chances are, you haven t been to this place. chances are, this is a place you ve never seen. other than maybe blurry cellphone videos, old black-and-white newsreels from world war ii. chances are, bad things were happening in the footage you saw. myanmar. after 50 years of nightmare, something unexpected is happening here, and it s pretty incredible. in yangon, capital city of myanmar, it s dark. blackouts are frequent with the ancient power grid. what sources of light there are in the street cast an eerie, yellow-orange hue. for almost 100 years under british rule, this was rangoon. in 1948, after helping the british fight off the japanese, and with a new taste for self-determination, the country gained independence. after a decade of instability, however, the military consolidated power and never let go. elections, they came and went. the results ignored, opposition punished or silenced entirely. burma, now myanmar, where orwell had once served as a colonial policeman
everybody s got a preference, everybody s got a preferred tea shop where they know presumably how you like yours. i said to them only less sweet and a bit strong. journalist and publisher u thiha saw. we meet at the seit taing kya tea shop. anything could happen in a tea shop. this place means a lot of things, not just a place for grab for some snacks. for 50 years of paranoia and repression, teahouses were also the main forum for guarded and not-so guarded discussions of the daily news. where you tried to piece together the real stories behind the ludicrously chopped and censored newspapers. but carefully, of course, because informers and secret police were also heavily represented in these hotbeds of sedition and discontent. so given your profession, how have you managed to stay out of prison all of these years? no, i was there. really? how long? two times. two times.
will this loosening of government grip last? of course, morning in yangon has always been about tea. it s black indian-style tea, usually with a thick dollop of sweetened condensed milk. you want it sweet this less sweet? very sweet? strong? less strong? everybody s got a preference, everybody s got a preferred tea shop, where they know presumably how you like yours. i want only last week a bit strong. journalist and publisher u thiha saw. we meet at the seit taing kya tea shop. this place means a lot of things.
always been about tea. it s black indian-style tea, usually with a thick dollop of sweetened condensed milk. you want it sweet this less sweet? very sweet? strong? less strong? everybody s got a preference, everybody s got a preferred tea shop, where they know presumably how you like yours. i want only last week a bit strong. journalist and publisher u thiha saw. we meet at the seit taing kya tea shop. this place means a lot of things. not just a place to grab a snack. for 50 years of paranoia and repression, teahouses were also the main forum for guarded and not so guarded discussions of the daily news, where you tried to piece together the real
of course, morning in yangon has always been about tea. it s black indian-style tea, usually with a thick dollop of sweetened condensed milk. you want it sweet, less sweet? very sweet? strong? less strong? everybody s got a preference, everybody s got a preferred tea shop, where they know presumably how you like yours. i want only last week a bit strong. journalist and publisher u thiha saw. we meet at the seit taing kya tea shop. this place means a lot of things. not just a place to grab a snack. for 50 years of paranoia and repression, teahouses were also the main forum for guarded and