Bring it, Bago!

100 fifth graders, 8 teachers, a few tour guides, 3 buses and hopeful souls bounded into Bago, Myanmar this last Thursday, anticipating the best trip of their 10 years of life. It was the first overnight trip for the kids and they were beyond estatic to be able to leave their homes, have a sleepover with their friends and discover what lay beyond the borders of Yangon. For many, this was the very first night away from their mother's side, ever. With our clipboards in hand and excitement oozing out of us, we set off for the adventure of the year :)

First stop, the British War Cemetery. Here, we learned about the 2,000 plus soldiers that sacrificed their lives for their country and loved ones. One of our teachers even had the chance to meet a couple who were seeking out an ancestor who had died over a hundred years prior. How powerful it must have been to be in Myanmar, looking for a family member's headstone.

Then we headed out to a monestary, where we donated a bunch of school supplies and were able to play with the kids who went to school there! It was fun to see the interaction between our kids and them, as our kids were able to take on leadership roles and teach our new friends some fun games!

(this is the monk thanking the kids for the donations)

Snake, snake, severus Snape... Dumbladore! was the song that kept playing through my head (yes, I may have altered the words) as we went to the Snake Pagoda. If you see the picture below, you will notice that a 100 year old Burmese python is within arms reach, UNCAGED- mind you, of my children. He is believed to be a monk that has been reincarnated and now people donate money and pray to him. Never mind that I have spent the last three weeks talking about the danger of Burmese pythons in the Everglades...

After seeing the snake, we hopped on trishaws and headed to another pagoda! I practically cried through this experience, as I am a bit afraid of trishaws. Why? A little over 18 months ago I got into a trishaw accident in Bago- PTS, you might say. None the less, one of my students reassured me and said, "It's ok Miss Lynsey, the slow and steady always win the race." Oh, such wise children I have :)

Check out the reclining Buddha! Look how HUGE it is! 

After seeing too many Buddhas and Pagodas, we went to our hotel. Yes, this is what is looked like: 

Now, imagine your children telling you it is haunted and that they won't be able to sleep at night... and I have to convince them otherwise. Let's just say that I managed to get them to sleep and convince myself that the ghost of Christmas past would not choose January 31st as an eve of haunt. I only found out the next day that a guy had died in this building a few years prior....

 The next morning, we went to this pagoda that was just serene. Maybe it was the fog and calm atmosphere, but hot dang, I was in such a state of peace. Here is a shot of the bird flying through the mist...

I wanted to end the blogpost with a shot of my kids on the "Great Wall of China," where we went to a Chinese Garden and ran around for a while! As you can see, everything is a bit chaotic :) But hey, story of my life, no? 

I can honestly say that I had an incredible time hanging out with these kids and having the chance to grow closer to them. I feel beyond blessed to have the chance to work with such a creative bunch and hope that it only allows us to grow closer together!