The Hippie Trail leads to Rangoon
Melody Mociulski reflects on her backpacker experience into Burma in 1974 in a recent podcast discussion, and how that very early experience laid the groundwork for dedicating herself to supporting gender equality and female rights in Myanmar, which she currently does through her organization, “Educational Empowement.”
““Looking back now, I realize it set the groundwork for me to return at least once a year and empower women and girls there through education. So it was a nice little connection for me, looking back to 1974.””
“So, I think I will start with 1974, which was my first visit to Burma, as everyone called it in those days. My later-to-be first husband and I were traveling around the world for about a year until I came down with hepatitis, probably from contaminated water, possibly in Calcutta. We went to a hospital in Malaysia, and then we returned home.
However, during the second part of that trek, we were in Nepal, heading back down into India when we heard about a seven-day visa to enter Burma. It was very tightly controlled. So we thought, why not? We'll fly into Rangoon, as it was called in those days, and then fly on to Calcutta. When we arrived in Rangoon, in the mid-'70s, things were dark as the country was highly restricted.
In Rangoon, there was a YMCA. Being the backpacking kind of hippies that we were, we decided to stay there since we didn't have much cash. But since it was the men's facility, they got a much better deal, which I maybe should have been aware of the gender disparities even then!
There was a huge dorm room for the guys. They had wooden pallets raised off the floor to put their sleeping bags on, and the room had many windows with screens and overhead fans. It was pretty good. On the other hand, the women had a very small room, probably a fifth of the size of the men's room, with just one window and a door. There was nothing on the floor. So myself and the other women quickly became good friends as we slept on the floor! There was no window screen, and since it was the hot season, mosquitoes were rampant. Many of us tried to stay under the covers of our sleeping bags to avoid being bitten alive. However, some couldn't bear it, and when we woke up in the morning, most of the women had extremely swollen faces. Mine was bad, but not as bad as others.
And that was my first night in Burma, at the YMCA. It didn't dampen our spirits though. We enjoyed exploring the markets and the city, feeling quite overwhelmed by the experience. We only had time to visit one place, which required flying. So we decided to go to Bagan, and oh my, oh my! I have since returned in the early 2000s, but back then, it was a miraculous place with thousands of pagodas on the plateau. The sunrises and sunsets were breathtaking, and unlike most monuments in other countries, we had the freedom to climb on the pagodas and wander around them in the open fields. It was a magical experience, especially during sunset.
We stayed in a small, cozy group, which was actually much better than the YMCA. We had our breakfasts served by older women, and they would smoke their cigars and observe us on their breaks, trying to figure out what we were doing. We weren't very familiar with Burmese food, so we often opted for fried rice with a small amount of protein to keep us going. It was a mixed but nostalgic experience for us during our worldwide trek.
Looking back now, I realize it set the groundwork for me to return at least once a year and empower women and girls there through education. So it was a nice little connection for me, looking back to 1974.”