Pack your bags and grab your camera - It's time to visit Myanmar! And NOW is exactly the time to visit. From the glorious Shwedagon Pagoda in Yangon to the 2000+ sacred stupas and temples scattered around the beautiful land of Bagan, this country is truly unlike any place you know about. Everything about this country is picture perfect and incredibly authentic. Myanmar has not yet been hit by Westernisation and this is the absolute beauty of it. With around 135 ethnic groups, men and women in their traditional Longyis (skirts), faces wearing Thanakha (traditional make up) this old British colony is truly extraordinary. From buzzing cities such as Yangon and Mandalay where you encounter thousands of locals on motorbikes (sometimes up to 4-5 people on one!), to rural areas where villagers still ride the horse and cart, Ayeyarwady river - an old river stream, blissful beaches on the Bengal bay, rice fields & forest trekking, Golden Pagodas, and mesmerising brick temples - Myanmar has it all.

s I type, I'm in utter excitement to share every single detail of my photography trip. I will split this blogpost into two sections: 'Myanmar photography highlights' and 'Things to know before you go.’ This will help you gain a good idea on what is an absolute MUST and what you can avoid based on my experience of 9 days in the country.

Things to know before you go

- Myanmar is harder to navigate in compared to any other country in Asia I've traveled. This is the beauty and perhaps the biggest challenge as most locals don't speak English. Therefore you must consider hiring a local guide who will show you around and explain some of their fascinating traditions and history. This really does not cost much and is well worth doing. I used Indochina Odyssey Tours which arranged all our transfers, flights, hotels, and daily attraction visits. I was also able to choose my own hotels from my own hotel research and they organised this for me.

- The downside of the tour approach is that you end up being taken to what they consider 'Tourist Attraction'. Unfortunately, you can miss out on some of the hidden gems this stunning country has to offer and that would be a huge shame! If you don't want to end up in the most touristy spots at the busiest times (yes, I know, every photography lovers nightmare!) then please read on below.

As a social media geek, I had a list of places I wanted to visit in mind and most of them were not included in the itinerary our tour provided us. I had them amend it to ensure I photographed all the sites I wanted. I will share them all with you below, but my main advice is do some pre-research before you arrive and know exactly what your interests are. If you're unsure about doing the research yourself, but are inspired by my trip and photos, please get in touch with me via my 'take me there' section. I help others plan their traveled and together ensure you have an unforgettable trip.

Here are my list of suggestions:

- Take dollars with you to exchange to local currency once you arrive. Although hotels and most places in large cities like Yangon and Mandalay accept dollars, it's always handy to have local currency on you for smaller purchases and when visiting local villages.

- Bring respectable clothing. The people of Myanmar are strongly attached to their religion (majority being Buddhists) and their traditions so respect them. Yes, it is hot but make sure you bring enough clothing to cover your shoulders and legs. At every location, you will encounter hundreds of monks, children growing up in monasteries, beautiful locals of the older generation - all paying their respects to the Buddha. It's better not to feel too out of place.

- Bring easy to remove shoes. You will be walking bare feet most the day going in and out the temples, monasteries, and pagodas. I recommend taking a pair of Birkenstock's with you as they are supportive, comfortable, and easy to remove.

- Don't overpack! My previous trip to Thailand in Southeast Asia, I had waaay too many outfits. I carrying around many outfits I did not end up wearing with me from city to city. All you need is a 'longyi,' their traditional skirt, that range in price depending on quality (cotton or silk) and a few tops to wear on top. The beautiful silk longyi come in some stunning colours and pattern and take weeks to make. Therefore they are more expensive but worth the investment! . Plus, they are a great souvenir to bring back and super comfortable to wear. I'm seriously considering wearing them back in London!

- Don't be scared if you see locals with red teeth/gums. I really wish someone would have told me this before I arrived because I was so worried about some of the locals and the security officer I encountered during my trip. Now I know that the mouths full of red-blood juice is from chewing betels!! This is an old Burmese tradition.

- Bring several types of electrical plugs.This is interesting as many plus sockets can be used in Myanmar and totally vary from hotel to hotel. Being an old British colony, a lot of hotels accept the UK plugs, and other places use the European as well.

- Bring dispensable clothing and items. There are many people in need and your kindness will be very much appreciated by the locals. Bring notepads and pens for the children to give out in the local villages, and their sunny smiles will instantly warm your heart.

- Fine dining is not something to expect when going to Myanmar. I'm just trying to manage expectations here! On our first day in Yangon, we were taken to the 'Green Elephant' restaurant where we sampled local Burmese food - a variety of curries, green tomato salad, lentil soup, etc. Unfortunately, this food was by far the best we had during the 8 day trip across the country. So definitely have lunch or dinner in the Green Elephant but do not expect the rest of the food during your trip to be as good. This is also a very quaint spot for nice photos as they display the fresh local vegetables that they use for the cooking.

- Apply for your e-visa before you arrive. This is very quick and costs $50 online. All nationalities must apply for a visa and have the e-visa document printed out to present upon arrival at your first point of entry into the country.

- Arrive early for your flight or train departure. You can fly between most places (we used flights the whole time) but make sure you allow enough time before your flight as they can often leave prior to departure time. If you have fear of flying, then you can use the local train which also provides fantastic countryside views and more interaction with locals. Train journeys however should be planned in advance as they only operate once a day and can often be delayed (and uncomfortable!).

- Note the weather conditions. This was perhaps the most surprising to me! I was told it's the hottest season by the locals, but we ended up having several days of rain showers. The high season is between December and February. It's best to visit when there is least rain and the temperature is more manageable. You will need to book accommodation in advance if planning to travel then.

- Go NOW! And finally, if you're reading this blogpost and you want to visit Myanmar, don’t delay! Not only to avoid seeing Starbucks opening up everywhere and locals wearing t-shirts with 'Dolce & Gabbana' witten over them but also because, as of next year, they will ban climbing on top of the temples of Bagan! That is where you get the most stunning views over the whole city from to watch the sunrise, sunset, and the hot air balloons flying over the city. I'm very happy to have been now, but it was sad to see that almost 2000 temples in Bagan were destroyed in the earthquake that hit Myanmar last year (same time as Italy) which are currently being re-built/renovated.

Myanmar Photography Highlights:

- Stay by Kandawgyi Lake (the royal lake) to avoid the busy city centre of Yangon. Here, over the lake you will capture the most beautiful sunset over Southeast Asia's most magnificent religious monument, the Shwedagon Pagoda. The lakeside is beautiful and the bridge over the lake offers plenty of photography spots to capture the beautiful Shin Upagot Shrine overlooking this artificial lake built by the British which was once upon a time used as a reservoir.

- Visit the mesmerising Shwedagon Pagoda either very early morning or at sunset to avoid crowds. The colours, buddha statues, it's 325 ft golden Stupa with 8000 diamonds on it (the biggest being 76 carats!) truly makes this place seem like an amusement park. The minute you step onto the 72 hectare grounds of the Shwedagon Pagoda, you get the 'too good to be true' feeling and want to visit every single corner

until you realise you would need to spend the whole day there to manage to do so.

- Visit the buzzing Bogyoke Aung San Market to pick up your longyi, sample some local delicacies. It is a great spot to photograph the locals at their shopping stalls interact with the crowds.

- Visit Inle Lake. “WOW!” is all I want to say. The lake was formed in the 11th century with just 4 villages to start nearby. Inle meaning '4 villages' is surrounded by beautiful mountain scenery but has a rainy climate. The lake is 900 metres above sea level and is 72 km long. There are now over 200 villages and 5 different tribes: Intha, Paoh, Shan, Taung, and Yoeu, all with fascinating stories, clothing and traditions behind them. You will be escorted to your hotel, visit the lotus & silk makers, silversmithing, and traditional lacquer artists all by a longtail boat. The longtail boat trips are incredibly fun. You see loads of local fishermen, families on their boats, fishing, collecting tomatoes and cucumbers from the floating gardens and their houses built on the lake. You will want to photograph absolutely everything, and absolutely everything is worth photographing here!

- Now it's time for the HIGHLIGHT (for me) of Myanmar. BAGAN. Make sure you pack numerous SD cards with you as you will want to capture all 2000+ temples and stupas here! I used to see photos of it and think 'oh, there must be a lot of photoshop in these pictures' but no! In fact, I can confidently say that the photos don't do justice to this place. There was a reason Marco Polo once said "Bagan is one of the finest sights in the world". The best way to explore is by renting an e-bike and just getting lost amongst thousands of temples. You will figure out your own route, stop to enter the ones you like to see the buddha statues. The main ones you MUST visit are: Sulamani Temple, Ananda Pahto, Nagayon (UNESCO restoration project), Abeyadana Pahto, Gubyaukgyi, and Lawkahteikpan Pahto (beautiful frescoes).

- Find your own spot to watch the sunset via e-bikes and escape the crowded temples. There are more than 2000 to chose from so you will definitely find a unique spot for you. We were lucky to find a local artist who asked us if we wanted to see the sunset from a secret place and we trusted him and followed. Through some muddy and hilly routes, we ended up climbing on top of a beautiful temple to see the most magnificent sunset I've ever seen (my photo below). In Bagan you will be spoilt for choice when it comes to photography spots. Don't forget to bring your UV equipment for the best sunset photography.

- Visit the Mount Popa region and admire the mountaintop Popa Taung Kalat Temple from afar. You can also visit the Mother Spirit of Popa Nat Shrine if you're ready to brace the 777 steps going up. It was worth it in my opinion for the breathtaking views over Mount Popa and Popa Taung Kalat Temple.

- Final stop is Mandalay. Avoid all the tour guide and travel book recommendations, take a ferry across the Ayeyarwady river and make your way to Mingun! Be ready to be amazed by two sites that are very much cherished by the locals but almost never heard of by tourists. Visit the Mingun Pahtodawgyi to see the enormous crack right in the centre of this beautiful Pagoda caused by the earthquake as captured in my photo. Five minutes walk to this is the splendid, whiter than the clouds Hsinbyume Pagoda which, after Bagan, was the most stunning place I visited in Myanmar. The entrance to the site is the perfect spot to capture the entire Pagoda (check out my photo). Don't forget to take a wide angle lens with you (or a gopro!) when visiting Mingun as these sites are absolutely huge!

- Again in Mingun is the Mingun Bell which is the largest ringing bell in the world well worth visiting! The Mingun Bell weighs 90 tons and is 13 ft high. There is another bell that functions and is around the same size in Russia but the Mingun Bell is the only one you can actually ring.

- For sunset capturers, make sure you visit the Mandalay Bein Bridge It's the world’s longest teak wood footbridge that gently curves 1300 yards across the Taungthaman Lake and is a beautiful spot to watch the sunset. You can chose to walk over the actual bridge and photograph the sun set over the lake or rent a longtail boat for 20 minutes and capture the beautiful bridge and it's reflection on the lake. If you choose the boat, grab a beer from a local before you get on the boat to add a little extra to the enjoyment of your lake cruise.