2007 Biking Burma

By train then to Naypyidaw…

This is Burma’s new capital, built in the wasteland 320 km north of the old capital, Yangon. Naypyidaw means “Abode of Kings”. When Burmese go to the new capital, they need a signed letter of invitation and a photo ID, and can't take a cell phone or camera (we saw only two cells during our month in Burma). While the bulk of Burma’s roads are in outrageous condition, the generals have built an eight-lane highway through their new and grotesque capital.

We saw men, women and children building roads and filling potholes literally by hand. It is said that the road builders of Burma are essentially slaves – conscripts at the mercy of a merciless state.