Some people are walking with bare feet around the temple and flopping down to offer a prayer. What I saw there was such a peaceful life. It seemed as if there was a town within the park.

In Myanmar with its extremely high literacy rate, there is a secondhand-bookstore district

My usual spirit of "See everything, try everything, talk to everybody" came back at once. The main purpose of this trip was to search what we as GYU would be able to do in future. If I brought some students here with me, then my duty would have been to support them, but this time without them, I am the one heading the cast! --- I happened to be enlivened as much as to this extent.

The Burmese characters are quite peculiar, and I absolutely had no idea how to read them. Yet, looking out of the window in a car, I somehow catch sight of readable signs. People there are using used cars from Japan without erasing the Japanese signs on the bodies such as "Seibu Bus" and "xx Driving School." I wonder if it is because that they are careless about the appearance or they are taking the Japanese characters as nice-looking designs.... Whichever it is, it does not matter as long as they are favorably disposed toward Japan. Such cars are carrying an overflowing number of people, and running freely through a deep-green town, raising a thick cloud of dust. Looking at such scenery, I realized that the people in those cars are staring at us, the foreigners, fixedly as if they found something curious. Just like we have no knowledge about Myanmar, they have no idea about Japan either. The way people look at foreigners is the same in every country.

I found a new friend!
The host of this trip was the Myanmar-Japan Friendship Association. And it was Dr. Mya Mya Win, the vice-president, who welcomed us and undertook the entire planning including arrangements for a party and inspection. There is no doubt that, without her, we could never have started the activity of GYU and thereby, this trip would never have been realized. She exerted herself to prepare everything for us such as the welcome party, high school inspection, home party, karaoke with Myanmarian songs, and trip within the country. We were provided with an opportunity to share a lot of time with the members of the association in various ways for ten days. The members who spared time for us more than anybody else were those three who accompanied us to the trip in the country.

A young monk also practices religious mendicancy

Along with Mahra, Makkai and Naing, we made a trip to Mandalay and Pagan. Having her husband left in Japan, Mahra is bringing up her son in Myanmar with the objective of raising his self-awareness as a Myanmarese. She is a hard worker who works part-time at two or more restaurants in Japan while also running a store that handles Southeast Asian foods. Naing is a son of the owner of an ice cream company in Myanmar. As he is a very sensible person, he was making strenuous efforts to please us by getting everything prepared in advance. Makkai is planning to come and study in Japan next year. By learning each word from people around her, she was trying very hard to speak Japanese.

By visiting such old cities as Mandalay and Pagan and walking about the ruins in bare feet, I felt the long history of this country. I greatly appreciate how the members of GYU and the other three from Myanmar came along with me so persistently despite the fact that I was going on and on without stopping under a burning sun. While saying "Well, we can tell that you really are fond of old things" a bit wearily, they asked the driver to take us to the next destination for me. Looking at the ruins, I happened to confirm my desire to learn Buddhist art once again, and I came to feel as if I were a student again. Besides, by talking to the three members from Myanmar without bothering about time, I was convinced at my own discretion that I would be able to get along well with people in this country!

Buddhism is blended in with people's lives

We were drinking beer till very late at night every day. The hotel employees were astonished to see Myanmarese women drinking alcohol, and stared at us in round-eyed wonder. According to Buddhist teachings, women are not supposed to drink alcohol. Mahra is surely a dynamic woman for discarding such practice. We were drinking Myanmarese beer and Mandalay beer alternately one after another, but how many? Both brands of beer had simple taste of the lager kind. They tasted so light that we could keep drinking forever without getting drunk. While being exposed to a moist night wind, we had a nice chat about our dreams for the future and jobs in a very ordinary way just as if I were talking with my Japanese friends. Looking at each other's hands to read palms, we all screamed with laughter.

Buddhism is alive

Makkai

No matter where I go, anybody who reads my palm says, "You will have money with no trouble, but you will spend it all." A nun whom I met in Bago told me the same. Moreover, she also said, "You will get married to a foreigner before the year is over, but he is not a good person." Oh God, that worries me!

A convent is located in a residential district, and nuns are taking care of orphans there. I went to the convent along with some women who were going to receive talismans, and as I got there, I happened to have an opportunity to have my fortune told. I heard that those women also had an edifying sermon given by a nun when receiving the talismans. Then I was entertained with tea and homemade jam while listening to them giving an account of the experience. Looking at these women have a chat with nuns in an ordinary way, I felt as if I saw something of their ordinary life where Buddhism has taken root. People there treat monks with great respect. When making a monetary offering, they would fold a paper money lengthwise and use both hands to give it.

Myanmar is a truly Buddhist country. It is where Buddhism is alive, and that is also reflected clearly on a statue of Buddha. Its background is decorated with lights so that the face of Buddha appears to be bright and lustrous. As in Japan where Buddhism has become the thing of the past, a statue of Buddha has gilt coming off and a richly colored tower is tinged with an antique look, and they have been left well enough alone. On the contrary, in Myanmar, there is a gorgeous Buddha image being enshrined and worshipped. Moreover, people visit a temple several times each day. It is quite an enviable thing that a prayer has taken a firm hold on their lifestyle. It could well be described as a peaceful culture.

How to become a Myanmarese

Mahra is shopping

In order to understand a culture, it is essential to learn about food, clothing and shelter. It is a matter of course that I always eat local food while traveling. As Mr. Hiroyuki Suzuki says "To travel is to see the city = to see architecture," I am already practicing it as well. Now, by actually wearing Myanmarese clothing, I can conquer the idea of "food, clothing and shelter."

Most people are wearing native dresses. Though there is a difference in the way of wrapping, both men and women are dressed basically in the same style. I decided to have a wraparound skirt called longyi tailored for me. It can be made simply by sawing material into the shape of cylinder. Then you can wear it by wrapping it neatly around yourself. It makes a slender waist particularly of an Asian woman look beautiful. Yet, it is necessary to get the knack of putting it on properly, or else, it gets disheveled easily.

At first, I had someone help me get dressed. By pulling the cloth tightly, she smoothed it out and made beautiful drapes at the same time. I could move my legs freely and comfortably. On the following day, I tried putting it on by myself. I pulled it with all my strength to both sides. However, somehow I could not get rid of some strange wrinkles, and I felt quite uncomfortable as I walked. Since I had no other choice, I somehow managed adjusting my skirt by using strings. The people of Myanmar appeared to have even bigger gap between their real intentions and words than Japanese; they came up with a good word such as "That is beautiful" even for me, a foreigner dressed so awkwardly. Now by putting a special make-up of Myanmar called "Thanakha" (wood ground with a little water) as a finish, I became a typical woman of Myanmar.

Naing; in the middle with a white shirt

A schoolteacher is dressed in white blouse and jacket, which looks like a Chinese coat, and wearing a green longyi. I heard from a principal of a high school that green is regarded as a pure color in Myanmar and thereby it has become the color of school uniforms as well. Without knowing it, I happened to make my longyi made of silk in green. That was why every person I met really liked the color of my longyi.

Hey, Japanese. Look at Asia!
Saying that he has been to Japan, an ex-serviceman whom I met in Bago showed me a photo album. He expressed triumphantly that he respects Japanese who he thinks are hard-workers and well disciplined. Yet, while listening to his view, I could not help thinking of all the problems concerning the younger generation of present-day Japan. The image of Japanese he believes in is absolutely wonderful, but is not the true picture. Then I felt that I would like the people of Myanmar to see Japan in full aspects.

A recent statue of Buddha looks gaudy like a neon sign

Similarly, GYU also holds an objective to have a lot of Japanese people learn about Myanmar. We do not have an ounce of intention of assuming a grave air as managing the activities of cultural exchange. Rather, my desire is to increase the number of fellows to share a pleasant time together. Yet, if I approach college students with an idea to go to Myanmar, many of them would evade the offer by saying "Why Myanmar?" Therefore, we are required to come up with an activity that attracts them.

When all is said and done, the countries of the Asian continent are our neighbors. I believe that it is a minimum courtesy for us, the contemporaries, at least to know what the young folks living in those countries have on their minds.