Hand in Hand is a video that I stumbled upon this week inspired by a photographer I know of named Murad Osmann. Osmann is known for his #FollowMeTo series of instagram photos of his girlfriend pulling him into spectacular locations around the globe. The series started when Osmann's girlfriend was annoyed with his incecent photo taking and grabbed him to pull him along insuing the #FollowMeTo photograph format. 

Not only is Hand in Hand a phenomally formatted video based off a innovative concept, it is also stunning! Needless to say I was blown away when I found it and so excited to see another view of this spectacular place that we will soon call home. Fittingly Hand in Hand is a perfect theme for this next part of our lives. We will be taking this journey together, facing challenges together, and having adventures together. Just as we have come this far together. 

Hand in Hand we are planning our wedding, and boy has it been a week for wedding planning! Just this week we have ordered our wedding rings, set up a mock centerpiece trial, came one step closer with our favors, dropped off my dress for alteration, set the menu with our food truck for the reception, and received some of our first RSVPs back. This has truly been a process that we have been enjoying together. 

In the spirit of Hand in Hand and #FollowMeTo here is our rendition of follow me to the food truck! 

With the big move coming up in 18 weeks it is hard to think of much else, so much to do! But we have another HUGE life changing event coming up even sooner: our wedding of course! This week was about focusing on our wedding to-do list and thanks to a snow day that was called on the first day of spring (more snow grumble grumble) I was able to get a bunch of things checked off. Flowers ordered (check), hair trial scheduled (check), favors worked on (check), and -FINALLY- invitations mailed! Woot woot!  

On the topic of Myanmar a friend was watching a show that just happened to shoot the most recent episode in . . . you guessed it, Myanmar! I don't really understand the concept of the show but it is fantastic to see more of Myanmar - and a recent view at that. Here is the special below if you wanna watch yourself. 

As of this week our families, friends, and employers are all aware of our big move. Reactions from everyone have been interesting, mostly happy and excited for us. We have been planning and researching and trying to begin preparing for the biggest change of our lives. This week we have been trying to refocus our energy on the wedding which is only two months away!!!! There is so much to do and we are loving tackling each part of the wedding "to-do list." Order wedding bands. Make invitations. Decide on table decorations. Meet with DJ. And the list goes on and on.

In the mist of everything I received some Myanmar reading material that I ordered a couple weeks ago. Although these books are outdated of the recent progress in Myanmar I am hoping they will give us a good idea of the history and general state of the country. In many blogs I have read about travels around Myanmar, tourists will refer to the Lonely Planet Guide as "the Bible" because it is literally the only travel guide to Myanmar, which means almost all foreign travelers carry this book. Since it was published in 2009 many things have changed about the country in terms of progress and options for travelers. Lonely Planet is actually publishing a new version due out in August of this year. So for now these are what we have available. I'm looking forward to squeezing in some reading when I can. 

These are the books I purchased:

Lonely Planet: Myanmar (Burma)
Culture Shock! Myanmar: A Survival Guide to Customs and Etiquette   Saw Myat Yin
Burma/Myanmar What Everyone Needs to Know    David I. Steinberg

WE ARE MOVING TO BURMA!!

Why?

Travel has always been close to both of our hearts and we both knew that globetrotting would be a part of our life plan. We have been looking into a variety of options and places to make our dream a reality and it has finally happened!


Where?

Most people know it as Burma however it is now called Myanmar (me-an-mar). It is a country in South-east Asia right next to Thailand. We will be living in the capital of Yangon (previously Rangoon). It is a big city with a whopping 2.5 million people (about the same as Chicago). It is a lovely country filled with happy, welcoming locals. 

 
What (are you going to do)?

I have taken a position as a High School Art Teacher at The International School of Myanmar. I will be teaching fine, AP, and digital art classes. I will be following an American standards-based curriculum and teaching in all English.

Kim is beyond excited to learn a whole other cuisine. She will ideally be understudying a local chef to gain knowledge and practical skills of Myanmar cooking. Kim has also considered taking steps towards restaurant management. 


How (long will you be there)?

My contract is for two years, after that who knows?


When (are you leaving)?

We will be off at the end of July and will be back for summer break next June.


Is it safe?

Safety was #1 on our list as we were considering world location options. I was offered a few other positions before accepting this one at ISM, however they were in locations where it would not have been safe for us to step out of our apartment building and walk down the street in the middle of the day. We obviously turned these down.

Myanmar is the complete opposite. It is known as one of the safest countries in Asia. It has an extremely difficult political past and is still run by a military junta. However, ever since opening to outsiders (in 1992) the country has been progressing. The locals are overwhelmingly welcoming to tourists and expats alike. Don't get me wrong, there are dangers but the pros certainly out way the cons.


What is it like?

Some refer to Myanmar as a place lost in time. “Since it was closed off for so long, much of the country seems truly untouched by signs of globalization like fast food chains. Women still chalk their faces with thanaka, a paste made from tree bark. Men wear longyi, wraparound skirts gracefully knotted at the waist. Monks carry begging bowls through own in the early morning ritual of seeking food.” (bigstory.ap.org) Now that Myanmar is open to the outside world it is changing rapidly. In my research I have to be sure to look at articles from the past year, two tops. Otherwise the information is outdated. More and more western options are becoming available yet the street markets still bustle.

We are looking forward to having a fair amount of Western accommodations but are excited to experience the true essence of Myanmar. We hope to travel outside Yangon and get to know the country that we will be residing in.

 
Are you crazy?

Ha. Yeah, we’ve been getting this a lot. Honestly, I think we are a bit crazy, but as Freud once said:

“Dreams are often most profound when they seem the most crazy.”

I will blogging about our journey right here. So I hope you stay tuned because this is going to be quite the adventure!

 
Here is a pic of us being crazy . . . crazy happy that is : )