Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
Drink
Tap water
isn't safe to drink in Myanmar; bottled water is available throughout the country
for around K300 for a small bottle. Many businesses and homes will have large earthenware
jarsoutside,whichareprovided-alongwithacommoncup-forthirstypassers-byasaway
ofaccruinggoodkarma.Thewaterrangesfromclean,UV-treatedwatertostuffstraightfrom
the village well - it might be useful in a pinch, but drink it at your own risk.
Tea and coffee
In many restaurants, free jugs of
green tea
(
lahpet-ye-gyàn
or
ye-nwè-gyàn
) and cups are
left on each table, with customers often rinsing their cups out with a little of the tea before
drinkingfromthem.
Blacktea
(
lahpet-ye
)isservedwithlavishquantitiesofcondensedmilk.
Burmese tea-drinkers are often quite specific about how they take their tea, ordering it
paw
kya
(strongandnottoosweet),
cho hseint
(milkyandsweet)or
paw hseint
(milkyandnottoo
sweet) - drinking black tea without sugar is not an option.
A request for
coffee
(
kaw-p'í
) will get you a cup of hot water and a packet of coffee mix
(pre-mixedinstantcoffee,creamerandsugar)foryoutostirinyourself.Ifyouwanttotrythe
goodhome-growncoffeeorarejustdesperateforachangefromcoffeemix,askforBurmese
coffee (
Bamar kaw-p'í
), which will get you a cup of black coffee, served with sugar and lime
on the side - unusual, but delicious.
A hot drink in a teahouse will cost around K300, far less than it would set you back in one
oftheWestern-stylecoffeeshopsthatarepoppingupinMyanmar'slargercitiesandthemain
tourist hotspots, where an
espresso
will typically cost around K800.
