lonely-planet-myanmar-burma-11-edition

138BAGAN & CENTRAL MYANMAR YANGON–MANDALAY HIGHWAY4SleepingoMyanmar Beauty GuestHouse II, III & IV GUESTHOUSE $$(%23270, 23527; Pauk Hla Gyi St; fourdoctors@mptmail.net.mm; r in III $10-15, s/d in IV $15/25;a)This three-part, 20-room rural complex atthe edge of town is reason enough to stopin Taungoo. The Beauty has a grab-bag ofrustic, all-wood, bungalow-style rooms.Don’t get confused by the numbers – thehigher the number, the nicer the room. Thespacious IV rooms face the fields and haveair-con and a good hot shower; III is a stepdown, and II is usually used by drivers andguides. Staff are super, as is the wildly localbreakfast, with samosas, sticky rice andexotic fruits – and lots of it. It’s about 1.5miles south of the turnoff from the old Yangon–MandalayHighway into the centre ofTaungoo and is a K1000 to K1500 trishawride from the centre. Myanmar BeautyGuest House I (%23270; 7/134 Bo Hmu PhoKun St; r $10-15), in town, isn’t really worthconsidering.Myanma Thiri Hotel HOTEL $$(%23764; mthirihotel@myanmar.com.mm; MagalarRd; s/d from $25/33; pas) Set a block or soback from the main highway behind thesports field is this old government hotel nowleased to a private company (see p 21 ). Thecheaper rooms, in the British colonial building,are big with overly soft mattresses. Thereare a few deluxe rooms in separate new chaletsand a 20m-long swimming pool in thegrounds.Royal Kaytumadi Hotel HOTEL $$$(%24761; www.kmahotels.com; Royal KaytumadiSt; r $50-65; ais) Hogging the west side ofthe lake is Taungoo’s fanciest option, withvery comfortable rooms and plenty of facilitiesand nice decorative details. The propertyis owned by a businessman affiliatedwith the government (see p 21 ). The samebusinessman also bankrolled the new citygates and giant statue of Mingyinyo erectedto celebrate the city’s 500th anniversary.Mother’s House Hotel HOTEL $$(%24240; mhh@banganmail.net.mm; 501-502Yangon-Mandalay Highway; s/d $20/25; a) This32-room bungalow hotel right on the highwayand a little closer to town than theBeauty grants you 24-hour electricity, satelliteTV and clean and comfy bungalow-stylerooms with wood floors and fudge-and-bananacolour schemes.Hotel Amazing Kaytu HOTEL $$(%23977; www.amazing-hotel.com; 8th St Ohtkyauttan;s/d from $30/35; a) ‘Hotel DependableIf a Little Overpriced & Generic Kaytu’ ismore apt. It’s a bit north of the main turnoff from the old Yangon–Mandalay Highwayinto the centre of Taungoo; its 18 roomsare perfectly fine – with round-the-clockelectricity, satellite TV and plain tiled bathrooms,plus a clock set to Spanish time inthe lobby. The cheapest rooms are stuck atthe back and a little dark.Pun Swe Taw HOTEL $$(%25595; ponswetaw@gmail.com; 8/15 Yangon-Mandalay Highway; s/d $35/40; a) Centrallylocated, this four-storey hotel offers reasonablyclean and big rooms overlooking themoat on the east side of the old city. However,it also suffers from highway traffic noise.5EatingAround Taungoo’s tea shops, try asking foryo yo (normal coffee), which should get youa cup of ‘Taungoo coffee’ (actually it comesfrom the Karen mountains to the east).At the night market, which convenes nextto the central market, vendors specialisein chapattis and meat-stuffed palata (friedflatbread). On the old Yangon–MandalayHighway, particularly to the south, are manyChinese and Myanmar restaurants; the restaurantat Mother’s House Hotel is particularlyinviting.Yagon Food Villa PAN-ASIAN $$(185 Bo Hmu Pho Kun St; dishes K1500-2500;h8.30am-9.30pm) Colourful fake-leather sofasand chairs add a bright note to this reliableoption serving the usual mix of rice andnoodle dishes, with burgers and fish andchips on the menu, too.8InformationArena Net Cafe (Bo Hmu Pho Kun St; per hrK500; h9am-4pm) Arena is next to MyanmarBeauty Guest House 1. Internet cafes are abundant,but don’t expect speedy connections.Dr Chan Aye (%23270; Myanmar BeautyGuest House I) Runs a clinic and speaks goodEnglish.8Getting There & AwayThe 62-mile unpaved logging road from Oktwin(9 miles south of Taungoo) to Pakkhaungprovides a shortcut to Pyay. Foreigners are notallowed to travel along this road unless on atour; Dr Chan Aye (see p 137 ) can make this trip