Botahtaung Pagoda In Yangon

On the east side of town, among busy port traffic, sits the mighty Botahtaung pagoda.

Main stupa, under renovation.

The complex is big on bling, whether a prayer hall or small alcove.

Buddha, straightening his hair.

Bananas and coconuts are the usual offering and they take some labor for proper prep.

Heading in for prayer in the main stupa. No doubts you're in the holiest place, wall-to-wall bling.

Wandering Yangon City

Taking a little look at life in Yangon.

Typical urban view, wide main streets, concrete architecture, mostly from the '60s, '70s.

Birds and building. Waiting shop woman.

The pink restaurant.

The pigeon woman. Present in front of past, street eateries set up in front of a closed municipal building.

The plastics store.

Watching a football match; watching TV at lunch.

Walking the railroad tracks.

Drug Elimination Museum, The Still Life Edition

The dioramas at the Drug Elimination Museum are full of fine details, all worth appreciating. The main events in most of the scenes are the human interactions. Once one looks past that action, the general set dressing of the scenes has its own rewards. Or quirks. Or both.

Poppies.

Surveying the land. Trees on the sideline.

Waterless fall.

Re-populating a valley.

Unnatural light source, revealed.

Celebrating The Holiday In Asia

It's monsoon season in Kuala Lumpur, hardly the type of weather one associates with a traditional winter wonderland of holiday cheer. No matter, Asians know the holiday is for shopping and the universal desire to give and get gifts. Santa is coming and you'd better watch out, indeed.

Getting in the mood.

In a traditional outdoor market, a half-hearted attempt to deck the place.

High fashion winter wear, in 90º heat. Watch out for the girl with green eyes, she means business.

Mall photo-op. In a hotel fantasyland installation, several warnings.

What the..? Yup, a gingerbread mosque. Pretty much impossible to reconcile.

Another hotel, another display with an interesting mashup. The place is near a dinosaur fossil area. For the ladies, a chance to get frisky.

Everyone into the giant holiday ball pool. Consuming mayhem reigns.

Drug Use Choice At The Drug Elimination Museum

At the heart of the exhibitions at the Drug Elimination Museum are a series of impressive dioramas with life-size models. There dioramas illustrate various themes, mostly scenes of military intervention.

There are also scenes depicting civilian choices. See what drug use looks like, where it leads and what kind of life you can lead that's drug-free, happy and fulfilling.

The classic drug user, a poor man in a village hooked on opium.

What you should be doing, going to school and obeying the program. Even if you're good, you may find yourself at a funeral of a loved one, taken by the drug scourge.

Sickness and death.

What to do with the fields where poppies once flourished? Grow other crops! Or raise bees. Sweet!

Stay true and you'll grow up to wear fancy clothes and carry fancy flowers.

Drug Elimination Museum, PSA Section

Toward the end of the tour at the Drug Elimination Museum, there's a row of dioramas that spell out, without a shred of doubt, that you should not choose the path of drug use.

First panel, declaring the right flowers to cultivate.

Next panel, first warning.

Didn't get the message? Time to show you some bad flowers.

How bad? It's insane!

Final message, the endgame of death.

Getting Moody At The Drug Elimination Museum

The most fun part of gazing at the big dioramas at the Drug Elimination Museum is the endless potential for subtle subplots that the figures exhibit. Isolate part of a scene and create a new narrative.