In about 12 hours we'll be stepping onto a plane headed for Myanmar (with a quick layover in Hong Kong because there is always a quick layover in Hong Kong). We decided way back in September to join some friends during Chinese New Year break on a tour of this lovely country. Admittedly, I knew nearly nothing about Myanmar before September. I couldn't even tell you why some people still call it Burma. I've done a bit of reading since then and, although I still can't really explain why some people still call it Burma, I've learned a lot.

Here's a country on the verge of yet another opportunity to reinvent itself. It's tough to occupy the space between two big countries, in this case China and India, and come out unscathed. And then when given the chance to be left alone to govern themselves there's been military rule, which never seems to be a good idea. But the new government has been elected, hope is in the air and it's time they had some of my well-earned money to booster their fledgling tourist economy. I'm very excited.

I've gone back and forth but finally decided that I'm going internet-free. I'll post about our adventure when we return in a week.