This is a small travel guide that I put together from research I did on the internet and the Thorn Tree for our trip. Things covered include Food, Transport, Lodging, and Off The Beaten Path sites.

Hope you find it useful.
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Highlights

Things to bring. Times and News Magazines. Makeup. Balloons for hill tribes. Comics, Pens, Notepads, SAT and Toefl study books. Other workbooks for english.

Do not bring any $100 US that start with the Serial # CB Plus keep them as clean as possible. No tears or marking on them of any kind. No new bills either.

The best place to exchange money is at the “Bogyoke (Scott) Market” Yangon. You can change money there at almost any jewelry shop.

Flights:
My wife and I were on an indirect United Airlines flight from San Francisco to Myanmar, formally known as Burma. We arrived at Bangkok airport at 1:30 AM and had a seven hour layover before our flight to the capital city Yangon. With no where to sleep we found a small secluded corner next to an unused conveyer belt where some of the airport workers were taking a nap and called it a night. Early the next morning we grabbed a snack and headed to our departure gate for mystical Myanmar, the land of the golden pagodas.

Upon arrival to Yangon, we decided to take a short flight up to Sittwe , historically known as Akyab and the capital city of Rhakine State. We decided to go there as it is one of the least visited areas of Myanmar. SIttwe, at one time, was one of the largest ports used by the British when they occupied the country in 1826. This was also the area where fights were instigated by the Burmese government between the buddhist and muslim communities in order to create unrest. This upheaval started in 1978 and flared up again in 1988.