There is a train in Yangon. It’s a very old train. No cushions, no real seats, rather benches, no air-conditioning except the wind through the windows, and it goes nowhere. This is a slight exaggeration. It goes somewhere. It ends where it begins, in Yangon. For three hours and $1.00 one can see snippets of life in Myanmar.

The mid-day train leaves on time and is not crowded. A few brave tourists and a handful of locals spread out among the several cars. Choose your spot wisely as this is the last point on the trip when you have a choice. Every stop, and there are many, brings more people into the cars, all carrying something. This is not the tour train. This is the “to the market” train and what they carry is what they sell. Enormous bundles of water spinach requiring two or three people just to lift them onto the train. Sacks of rice, bags filled with the unknown. As the train fills, vendors hop on with their wares. Fruit, snacks, water, tea. The betel nut vendor requires assistance in carrying his “portable” cart swinging on a pole. He settles into the middle of the car and begins to smear the paste on leaves, adding betel nuts and rolling them into small packets for chewing–and spitting.  Also in his cart?  Tasty bits enclosed in lettuce leaves.

An old woman nimbly hops across the tracks and climbs aboard. Bent and limping, she passes through the aisle with her hand out but finds no takers. At the next stop, she deftly swings off the train. She has practiced this. Sometimes she must get lucky.

The train continues its journey, passing through rice fields, many stations and small villages. Alongside the track, families gather to eat meals, meet off-boarding passengers, wave and smile. The passenger load ebbs and flows. The older set wants to practice the English learned two generations ago. Little ones try to share quail eggs. Life happens in the cars and along the train tracks of Myanmar. A lot of life. And it begins and ends in Yangon.

It’s important to follow the instructions of the ticket seller to avoid getting on the train to Mandalay. Equally old and colorful but a much longer and, possibly, very uncomfortable ride. Stick to the three hour trip. If that seems too long, one can get off after an hour and take the train circling the other direction. Be advised, however, that there is an hour-long wait for that train. Best to just keep going. The reward is great. With the right timing, you just might get a market day.