You Went To Myanmar?!? A Retrospective on Safe Travel

April 9th, 2013

     I forget myself sometimes. I forget my humble beginnings as a traveller. I never thought I’d keep going this long. Currently, going to Myanmar does not evoke sentiments of exotic travel, or arouse images of a risky adventure. It simply means getting on a plane and going to a place called Myanmar. Buttons are clicked, payments are made, and before I know it I’m in Yangon International Airport with no plan, a guidebook I’ll end up despising, and enough cash to see me through. 

     I recall my first long trip. It was to Southeast Asia in January of 2009. Previously, I had travelled to Europe for a just over a week, Australia for a month, and both Mexico and Morocco for almost two months each. Yet I wondered, would Thailand be dangerous? The news, my parents, and concerned friends helped to reinforce thinking I now know to be absurd. As far as violent crime goes, I’m far safer in Thailand than the US.

     That the same is true for me in Myanmar, and I knew that when I booked my ticket. However, I was surprised to find that a friend of mine who studied world politics in college, who had travelled over much of the US and some of Europe, who is an exceedingly open minded, global, and incisive thinker, caution me several times on going to Myanmar. He never said don’t go, but it was clear that his perception of tourist safety in Myanmar was far from reality. I was very unsurprised at how safe I felt while there. I think he would have been astonished. 

     To me, this highlights the importance of travel. It is the difference between reading about the world, and knowing it. Moreover, there exists a literal world of difference in travel destinations. The developing world is quite distinct from the rest of the world, and there really is no way to know what that means unless you go.

St Augustine - "The world is a book, and those who don't travel only read one page.

     Travel has, for me, dispelled innumerable “truths” about the world, human nature, and most valuable to me, the aim of life. However, I find the most common misperception surrounds the relative safety of travel in certain parts of the world. The default consensus is often comically out of proportion. This is not to say that life, and by extension travel while alive, is not without risks. However, knowing relative risks is of prime importance.

     Statistically speaking, crossing the street, falling down, and motor-vehicle accidents are significantly more lethal to a traveller in a foreign country than violent crimes, military uprisings, or illness. Prudence is a good idea. Many traveller’s get carried and put themselves in dangerous situations. There are parts of the world where it is legitimately dangerous to travel. However Myanmar, Bolivia, Cambodia, Sri Lanka to name but a few, seemed to me to be safe countries (with the exception of the aforementioned traffic, which was insane in Phnom Penh, most of Sri Lanka, and much of Bolivia).

     I started travelling in 2008. Typically, I returned home for the summers, and took six to nine month trips during the spring and winter months. In all that time I’ve never been robbed. I can’t recall having anything stolen, though I’m sure I’m forgetting some small stuff. I’ve been ripped off innumerable times; sometimes courteously, sometimes not. I’ve been lied to repeatedly. Attempts at larger scams have been made on several occasions. I’ve been asked for money more than I’ve been lied to, but have thankfully learned to say a compassionate and courteous no. There have been a few sketchy moments, but always at times when I opted to push my comfort zones, generally with a clear conscience. I was with a friend who was robbed while we were in Barcelona. There were a lot of thieves there. I heard many reports of robberies in Guatemala, and I didn’t venture very far off the trail while there. I’m generally aware of my surroundings, I travel alone, I’m a guy, I try and blend in, I have few things, and I ALWAYS ACT like I know where I’m going and what I’m doing (statistically speaking, its one of the best ways to avoid being targeted by thieves).

     While traveling, I’ve never found security to be much of an issue (except in parts of the US, Europe, and Central America). However, I commonly find that safety concerns are a primary deterrent of travel, which is, empirically speaking, nonsense. Travel has taught me many things, and it has taught me this: more of life is jeopardized by the fear of living than all else.