The Cultural Scene Flourishes at the Goethe Institute Yangon

The time has come to publish my long planned article about the Goethe Institute Myanmar. 

I would start by thanking the Director Franz Xaver Augustin for the many interesting events organised by his team and for his enthusiastic commitment in promoting cultural exchanges in Myanmar. 

I was merely a constant guest at their cultural events. However, after each event I left happy knowing that I had the chance to meet amazing local and foreign (mostly German) artists and writers. Personally, I find the Goethe Institute the most active organiser of cultural events in Yangon. These kinds of events are attended by the local and expat community alike in a city where the art scene and the cultural exchanges are starting to flourish. 

Goethe Institute started to organise events in the beautiful but run-down colonial villa on the Kabar Aye Pagoda Road since early 2015. The building has its own agitated history. It was built shortly before or during the WWI most probably by an European.  In the 1920s the house was purchased by a wealthy family of Chinese origin. During the Japanese bombing of Rangoon many rich people left the city together with the British. That is the reason why the villa was empty at the end of WWII. Most notably it served as the headquarter of the Burmese independence movement of Aung San’s and U Nu’s Antifascist People’s Freedom League for a few years after the war. With his coup, General Ne Win put an end to the activities of the party and closed the office. Later in time the villa hosted the Yangon State School of the Arts. In 2013, the Ministry of Culture offered the building as the future premises of the Goethe-Institute. 

The villa will host the offices of the Institute and also to offer space for exhibitions. 

For the past year it was only used as an exhibition space and for cultural events because the building is in need of restoration. Finally all the paperwork is ready and permission is granted by the authorities to start the long-awaited restoration of this splendid building. The works will probably last more than one year and will start this October.

You will find below my photographs documenting some of the various events which took place this past year at the Goethe Villa, all in the presence of the artists and writers.

August 2015 - The Storyteller exhibition - Artist Htein Lin.  

My interview with Htein Lin is here.

This painting made by Htein Lin while in prison is called "Pon-San Tain". It shows the squatting position of the prisoners. Sometimes they were forced in this position for several hours during the time they were being counted or when a senior prison official was visiting for inspection.

Htein Lin's on-going project called "A Show of Hands" (dozens of plaster molds of hands of former political prisoners) was part of the same exhibition.

January 2016 - Yangon Backstage Exhibition - Photographer Wolfgang Bellwinkel 

The photographer said " I believe the historical center of Yangon, the place where I took the photos, reflects the status quo in Myanmar very well; the condition and state of an unsettled and at the same time - because of the political changes – euphoric society in transition, a society whose future seems uncertain."

January 2016, Reading by Jan-Philipp Sendker

The novels "Herzenhören" ("The Art of Hearing Heartbeats") and "Herzenstimmen" ("A Well Tempered Heart"), both set in Myanmar, are international bestsellers and have become popular travel reading for visitors to Myanmar.

March 2016 -  Photography Exhibition by Hans Silvester

Hans Silvester speaks with the media during his exhibition which shows the life of shepherd boys in the remote Omo Valley  in Ethiopia. He was a jury in the Yangon Photo Festival organized by the French Institute. Goethe Institute hosted some photography exhibitions during the Photo Festival as well.

March 2016 -  Marked For Life - Photographer Jens-Uwe Parkitny

Jens-Uwe Parkitny made various trips to the often remote villages of the southern Chin State returning with these fascinating portraits which, with the very painful procedure of tattooing now prohibited, record this unique practice of the Chin for posterity.

March 2016 -  Papermoon Puppet Theater from Indonesia - Mwatirika Play

The play Mwatirika touches upon the most oppressive political taboo of Indonesia: the killing of many hundreds of thousands of people, mainly communists, in 1965-66 during the months of transition from the rule of Sukarno to that of General Suharto.

August 2016 - Picking Up the Pieces exhibition - Artist Htein Lin

Htein Lin's recent art installations cast a critical glance on the rapid changes affecting all areas and stages of life in today’s Myanmar.

August 2016 - Reading by Ma Thida from her memoir

"Prisoner of Conscience: My Steps Through Insein" is the stirring prison memoir of Ma Thida, a surgeon, activist, writer, and recipient of several international human rights awards who spent six years in prison.

August 2016 -Targets - Photographer Herlinde Koelbl

For years Herlinde Koelbl travelled around the world (30 countries) and made photographs of the military targets used in the training of soldiers. These are - if you will - icons, with which the various armies of the world learn the craft of war. During the opening evening Herline Koelbl presented her various photography projects.

September 2016 -Ephemeral Villa Party

Goethe Institute has organised the 25th edition of the European Film Festival which recently took place in Yangon. At the end of the opening ceremony, the Institute invited the guests to their villa for a party. They have also invited 10 young artists from Yangon to paint the walls of the former State School of the Arts since the building will undergo renovations as of October.

Details about all their events can be found on the events page of the Goethe Institute Myanmar.

Finally I asked the Director of the Goethe Institute Myanmar, Franz Xaver Augustin:  

- "What's next? I hope you will continue this amazing trend by organising future exhibitions and events in a temporary location. Can you please let us know more?"

Franz Xaver Augustin:

 -  During the renovations work at the villa we will continue our music programmes (two in November, two in January and February 2017) at other venues in Yangon. We are working on the permission to present a big exhibition by German artist Wolfgang Laib at the “Secretariat” in January 2017. And then we might have some exhibitions in the half ready building of the new auditorium next to the villa. Let me see, what is possible…”.

I am very happy to hear that Goethe Institute will continue their ambitious cultural programme in the second part of the year as well. Once again congratulations Goethe Institute for your amazing work!

My interview with Myanmar artist Htein Lin

I invite you to read the biography and the interview of artist Htein Lin whom I had the privilege to meet for the first time one year ago, in August 2015, at “The Storyteller” exhibition organised by the Goethe Institute. The paintings exhibited were made during his time in prison.

Htein Lin is a former political prisoner who served a sentence of almost seven years in jail, from 1998 to 2004.

You can read the article on the myanmore website here.

This is my third interview with artists and writers from Myanmar.

The Countdown

Here are some of my thoughts as I eased into my third year in Myanmar. Actually it has been a while since I wrote my last blogpost about Myanmar. There is plenty to write about but I feel the need to arrange my thoughts first.

This year we spent our third consecutive rainy season (with the exception of a two week holiday enjoyed in Asia) in Myanmar. The previous two monsoon seasons were very wet and grey. The current rainy season has had its usual daily showers but also plenty of blue skies and sun. It seems that the weather wanted to leave a better impression on me for my last rainy season which I will be spending in Myanmar. 

Actually there are many  things I will do and see for a last time. For example, the mangoes. The mango season in Myanmar starts in May and lasts for a short time. The Myanmar mangoes are amazing as you can imagine. They are juicy and full of flavour. Mostly because they are fresh and sold only when the fruits are fully ripe. That is why the season is short. We were lucky to have a big mango tree in our garden. Each year over 70 mangoes would be eaten, transformed in sugar free jam or given to colleagues. What a treat which I will surely miss! 

The one-year countdown for my return to Brussels has already started several months ago. There are still many things that I would like to do whilst here. One thing I continuously enjoy doing is photography. The more I photograph the better I get to know Yangon. And probably the harder it will be to say goodbye to this city.

However still a long way to go!

Yangon Downtown, 2016

17 Street, Yangon Downtown, 2016

Three days in Singapore

It is probably because we spent part of our evenings perched on the balcony of our hotel, perfectly located with views on the Marina Bay Sands hotel and the financial skyscrapers of Singapore, that I will remember Singapore as the city of lights. 

During the time spent in Singapore we enjoyed the city's relaxed atmosphere and the friendliness of the people. I especially liked the cleanliness of the city, the efficiency and the professionalism of the locals and the abundance of green spaces to relax.  

We spent three full days in Singapore and I put together a daily itinerary for couples to discover the city's highlights.

Day 1

The gardens of Singapore

Morning

Singapore has two famous green areas: the Botanical Garden and the Gardens by the Bay.

In the morning take the MRT to Singapore Botanical Garden (MRT stop: Botanic Gardens). The gardens are a UNESCO World Heritage Site since 2015. Take your time to wander around the free entrance gardens to see the bamboo collection or the foliage garden. You will notice old locals practicing Tai Chi and Yoga, groups of nannies pushing strollers with expats' babies and kindergarten children chasing each other in the grass. 

As a last stop visit the Orchid Garden. Here you need to pay an entrance fee. You will spend less than one hour to see the many types of orchids skilfully displayed among green plants. The orchid is Singapore's national flower. That is why there are many unique arrangements of orchids in various places around the city-state, from the airport to shopping malls, and from the Botanical Garden to the Flower Dome in the Gardens by the Bay.

Lunch

There is an excellent restaurant immediately after you exit the Orchid Garden called Halia. We had a tasty lunch of their signature dish Chilli Crab Spaghettini, a pasta dish with a chilli tomato crab sauce. We also sipped on some healthy ginger and honey juice.

For a couple of hours in the afternoon you may check out the many shopping malls on Orchard road as this boulevard is within walking distance from the Botanical Garden. 

In the evening visit the Gardens by the Bay. There are three main attractions: the Supertree Grove, the Flower Dome and the Cloud Forest. You do not need to arrive before six in the afternoon. The gardens are best to be seen late evening with the lights in the Supertree Grove transforming the trees in living sculptures. There are separate entrance fees for each of the above mentioned attractions. 

Evening

The Gardens by the Bay are very close to the Marina Bay Sands hotel. You might decide, if you are not very tired, to have an aperitif at one of their three bars located in the boat shaped structure at the top of the hotel. You will have beautiful views of the Singapore bay on one side of the building and the skyscrapers on the other side.  The highlight was the huge orange moon rising above the bay in the first hours of the evening.

Day 2

The Heritage of Singapore

Singapore, a British colonial settlement for more than a century, has taken care beautifully of many of its colonial buildings. Several of them are now museums like the National Gallery or the Asian Civilisations Museum.

Morning

This was my favourite part of our Singapore sightseeing. You need to prepare for a long but picturesque walk along some of the most significant buildings of the city during the British colonial time. Take a look at the map. You will start your walk from the Raffles hotel, admiring the exterior architecture and the impressive front facade of this iconic building which opened its doors in 1887. 

Cross the street heading to the Saint Andrew's Cathedral for a short visit inside. It is a rather small church nowadays painted in white but the architecture is unique. You will pass by in front of the National Gallery taking a closer look at the building which now occupies the former City Hall and  the former Supreme Court. Make a stop in front of the Parliament's House completed in 1827 which is now called the Arts House of the Old Parliament to pose with the huge Myna bird statues exhibited in front of the building. Today the place is a venue for arts festivals. 

Continue your walk to the Singapore river where a statue marks the place where Sir Thomas Raffles first landed in Singapore in 1819. He is considered the founder of modern Singapore. Take a look on the other side of this former harbour where you can see a row of old

waterfront houses.

A short walk along the river to the left will take you to the Asian Civilisations Museum, an interesting place to discover the culture of the many Asian ethnicities who settled in Singapore. You will need around two hours to visit this museum. Afterwards you can walk to (or admire from a distance) the clock tower of the Victoria Theatre and Concert Hall. Cross the river on the Anderson bridge which was completed in 1910 with an interesting architecture bearing intricate metalwork. On the other side of the bridge lies the Fullerton Hotel once hosting the offices of the first Postal Office of colonial Singapore. Nowadays it is a five star luxury hotel. It is useful to know that from the hotel's entrance you can walk through a tunnel to easily reach the Merlion Park with its famous statue which is half-fish, half-lion. But today just cross the river on the Anderson bridge and once on the other side walk along the shore. 

There are plenty of restaurants and bars waiting for tourists. The atmosphere is vibrant in the evening. Continue walking to the Clarke Quay, another meeting point for the tourists and locals during the evenings. We did not find this area as nice as the cafes and restaurants close to the Anderson bridge but we had a great lunch here.

Lunch

We remembered a recommendation for a burger restaurant at Clarke Quay and we decided to give it a try for our lunch. The place is called The Butchers Club Singapore and they serve pricey but delicious burgers. The secret is that the restaurant dry-ages each cut of Australian beef for different time periods. The meat melts in your mouth.

Afternoon

In the early afternoon we had two more sights on our list: the Armenian church with the beautiful colonial architecture of the parish house and the Peranakan Museum. This museum is located in an old colonial building from 1912 and shows the life of the Peranakan communities which are usually the descendents of Chinese migrants (also called Straits Chinese) who mixed with the local population (Malay, Indonesians, Indians, etc.). They were usually traders which adopted a more colonial way of life and were less loyal to the Chinese Emperor. Inside the museum you will learn about their culture, traditions, way of life and you will be impressed by their riches and beautiful handmade jewellery. 

The parish house at the Armenian Church in Singapore

The Peranakan Museum in Singapore

For the late afternoon I recommend to visit the National Gallery with its classic and modern art. You do not need more than one hour and a half for this visit.

Evening

End the evening with the sunset reflected in the Marina Bay Sands hotel from the rooftop bar of the National Gallery. Not many tourists know about this spot. If you wish to make sure you will get the best table make a reservation in advance. You can also eat there. Make sure you take a look down at the cricket field in front of the museum and at the beautiful colonial buildings of the Singapore Cricket Club and Singapore Recreation Club to the right and left.

Day 3

A melting pot of cultures

Morning

Singapore, like Malaysia, is a melting pot of cultures and you already learnt this yesterday when you visited the Peranakan Museum. To continue the cultural itinerary I propose two famous neighbourhoods: the Chinatown quarter and Little India. You can take the Hop On - Hop Off bus or the MRT to reach both sights. With the tourist bus you also have the possibility to check out the large boulevards and visit other interesting sights like the Arab Street or the Sultan Mosque.

We liked the Chinese quarter very much. The Chinese are the largest ethnic group in Singapore. The neighbourhood has a more laid back atmosphere than the noisy and busy Little India. In the Chinese quarter your first stop should be the Visitor Centre which is next to the Buddha Tooth Relic Monastery. They will provide you with a map so it will be easy for you to reach the main sights in this area. 

Laid-back atmosphere in the Chinatown, Singapore.

Lunch

There are plenty of restaurants there but for lunch I recommend one in Amoy Street. This is a laid-back street close to the beautiful Thian Hock Keng Temple. Or you can try the Maxwell hawker center with over 100 stalls with local specialities.

Afternoon

In the afternoon, Little India is a worth a visit as well especially if you want to pick up a bargain or two, for instance silk or Indian cotton which is used for sari's.

Little India, Singapore

Evening

This is your last evening and you can choose between two attractions to end your Singapore holiday.

One is the Singapore flyer.  If it is a clear night you can choose to have a last view of the sparkling city from above. The ride takes around 40 minutes.

Or you can jump on one of the many boats departing regularly from the Marina Bay to watch the light show starting at around 8 p.m. It is an approximately 40 minutes trip which is very popular so be prepared to sit tight amongst tourists snapping photographs of the various buildings bathed in colourful lights. Note that on the Esplanade, close to the Theatres by the Bay, there are free live music performances almost every night. 

Transportation:

We mostly used the MRT transportation system of trains which spans the entire city. The MRT can be described in three words: easy, fast, affordable. It will take 30 to 40 minutes to arrive from the Changi airport to the Marina area. The taxis, all with meter, are not that pricy either in case you consider to take one after landing at the airport.

However we walked a lot as the distances are not that big. Walking is nice as the traffic is not stifling compared with other cities in Asia. In addition, most of the streets are large avenues and have braod sidewalks.

Accommodation:

While hotels in Singapore are rather on the expensive side you can choose from the fancy hotels around Marina Bay to the hostels in Chinatown. If you are a couple and decide to splash out on an unforgettable hotel stay, I advise you to choose accommodation within walking distance to Marina Bay as you will be close to many of the city's highlights. There are two options. Either you have the amazing views of the Marina from one of the top floors of a skyscraper hotel or you are a resident for a few days in one of the sumptuous colonial hotels of the city like Raffles or Fullerton and get to soak in the colonial atmosphere of these heritage buildings.

We chose a hotel with a view and booked a room with views on the Marina Bay at the Fairmont hotel. We could not have hoped for more breathtaking views. The advantage here is that the hotel is situated directly in the Raffles City shopping mall with plenty of shops, a supermarket and the MRT station a 2 minute walk from the reception. 

Note

There is also the Sentosa island, packed with tourists consisting mainly of families with children, with plenty of indoor and outdoor activities like the aquarium, the waterpark, the Universal Studios Singapore or the beach. As a couple we decided to experience Singapore more from its cultural site. I do not doubt that you can also have a lot of fun during an entire day on Sentosa!

My interview with Myanmar writer Ma Thanegi

My interview with Myanmar writer Ma Thanegi which was printed in the August version of the InDepth magazine. You can also find it now online. 

I invite you to read more about the unique personality of the famous Myanmar writer who writes only in English. I already read two of her books and I highly recommend her interesting stories about the Myanmar people and culture but also about her time spent in jail as a political prisoner. 

This is my second interview with artists and writers from Myanmar.

"Derelict Beauty" article written for the literary journal Mekong Review

"Derelict Beauty" is my latest article written for the literary journal Mekong Review. It depicts life in downtown Yangon including a short book review of Yangon Echoes.

The magazine is available at the Myanmar Book Centre (No 55, Baho Road, Corner of Baho and Ahlone Road), Myanmar Book Centre (Merchant Road- branch, 561-567 MAC Tower, Merchant Street) Myanmar Book Centre (Kyone Kyi- branch 245-247, Anawrhatta Road). In addition the book is also on sale in the following hotels and museums Inya Lake hotel, ShangriLa hotel, National Museum, Yangon Heritage Trust Office.

Or you can buy an online copy of the magazine: https://mekongreview.com/