from 'Elephants and motos' by RustyCarr (April 2007)

Stayed in Kyaukme 5 days. Using a rented 110cc moto I visited many places including Hsipaw (overrated I think, but then again it depends what you want to see as a tourist). Called in at Mr Charles to see what the fuss was all about and concluded accomodation was very basic and decided Kyaukme was the better bet.

In Kyaukme (pronounced chow-may) stayed at A Yone Oo guest house (10 minute walk from rail station). However it would be better described as an L-shape Motel, newly built in recent years. It was a pleasant change to stuffy old wooden buildings we had used so far on this trip.

Mr Charles in Hsipaw rent motos 8000kyat. A Yone Oo guesthouse is 6000kyat (ask for Nelson). I thought the scenery more entertaining in Kyaukme area than Hsipaw. Hills are closer and moto so handy. Tried to ride to Mogok but after 3hrs the road was really bad and as i was passing few other drivers maybe one per hour I thought best to turn back in case of puncture.

Over 5 days , only a few people asked where my guide was and then laughed when I told them I didnt have one. No one every said I should not go here / there without a guide. Even the police were friendly and I got no grief at all.

I would recomment the moto only to those who do have bike experience on rough terrain. Some roads out of town will be in reasonable condition (tarmacadam with occasional holes) but many then become a stone/boulder track (1st & 2nd gear only) and then may turn into an animal track!! .....and if wet, then you grind to a halt.

If you are familiar with off-roading on a proper big moto-X with heavy-duty suspension, you will cry with dispair (or burst out laughing) trying it here on a 110cc moto with crappy ground clearance and normal road tyres.

I've been told over a dozen times now that tourists are not allowed on the bigger bikes (DT's etc). I still have to be given a reasonable explanation.

If you are a true novice, poss best to get a guide and hop on the back of his moto (and there are plenty of students in Kyaukme/Hsipaw wanting to practice English in exchange for acting as a guide).

Surprising for this time of year, I did see quite a few tiered green paddy fields in the valleys near Kyaukme.

Also, Hsipaw appears to be a geneal sprawl of low level buildings whereas Kyaukme is a more compact town mainly comprising of 2-3 story buildings many with typical chinese styling. A full walk of Kyaukme town can thus be done inside an hour with regular markets taking up whole streets. This leaves plenty of time to get on that moto and get out of town for further exploration of the surrounding countryside (waterfalls, caves, hot springs etc). If you missed photo opportunity as you crossed the Gokteik Rail Viaduct, then drive down using the moto.

Train times still erratic. Kyaukme to Mandalay .. 12hours. Can anyone beat that? Got stopped at Pyin-Oo-Lyn for 2hours whilst police and army looked for drug smugglers.

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