Like My Favorite Scene from My Favorite Movie

You know the scene in Goodfellas where Henry and Janice wind up with a table at the front of the Copacabana after winding their way through the kitchen.  Martin Scorsese shot it in an incredible fashion.  (Of course you know the scene -- EVERYONE knows that scene!)

That's how it felt when Aye Aye led us through the market and then the spice market.  We told her we are not big shoppers, but did want to see the markets.  Just because it was unlikely we would buy anything didn't mean we wouldn't want to see the place.

And, both markets were wild.  Aye Aye rushed us past stall after stall, zigging and zagging, every so often stopping to ask Carol if she had seen anything she wanted to buy (I never got the same question).  There were colorful fabrics, dresses, beautiful jewelry (lots of jade), trinkets and knick-knacks.  We buzzed by at such speed that I literally would point the camera and shoot whilst on the go.  The market was so beautiful that even those rushed photos generally came out well.

There are over 1100 stalls in the market, an old colonial (British, obviously) building.  We did not pass them all, but it seems like we came close.  Sometimes it was difficult to squeeze between the other people, other times we had to avoid tripping over sandals that the stallkeepers had left in the way.

Not only do Myanmarites (I just made that word up, I'm pretty sure) go barefoot into the pagodas (as must everyone), they also are barefoot in their homes and some of their businesses.  There are no "no shoes, no shirt, no service" signs here!

The spice market was not as beautiful, large, or colorful as the spice market in Istanbul, but it was quite aromatic.  Zipping past stalls, along crowded streets, past street food vendors (we were warned that our wimpy Western stomachs couldn't, well, stomach, the street food, so stay away!).

Besides the markets (Bogyoke and the spice market), we also got a great look at the crowded CBD streets.  Wires hanging everywhere out over the street, cars jockeying with people for space on the roads, general chaos ensues, but somehow works.

It's also like Cuba in that people cross the streets where they want.  It's unlike Cuba because there is a steady stream of cars, either going fast or hardly at all, depending on traffic.  I didn't see one person get hit, but they certainly seemed like they were trying!

The markets reminded me a little of the old flea markets our grandmother (Nana, bless her soul) used to take us to in the late 1960s/early 1970s -- but MUCH bigger and more chaotic.  Very cool places to walk, or essentially run, through!