Yikes! Bombs in Burma

Just a quick note to say that I may be changing my plans for visiting Myanmar–apparently two bombs went off on Tuesday in the town near the border (the same day the Burmese government reopened it–it’s been shut since May), and they found ten more bombs there yesterday. They suspect one of the splinter Karen nationalist armies is doing it, trying to re-close the border. (They controlled the illegal border crossing point, so got revenue while the border was closed.) The Karen are a hilltribe the Burmese government has been persecuting; lots of them are displaced across to the Thai side, where the Thai government doesn’t want them either, so they’re mostly living in refugee camps.

Of course, from my point of view, I’m less interested in the politics than the bombs. (Not that the politics isn’t interesting–but there’s something compelling about bombs where you’re traveling.) If I go to Burma, I think I’ll fly in.

Nothing yesterday, because I slept all day. The last four days of frenetic activity plus jet lag finally caught up to me. 🙂

I did, however, find Asia Books, so now I have a bunch of field guides to animals, plants, etc. in Thailand. Monday I head south, to Ko Chang.