Category: Rambling Page 6 of 8

July 2, 2010:

Met her again at the Shwegondaing intersection.

She was as innocent as ever, wearing the same sweet smile, very natural indeed. She rushed to my car knocking at the window gently, as what she did last time. She waved a string of jasmine flower for sale, as what she did last time. Unlike what I did last time, this time I rushed to get some kyats from my work pant deep inside the sport bag, as I just returned from a badminton game at the university sport complex.  But alas I could not control the traffic light. The light turned green so fast, and the car had to move. I missed her again. May be next time. I forgot her name but I could never forget her smile.

It was an interesting sight at the Shwegonedain intersection in Yangon, Myanmar. In this city, everyone has a story. Every face tells a story.

June 6th, 2010:

I scrolled down the window after she came rushing to my car, stopped by a red light.  She was so cute with a natural smile and bright teeth. In her hand I saw a string of white flower I did not know the name — something like bunga melor.  I am not a flower man though.  She waived the flower to me.  I was more interested in her and not the flower she wanted to sell.  I could not resist to ask.

“Name belu kole?”

” Tay Myat Noe.”

“Atek belau le?”

“Tse nit.”

The red light turned green and I had no time to reach for the money. I knew it was about 100 or 200 kyats only or maybe less. She threw me an unhappy smile before rushing to the roadside again, waiting for another red light.  No sale made this time.

She was just 11.  She should have been home or in bed already at 10pm.

It was an interesting sight at the Shwegonedain intersection in Yangon, Myanmar. In this city, everyone has a story. Every face tells a story.

May 17th 2010:

It has been hot, really hot in Yangon for the last couple months. Temperature rised up to 46C in some areas. They expected rain during last Thingya n Water Festival, but God said NOT YET. A mosque near Aung San Stadium conducted special hajat prayers to call for the rain last FRiday. The doa (prayers) led by the young Imaam was so long that it took about 20 minutes.

Myanmar Times has been reporting about cases of sudden death due to heatstroke. Yesterday I read about a taxi driver, died at the busy intersection in Yangon.

Last week the paper quoted more cases in Upper Myanmar like Mandalay and Magway. Details could not be verified.

So the heavy pouring rain today — started at 10:30am when I was en route to lawyer’s office — was a sight of relief to everyone and other living things. Plants, grass and trees and even frogs, who started singing in joy.