lonely-planet-myanmar-burma-11-edition

& 38th St; h5-9pm) is held every evening nearthe Methodist Telugu Church.Bogyoke Aung San MarketMARKET(Map p 46 ; Bogyoke Aung San Rd; h10am-5pm Tue-Sun) Half a day could easily be spent wanderingaround this 70-year-old sprawlingmarket (sometimes called by its old Britishname, Scott Market). Besides the fact that ithas over 2000 shops and the largest selectionof Myanmar handicrafts you’ll find underseveral roofs, the market is a fantastic opportunityto smile, laugh and haggle alongsidelocal shoppers. You’ll find a whole variety ofinteresting souvenirs, from lacquerware andShan shoulder bags to T-shirts and puppets.Pick up some nice slippers here, convenientfor all the on-and-off demanded by paya protocol.Gems and jewellery are also on hand.Shops worth seeking out include Yo Ya May(1st fl), specialising in hill tribe textiles, particularlythose from Chin State, and HeritageGallery (1st fl), which has a good selection ofreproduction and authentic antiques with anemphasis on lacquerware.Theingyi ZeiMARKET(Map p 46 ; Shwedagon Pagoda Rd) The biggestmarket in central Yangon, this is especiallygood for locals, who find Bogyoke Aung SanMarket a little too pricey. Most of the merchandiseis ordinary housewares and textiles,but the market is renowned for its large selectionof traditional herbs and medicines, whichcan be found on the ground floor of the easternmostbuilding. Traditional herbal shampoo,made by boiling the bark of the Tayawshrub with big black kin pun (acacia pods), issold in small plastic bags; this is the secret ofMyanmar women’s smooth, glossy hair.Mingala ZeiMARKET(Map p 48 ; cnr Ban Yar Da La St & Set Yone Rd) Alittle southeast of Kandawgyi, this marketproffers textiles, clothes, electrical appliances,plasticware, preserved and tinnedfoodstuffs, modern medicines, and even cosmeticsfrom China, Thailand and Singapore.Amazingly, at night a section of this markettransforms into a nightclub, JJ City (p 65 ).TailorsYangon isn’t a place you’d usually thinkof for tailor-made clothes, but prices areamong the lowest in Southeast Asia.Tip-Top TailorsTAILOR(Map p 42 ; cnr Mahabandoola Rd & 43rd St) Afriendly tailor shop, which is open ‘everyday,except some of the days when we are shut’.Some of the days when it is most likely to beshut are Fridays and Sundays.Globe TailoringTAILOR(Map p 46 ; 367 Bogyoke Aung San Rd) Well regardedby local expats for women’s andmen’s tailoring.8InformationCultural Centres & LibrariesAt Shwedagon Paya (p 71 ), you can visit theLibrary & Archives of Buddhism, located in thewestern arch. There is no public library systemin the country.Alliance Française (Map p 48 ; %536 900;http://afrangoun.org; 340 Pyay Rd; h9.30am-12.30pm & 2-5.30pm Mon-Fri, 9.30am-12.30pm& 2-6pm Sat) French culture, reading materialand various French-language evening courses.American Center (Map p 46 ; %223 140; 14Taw Win St; h9am-4pm Mon-Sat, 9am-noonThu) Behind the Ministry of Foreign Affairs. Italso has a collection of books and magazines,including a good Burma section. American filmsare shown here Tuesday to Saturday at 1pm.British Council Library (Map p 42 ; %254 658;www.britishcouncil.org/burma; 78 Strand Rd;h8.30am-6pm Mon-Fri, 9am-6pm Sat, 9am-1pmSun) A very modern and plush facility connectedto the British embassy. It has a small library ofEnglish-language magazines, books and videosand one of the most complete collections ofEnglish-language history books on Myanmar.EmergencyYour home embassy (see p 362 ) may be able toassist with advice during emergencies or seriousproblems. It’s a good idea to register with yourembassy upon arrival or, if possible, registeronline before you arrive, so that embassy staffwill know where to reach you in case of an emergencyat home.There isn’t always an English-speaking operatoron the following numbers; you may have toenlist the aid of a Burmese speaker.Ambulance (%192)Fire department (%191)Police (%199)Red Cross (%383 680)Internet AccessMost top-end hotels and many midrange onesoffer wi-fi access, as do a steadily growing numberof small hotels and cyber cafés (see boxedtext, p 68 ). Rates are by the hour – usually prorata if under an hour – and most of the centralcyber cafés (as well as many hotels) know how tooutwit the censors, meaning that you can normallylog onto pretty much any website. Server67YANGON 8 8 INFORMATION