:00:00. > :00:00.test. That line just breaking in the last few moments. We will bring you
:00:00. > :00:00.any updates we get here on BBC News. Myanmar has always
:00:00. > :00:11.been on my wish list. But, because of decades of military
:00:12. > :00:14.rule, it was off-limits. Now the place is opening up,
:00:15. > :00:17.and I want to meet the people who have been behind
:00:18. > :00:21.closed doors for so long, and find out what makes this
:00:22. > :00:23.country so mystical, I'm starting my journey in Yangon,
:00:24. > :00:42.the former capital of the country Heaving street markets,
:00:43. > :00:51.gridlocked roads, and ramshackle And also, as it is monsoon season,
:00:52. > :01:00.it is drenched with rain. But then, in the middle
:01:01. > :01:07.of all the mayhem, is this place. It is actually quite
:01:08. > :01:20.an overcast, grey day. But you come here,
:01:21. > :01:28.and it is like it is brilliant The Shwedagon Pagoda
:01:29. > :01:50.is a revered holy site, years, surviving earthquakes,
:01:51. > :01:52.invasions, and the country's more The story of Myanmar over the last
:01:53. > :02:05.two centuries has really been all about other countries
:02:06. > :02:07.and the military muscling The remnants of British influence
:02:08. > :02:17.can still be seen all over the city. They seized control
:02:18. > :02:23.in the 19th century. Many found colonial Yangon,
:02:24. > :02:24.then called Rangoon, Rudyard Kipling, author
:02:25. > :02:30.of The Jungle Book, described it In 1948, Burma finally
:02:31. > :02:37.gained its independence. But there was much instability
:02:38. > :02:40.and ethnic conflict, and in the early 1960s,
:02:41. > :02:43.the country was thrown into turmoil Decades of isolation followed,
:02:44. > :02:53.as the army ruled the nation They also changed the name
:02:54. > :02:58.of the country to Myanmar, In 2011, the military
:02:59. > :03:11.government relaxed its grip, and although ethnic tensions
:03:12. > :03:13.continue, there have been It turns out my taxi driver Shell
:03:14. > :03:23.was himself a victim Imprisoned after taking place
:03:24. > :03:34.in student protests in 1988, he has spent a total
:03:35. > :03:37.of 14 years behind bars, and when he came out
:03:38. > :03:44.he struggled to get a job. TRANSLATION: I wasn't able to study,
:03:45. > :03:47.since I was imprisoned for 14 years Job opportunities were very slim,
:03:48. > :03:59.so I learned how to drive. Now he and two other former
:04:00. > :04:01.political prisoners have started a cab network called
:04:02. > :04:04.Golden Heart Taxis, to raise funds and help others like them readjust
:04:05. > :04:09.to the outside world. Do you think that tourism
:04:10. > :04:13.is good for this country? TRANSLATION: We've not seen anything
:04:14. > :04:16.like it in our lifetime. It's very good for the country,
:04:17. > :04:18.because we have more hotels for the tourist sector,
:04:19. > :04:21.more job opportunities, And that all generates
:04:22. > :04:38.foreign currency for us. In parts of the city,
:04:39. > :04:41.the outside world is already Something unprecedented has
:04:42. > :04:49.happened in Myanmar. Even in a country blessed
:04:50. > :04:57.with so many amazing steeples, Yep, it is the first Western fast
:04:58. > :05:03.food joint to open in the whole A regular meal costs way more
:05:04. > :05:26.than the average daily wage here. Some worry this is just the start
:05:27. > :05:29.of a big brand invasion, that will ruin the unique
:05:30. > :05:35.character of Yangon. But, as I found out from Myanmar's
:05:36. > :05:49.answer to Lady Gaga, there will always be a uniquely
:05:50. > :05:57.Burmese twist on popular culture. One is your unique voice,
:05:58. > :06:04.and also your dress sense. And she helps me out
:06:05. > :06:11.with all my wardrobes. She has this inspiration
:06:12. > :06:15.from our traditional creators. There are very colourful and bright
:06:16. > :06:21.colours, and even the masks, and she turned it into
:06:22. > :06:33.modern costumes for me. Phyu Phyu is one of the country's
:06:34. > :06:36.most famous pop stars. She actually trained
:06:37. > :06:38.as a doctor, but was determined No easy feat under the military
:06:39. > :06:49.junta, where rebellious artists and musicians were kept in check,
:06:50. > :06:52.something Phyu Phyu Their arbitrary statement said
:06:53. > :07:00.that my style of singing is very bold and very different
:07:01. > :07:06.from the norms. The movement of my lips,
:07:07. > :07:09.and even my voice. Despite the censorship,
:07:10. > :07:21.Phyu Phyu has lasted 12 years Tonight, she is performing
:07:22. > :07:36.at a charity gig. I know you have recorded
:07:37. > :07:39.with artists around the world. What do they know about
:07:40. > :07:41.Myanmar, about Burma? The first impression is that,
:07:42. > :07:48.how could this be possible to survive in the dark
:07:49. > :07:52.cave for like 50 years? It's always a very strange thing
:07:53. > :07:55.for my international artist fans. They would really want to know
:07:56. > :08:18.how we could survive. The next day, I'm leaving
:08:19. > :08:31.the city for the countryside, I'm heading to
:08:32. > :08:34.a pilgrimage site that is It is a volcanic rock
:08:35. > :08:44.over 700 metres high. I can just
:08:45. > :08:51.about see it through the fog. But there are 2,000 of them and, I
:08:52. > :09:07.must admit, the novelty wears off. So, here we are,
:09:08. > :09:12.near the base of Mount Popa. And I'm here to meet
:09:13. > :09:25.a spirit mediator. These 37 nats are spirits, and
:09:26. > :09:38.part of an ancient form of worship And Mount Popa is thought to be
:09:39. > :09:46.the home of the nats. TRANSLATION: Spirit
:09:47. > :09:48.worshippers believe that each And if they have a problem,
:09:49. > :09:55.they come and pray, They hope the nat will fulfil
:09:56. > :10:00.their desires. And tell me,
:10:01. > :10:04.what is your role in this? TRANSLATION: I connect with nats
:10:05. > :10:07.and communicate with them, and Of course, we don't always
:10:08. > :10:14.connect with the spirits. But if one comes,
:10:15. > :10:17.my body will start to shake, and Then I get the message,
:10:18. > :10:24.and pass it to the person. The mediator explains how offerings
:10:25. > :10:29.of flowers One of the nats prefers
:10:30. > :10:31.to be offered alcohol. It is all a bit mysterious,
:10:32. > :10:40.if you ask me. And that is
:10:41. > :10:43.before I've even started the climb. First, like all religious sites
:10:44. > :11:00.in Myanmar, it is shoes off. I should have brought
:11:01. > :11:11.a spare pair of socks. And you do wonder who is really
:11:12. > :11:13.in charge here. People actually being attacked
:11:14. > :11:22.by the monkeys. The climb is steep and not helped
:11:23. > :11:29.by the fact that some of the steps Golden pagodas peeking through
:11:30. > :11:44.the swirling mist. OK, I've climbed the 777 steps to
:11:45. > :11:51.the top of Mount Popa, And because of that mist,
:11:52. > :12:16.it is eerily beautiful. In the central plains of Myanmar
:12:17. > :12:20.lies an ancient site that some say rivals the far more famous
:12:21. > :12:28.Angkor Wat in Cambodia. Here we are, Bagan - 42 square
:12:29. > :12:33.kilometres of monasteries, temples and pagodas, with a claim to be the
:12:34. > :12:38.largest archaeological site in Asia. I'm told this is
:12:39. > :12:53.the best way to get around. This was Myanmar's first capital and
:12:54. > :13:00.where Buddhism in the country began. Over 2,000 religious monuments
:13:01. > :13:06.dominate the landscape. The showstopping scenery was largely
:13:07. > :13:09.hidden from the world during the years of military rule and is
:13:10. > :13:19.yet to be overrun by tourists. So, this is one of the showpiece
:13:20. > :13:37.temples in this whole complex. It is supposed to be amazing,
:13:38. > :13:40.and I'm going to meet a man who in a way created tourism here,
:13:41. > :13:45.way back in the '70s. If anyone knows about
:13:46. > :13:47.the background, the history, the Hello!
:13:48. > :14:06.Welcome to beautiful Bagan. We haven't even reached
:14:07. > :14:20.the shrine yet! By hand!
:14:21. > :14:30.No machinery at all. Ayethwin used to work
:14:31. > :14:35.in a fertiliser factory, but in 1971 he started showing tourists around
:14:36. > :14:48.in exchange for English lessons. The temples here have withstood huge
:14:49. > :14:50.earthquakes and some ham-fisted attempts at restoration under
:14:51. > :15:00.the military junta. Some say that is one reason why
:15:01. > :15:03.Bagan hasn't yet been awarded Yes,
:15:04. > :15:18.they painted whitewash everywhere. And now they're trying
:15:19. > :15:19.to restore it. Yes, slowly.
:15:20. > :15:23.But the calcium fades the colour. There is a lot to be done,
:15:24. > :15:26.but Ayethwin hopes this is the start of more people coming to
:15:27. > :15:36.see the unique monuments here. Because of the government situation,
:15:37. > :15:38.nobody mention I wanted you to know
:15:39. > :15:42.about my country and about We have many things to see,
:15:43. > :16:05.like these temples. Next, we're heading east,
:16:06. > :16:08.but on the way to the airport I am, Chinlone, it's called,
:16:09. > :16:50.and it's a 1,500-year-old ritual, where the emphasis is not
:16:51. > :16:53.on winning but on how beautifully There are the 200 ways to kick
:16:54. > :17:05.and pass the ball. An hour's flight
:17:06. > :17:36.from Bagan is the vast Inle Lake. It covers 116 square kilometres
:17:37. > :17:39.and supports a way of life I have The locals here live in stilted
:17:40. > :17:47.houses and farm floating gardens. Mountains in the background,
:17:48. > :17:58.huge expanse of lake. Yin Myo Su's family are
:17:59. > :18:21.from the Intha people, whose name We had no land to grow,
:18:22. > :18:29.so those bushes, when they die, they become floating piles
:18:30. > :18:34.of rubbish, but good rubbish. On top,
:18:35. > :18:41.we put the earth from the water. It is an important part
:18:42. > :18:44.of our cuisine. We grow things like tomatoes, beans,
:18:45. > :18:48.eggplants. Tell me
:18:49. > :18:50.about the background to this. How old is the tradition
:18:51. > :18:52.of floating gardens? All our ancestors have survived
:18:53. > :19:00.this way for many centuries. There is a whole community set up
:19:01. > :19:11.on the lake. Some of the fishing techniques
:19:12. > :19:35.are also unique to Inle Lake. This fisherman is putting the
:19:36. > :19:44.fishnet into the lake. Yes, we paddle by legs,
:19:45. > :19:48.as you can see. All girls
:19:49. > :19:50.and boys know how to do that. When you are standing like this,
:19:51. > :19:56.you can see the way better, and you can see some sign
:19:57. > :19:59.off fish under the water, and we believe it is faster when you
:20:00. > :20:09.are driving the boat by legs. Images of the one-legged fishermen
:20:10. > :20:13.of Inle are used to sell Myanmar the world over, but she tells me
:20:14. > :20:18.today will likely be fruitless for the fishermen as recent wind
:20:19. > :20:24.and rain has made the water murky. Pollution is also a problem here
:20:25. > :20:26.and over the years, I am going to try to balance it
:20:27. > :20:49.for him. This is when you zoom off and I
:20:50. > :20:57.never see you again! As I come to the end
:20:58. > :21:21.of my journey through Myanmar, the main impression I am left with
:21:22. > :21:25.is that this is one of the most resourceful and fascinating
:21:26. > :21:29.countries I have ever been to. Despite five decades of isolation,
:21:30. > :21:32.the people here have found some way to adapt and survive, whether it is
:21:33. > :21:36.the pop singer I met who battled against censorship or the former
:21:37. > :21:38.political prisoner who has created a future for himself driving tourists
:21:39. > :21:42.around. The resilience
:21:43. > :21:48.of people here is truly humbling. Sandwiched between the tourist
:21:49. > :21:50.powerhouses of India and Thailand, travel here is not easy or cheap,
:21:51. > :21:54.and many hope things will stay that way because as Myanmar starts to
:21:55. > :21:56.reconnect with the outside world, there is a strong message
:21:57. > :22:02.coming from the people here. "We will do things in our own way
:22:03. > :22:07.and at our own pace." However, please leave us to
:22:08. > :22:19.be independent as well. We can even inspire other people
:22:20. > :22:25.because we somehow kept protection in a little bubble
:22:26. > :22:30.for five or six decades. So, like a sunken treasure we
:22:31. > :22:34.are hidden and kept intact. Maybe this is
:22:35. > :22:39.a great opportunity for all people