31/07/2002
Plots of land near Pun Hlaing Golf Course are on sale. An apartment is sold for US$ 150,000 to US$ 199,000. A separate house is priced at US$ 246,500. Land is sold at US$ 6.8 per square feet. During the first half of this year, prices of plot of land gave been going up.

30/07/2002
In the rainy season, when Buddhist lent comes in, Myanmar people invited monks and presented offertories. The number of monks is limited. The other day, monks were called in at the house of my acquaintance and they were offered "Thingan", yellow robe for monks. And relatives and friends are entertained with foods.(K.K)

29/07/2002
The most beautiful 18-hole golf course in Yangon- Pun Hlaing was opened recently. It has individual lockers and showers. The restaurant at the golf course is managed by Sofitel Hotel. Charges are US$ 50 per head for weekdays and US$ 65 for weekends.

26/07/2002
You won't be able to make phone call to Bagan for a bouut 5 days starting from 27 July because telephone switch board will be repair during this period. Before this it is diffcult to call bagan except for early morning or night time. We hope that it will become more easier to phone Bagan regardless of time.

25/07/2002
One of Myanmar sayings that reflects ways of life of people is "a good coconut tree is equal to a good husband." Earning from a coconut tree was sufficient enough for a family to cover cost of living in the past. But, these days, it is impossible due to sky rocketing prices. But a whole coconut tree is very useful; coconut kernel is edible; brooms can be made of stems of the leaves; coconut fibre can be made ropes. In this picture, people are making ready to transport coconuts to the market.

23/07/2002
As number of used cars imported from Japan increases, car repair shops has increased. This picture is an air filling and car spare part shop where one can fill his car's tyres with compressed air. It costs 50 kyats for one air-filling.

22/07/2002
At the beginning and end of every year, domestic airlines are crowded with passengers. Although you make reservation right away, it may be in waiting list. Plans are underway for Myanmar Airway International to fly from Yangon to Narita direct starting from November. Therefore, the domestic flights may be more crowded. We remind it to those who are planning to come to Myanmar at the end and beginning of this year.

18/07/2002
You can see plenty of pigeons in Yangon__downtown, Mingalar market and Yuzana plaza in Tamway or anywhere. And there are many sellers of pigeon-feed. Maizes are put in a plate as shown in the picture. Those wishing to feed pigeons can buy the feed at 100 kyats per three plates.

17/07/2002
This is the advertisement of A Mon bottled water and plain tea. Commercial of them have been carried on TV for about 2 months before they really come out. They haven't come yet up to now. But, the advertisement says, "they are coming soon". The company will be the first one to produce instant plain tea for Myanmar people who like it. I have no idea how much they will cost because they haven't come out yet. But, people take interest in them, the first products of such kind.

16/07/2002
There were successive raing days in Yangon. It has not been sunny for along time but it was sunny yesterday morning and then it started to rain cats and dogs as usually since afternoon. Streets in downtown area flooded. They were like small breeks because of flashflood. Some cars broke down in the water.

15/07/2002
There are two suspension bridges in Yangon-Maha Bandoola Bridge that appeared in Yangon news and Aung Zeya Bridge. This bridge was opened in two years ago. One can reach Hlaing Thaya through conventional bridge and this one. It took three minutes to cross the bridge. The toll is 50 Kyats for a car.

12/07/2002
This is a wall of a monastery under construction. Workers were going up and down carrying materials. There is no prescription for scaffolding in Myanmar. Scaffolding in Hongkong is very famous. They are very strong regardless of their height. Once the rainy season is over, renovation of pagodas beging. Bamboo scaffolding is made round the pagoda. But, very long rainy season lasts till October. Wet,wet....... . (K.K)

11/07/2002
When the rainy season comes, fungus comes out on the wall and covers of the books becomes humid and soft because of dampness. Wooden doors become swollen and we find it difficult to close and open such doors. This is the photo of platform constructed on the drain which nobody use. People can easily slip and fall down on moss because there is no things on the sole of Myanmar people's slippers that cause friction and prevent from slipping. Only Japanese people think it is very beautiful on seeing moss. It is just a thing gives trouble to people.(K.K)

10/07/2002
The novel is about four families that lived in an apartment building. The main character U Ba Pwa, a victim of cancer, review his life and put the rest of his life into good use for the people in his environs. Parents of three children who live in the second floor flat of the same apartment died suddenly in a car accident in the middle of the story. Among the children, the eldest son who was 14 years old desired to be a doctor. So the main character had a lot money for the boy kept by his friend who is a doctor. The amount of money was 1 million kyats. U Ba Pwa then uttered that this money was enough to go to university unless other things broke out. Prices have soared so many times ten years after the book was written. Practically, it may be very difficult for the three children to go to university at the present. Current prices have skyrocket that the writer was not able to think of the price ten years ago. (K.K)

9/07/2002
The books in the picture are the ones used in the classers of University of Foreign Language. Myanmar Language textbooks are not prescribed at the UFL. A wide range of activities help expose the students to variety of language. Some times, a novel of teacher's choice is taught. Listening practice is made playing tapes. Some time, students have to watch a video movie and upgrade their comprehension skill. Other activities are reading newspapers and listening to the news on the radio. A book we have to study is "Bawa Ein Met, Pan Ein Met (Dream of life, Dream of a flower) by female writer Ma Sandar who won national literary award by this novel published in 1993. (K.K)

8/07/2002
Since the time immemmorial use coconut oil as hair cream. It is produced by drying kernel of the coconut and crushing it. Nowadays, various kinds of foreign-made hair cream have taken the place of cocont oil. But, some are still using coconut oil, Myanmar style hair cream.

5/07/2002
I have to do a lot of paper work here in Myanmar. In every document, there is an item; father's name. As you all know, Myanmar people have no family name. They generally write father's name for there are many persons by the same name. Normally, they express the name of native town and parents' name after their name. Owing to that, I have to write down the name of my father who passed away 20 years ago very often.(K.K)

4/07/2002
Thefinal exam will be held at the end of July. Four years of university student life is going to be over. It is necessary for us to put up documents to take exam. When it comes to paper work, they are plenty to an unlimited amount in Myanmar. Testimanials from the authorities of the ward I live are needed. If foreign student wants to travel beyond Yangon Division, it is necessary for him to submit itinerary, the hotel, plate number of the vehicle, etc to the University of Foreign Languages. When foreign students go back to their countries, they have to get a D.Form before they leave with the exception of tourists. Students have to report to the university for being absent for a day. It has been about four years to be busy with different kinds of paper work.(K.K)

3/07/2002
A dress is needed to join nunnery. Not like lay persons, they need three layers of dress and a shawl to be placed on the shoulder. The colour is pink like ones. One short-waist-blouse, a long dress which is long down to ankle on it, a gown to cover the whole body and a shawl. I think they wear such dress to conceal body structure. It is impossible to have robes for monks and dresses for nuns made at ordinary tailors. It cost about K 4,000 to make a dress for nun__ including cloth.

2/07/2002
Before holding wedding reception, traditional boxing matches, novitiaton ceremony and theatrical performance, people pay respects to gods with offertory.Offertories are needed for theatrical performance, novitiation ceremonies, etc. It usually consists of three to five hands of bananas, a coconut, etc decoratively arranged. People worship gods after Buddha. They usually give an offertory before a building is constructed. But, provisions such as rice, cooking oil, onion, candles, inscensed sticks and cash were donated to the monks at the ceremony to join holy order and nunnery.

1/07/2002
Myanmar young men joined holy order temporarily once in the life time. There is no such prescribtion for women. A staff from our office joined nunnery for five days and joined a meditation camp. Once can join a meditation camp as a lay person without shaving his head in a white shirt and in brown longgyi, as a nun with shaven head or as a monk. It is common for Myanmars to join holy order, nunnery and meditation camps during water festival holidays which fall in the second week of April and school holidays after matriculation exams are over. Some do so in a wish for good health and business prosperity. The presiding monk said that girls used to feel shy of joining nunnery shaving their heads. But,there were a lot of girls who joined nunnery recently.