HOUSE OF THE WEEK
Warm single-storey house in Thingangyun
UNCOMPLICATED suburban living sums up this single-level house in Thingangyun township. The house is not overly spacious but there is a nice garden and lawn as compensation. more
Australia boosts Myanmar aid
INTERNATIONAL obser-vers have applauded the Australian government for a shift in aid policy that will see funding to Myanmar almost double over the next three years. (Volume 26, No. 510)
First-time voters to decide 2010 poll
FOR 25-year-old Wai Wai, the 2010 general election will be her first opportunity to shape the future of her country. She says she has already decided to give her vote to the political party she feels will bring economic development and improve people’s real living standards. (Volume 26, No. 510)
State-run broadcaster set for makeover
STATE-OWNED television network MRTV-3 is to be relaunched from March 27, with a Singapore company providing professional assistance to bring programming up to an international standard. (Volume 26, No. 510)
Third Nargis review launched
THE Tripartite Core Group (TCG) last week used the launch of the third Periodic Review (PR3) at the Chatrium Hotel in Yangon on February 9 to call for more funding for Nargis recovery programs. “With unresolved challenges remaining in almost every economic sector, geographic area or demographic group as indicated in the report, it is imperative to accelerate support from the international community to address those outstanding gaps,” said Dr William Sabandar, special envoy of the ASEAN secretary general for post-Nargis recovery in Myanmar. (Volume 26, No. 510)
Avian influenza detected in Mayangone poultry farm
OFFICIALS were last week monitoring Yangon markets and poultry farms for signs of avian influenza after an outbreak of the disease was detected at a poultry farm in Mayangone township. (Volume 26, No. 510)
3N holds second annual meeting
THE annual meeting of the National NGO Network on HIV and AIDS (3N) was held at the Chatrium Hotel from January 26 to 27. (Volume 26, No. 510)
More A(H1N1) cases detected
THE Ministry of Health is urging people to maintain preventive measures against the the influenza virus A(H1N1) to avoid the spread of the disease, as new cases continue to come to light. (Volume 26, No. 510)
Blaze guts Thingangyun Market
A HUGE fire destroyed about 80 percent of one of Yangon’s largest markets on Friday evening but no casualties have so far been reported, officials told The Myanmar Times last week. (Volume 26, No. 510)
Vietnam to launch direct flights
VIETNAM Airlines will begin offering four direct flights a week between Hanoi and Yangon from March 2, a spokesperson from the Vietnamese embassy in Yangon said last week. (Volume 26, No. 510)
In Hainggyi Island, villagers more prepared to face disaster
HAINGGYI Island, at the southwestern tip of Ayeyarwady Division and of the country, was the first place in Myanmar to feel the fury of Cyclone Nargis in May 2008. More than 100,000 people lost their lives in Ayeyarwady and Yangon divisions because villagers lacked the means to protect themselves against natural disaster. (Volume 26, No. 510)
Chinatown gears up for New Year fun
YANGON – Traffic on a main road running through the centre of Chinatown in Myanmar’s largest city Yangon has become busier each day as Chinese lunar New Year celebrations draw closer. Five days ahead of the start of the Year of the Tiger, hundreds of road-side stalls erected along both sides of Mahabandoola Street – historically known as Guangdong Street for Myanmar-Chinese – in the Chinatown area are busy with customers purchasing New Year goods. (Volume 26, No. 510)
End in sight for maritime border spat
MYANMAR and Bang-ladesh are “on the right track” to reach an agreement on the demarcation of a maritime boundary in the Bay of Bengal, Bangladesh’s ambassador to Myanmar has told The Myanmar Times. (Volume 26, No. 510)
Pilgrims leave behind problems for Kyaiktiyo trustees
The busy New Year season brought with it a headache for trustees at the famed Kyaiktiyo Pagoda: what to do with the mounds of rubbish left behind by pilgrims. U Tin Nyunt, a member of the pagoda’s board of trustees, said plastic bags were the main rubbish problem. (Volume 26, No. 510)
Computer market enjoying healthy new year revival
SPRING has come to Yangon’s computer hardware market. After a cool spell during the last quarter of 2009, both demand and prices are up, say retailers.
Buyers snap up Labutta plots
MORE than 400 buyers have seized a chance to acquire plots of land in Labutta township, Ayeyarwady Division, which bore the brunt of Cyclone Nargis in 2008.
Avian influenza fears depress poultry markets
AN outbreak of the deadly H5N1 avian influenza strain at an army-run poultry farm in early February has had little impact on the market, industry sources said last week.
- Regional fisheries management workshop focuses on livelihoods
- Gems Emporium slated for March
- MFE investigates shiitake mushroom cultivation
- Oil prices up in second week of Feb
ODC perform in Yangon
OBERLIN Dance Company from the US performed a series of contemporary dances at the American Club in Mayangone township on February 9.
Monks donate blood to needy patients
IT is midnight and the telephone is ringing in the compound of Ywar Ma Pariyati Sarthindeik monastic school. A young monk picks up the phone, on the other end a woman beseeches him to find a monk who is willing to donate blood to her sick relative. This is not a one-off, but a daily occurrence.
Chinese New Year lion dance
CAPITAL Hypermart’s Chinese New Year lion dance contest came to a close on February 10 with Hong Bao Shi team winning the top prize.
Hip-hop dancers break ground not limbs
SINCE hitting the mainstream in the 1970s, hip-hop dancing has maintained its status as a technically difficult, high intensity form of dance most associated with the street rather than polished stage performances. Although late to arrive in Myanmar, plenty of kids are still risking their limbs to impress their friends with some cool moves.
Toyota announces mass recalls
TOKYO – Toyota said on last week it would recall more than 400,000 hybrid vehicles around the world, plunging deeper into crisis as lawsuits in the US piled up.
Google Earth dives into oceans, WWII
SAN FRANCISCO – Google Earth mapping service is letting people use the internet to dive into the world’s oceans or see the ruin that World War II bombings rained on European cities.
MCC to open master and doctoral courses
MYANMA Computer Group (MCC) announced last week that it plans to open masters and doctoral courses in IT and business in September this year as a joint effort with Siam University of Thailand.
- Australian government websites blocked in protest
- Hollywood loses OZ download battle
- SKorea, Japan boast fastest internet
Feasting fish relieve weary travellers
CURIOSITY stirred, I decided to take the plunge and test the popular Dr Fish Massage. The signboard advertised 20 minutes in the pool with hordes of Garra rufa fish for just US$3 and promised that the fish would remove the dead skin from my hands and feet. This would leave them smooth, while at the same time acting as a form of stress relief.
Singapore welcomes 9.7 million visitors
SINGAPORE – Singapore welcomed 9.7 million visitors in 2009, down 4.3 percent from 2008 but exceeding forecasts due to an aggressive marketing campaign amid a global recession, the government said last week
Tourism Myanmar Update
Inya Lake Hotel is launching www.eventsinyangon.com, the one and only website with updated events listings for Yangon. This website features a calendar of events, from music concerts and art gallery openings to social occasions in the hotels and bars around the city.