Denzel - our first Burmese friend

During our stay at our friend Joan’s place (Flo’s boss) we soon met Denzel. Denzel has been the Gardener of the residence for many years. Straight from the beginning, Denzel treated us very very well. Since Denzel was raised as a Christian, he speaks better English than many of the Burmese people we met so far. He would constantly ask if we needed something or if everything was allright and he was very interested in talking to us and explaining us everything. He even took time to show us the local market nearby and helped negotiating prices for everything we bought. He would also call a taxi as soon as we mentioned that we wanted to go somewhere. He thus quickly became a very interesting an also important contact for us. Even now that we are back at the Guesthouse we sometimes call him or he calls us to ask how we are doing.

After only a few days staying at Joan’s, Denzel already invited us for dinner at his home. We were a little surprised but we of course gladly accepted his invitation. In the evening of 15 April we were picked up at our place and drove to Thingangyu Township, clearly a much poorer area. One arrived at Denzel’s we climbed up the narrow stairs to the fifth floor and we were welcomed by Denzel’s family and a whole bunch of Victoria’s relatives. After greeting everybody we were invited to sit down at the table which was laid for two. We were served a cool coke and Denzel set up two fans (the two fans they have) next to lara and me. We handed them some swiss chocolate as a present which they did not expect at all and were very embarrassed to accept. Apparently, bringing a small present when you’re invited is not a common practice. After showing us their apartment, we were again asked to sit down at the table and Vicoria started serving all sorts of delicious burmese dishes including a soup, noodles, chicken, some vegetables and more. It all tasted absolutely delicious and we expressed our deepest gratitude and complemented the chef for her excellent work. Victoria in turn could not help but apologizing for the poor variety of food and told us that she could not prepare more due to the Thingyan (all shops are closed during new year). She then also told us about the time she was working for a UN delegate and close friend of Aung San Suu Kyi and proudly presented two photos showing her and Aung San Suu Kyi posing for a group picture. After dinner we were served countless coffees and teas and we learned about various local things such as the better cooling properties of bamboo sleeping mats compared to a synthetic product or the fact that Victoria had a hard time getting up the 5 flights of stairs “because my wife is fat, you kno” (she also referred to herself as "fat" several times and we had a hard time holding back our laughs). With all the interesting stories and insights time was flying and very soon it was 22:00 and the taxi driver was back to take us back to Joan’s place. When we arrived back at the house we were again confronted with a very different reality. It wasn’t until then that we were overwhelmed by the immense generosity, hospitality and overall friendliness we had just witnessed in a family whose (financial) possibilities and perspectives are so entirely different from ours.

 This is Denzel!

 Denzel introducing us to the closest local market where you can buy meat, fish, vegetables and lots of other stuff. Notice the curious look on the faces of the passing couple, classic reaction...

 Debating the price for vegetables.

 Denzel and Lara on one of our little excursions in the neighborhood.

Groupt picture at Denzel's. From left to right including Burmese names: Victoria (Kimela), Christopher (Coco), Josephine (Darapi-kyio), Denzel (Sahu) and Lara (Madam). Flo (Sir) takes the picture.