Page 51 - The Rough Guide to Myanmar (Burma)

Travel essenTials BASICS 49
MYANMAR’S GAY SHAMANS
Despite being widely ignored or villified by conservative Burmese, gay men (as well as
transgendered women and male transvestites) in Myanmar have found an unlikely niche in
one of the country’s most traditional religious settings through their role as nat kadaw. a kind
of Burmese shaman, nat kadaw (literally “nat wives”) serve as mediums for the country’s
revered pantheon of nats (see p.386), entering trances during which the spirit of any one of
the various nats takes possession of their bodies.
Nat kadaw were traditionally women, with the profession being passed down from
mother to daughter, but over the past thirty years gay men have increasingly taken their
places. Male nat kadaw will dress either as a man or woman depending on the identity of
the nat currently possessing them – and even when identifying with a male nat, they will
typically wear sumptuous clothing, with considerable quantities of make-up. The fact that
such overt gender bending is generally accepted most likely derives from the nature of nat
pwè themselves (see p.41). These are typically raucous, carnivalesque affairs, during which
large quantities of booze are consumed and things are done that would not be considered
entirely respectable in more workaday settings (nat kadaw themselves typically drink and
smoke their way into a state of high intoxication in order to best communicate with the
spirits of the nats).
The Taungbyone Nat Pwè (see box, p.298) is particularly well known in this respect.
although not in any sense a specifically gay festival, the pwè nowadays attracts large numbers
of lGBT locals and travellers alike – and the nat kadaw are particularly flamboyant.

Customs regulations injury. a typical travel insurance policy usually
provides cover for loss of baggage, tickets and –
arriving in Myanmar, you’re allowed to bring in up to a certain limit – money, as well as cancella-
duty free up to two litres of liquor, 150ml of tion or early curtailment of your journey. Most of
perfume and four hundred cigarettes (or fifty them exclude so-called dangerous sports unless
cigars). You have to declare hard currency over an extra premium is paid: in Myanmar this might
$2000 or equivalent and fill in an FeD (Foreign mean scuba diving, trekking, rock-climbing and
exchange Declaration) form. The export of mountain expeditions. Many policies can be
antiques is prohibited (see p.45). chopped and changed to exclude coverage you
don’t need – for example, sickness and accident
Electricity benefits can often be excluded or included at will.
When securing baggage cover, make sure that the
Myanmar mains electricity runs at 230 volts. Most per-article limit – typically under £500 – will cover
sockets take two round-pin plugs, and UK-style your most valuable possession. if you need to
sockets with three square pins are occasionally found make a claim, you should keep receipts for
in upmarket hotels. adaptors are cheap and readily medicines and medical treatment, and in the
available. Power cuts are a way of life; in many event you have anything stolen, you must obtain
smaller towns electricity is cut off for a fixed number an official statement from the police. Finally,
of hours every day, and outages are still common ensure that your insurance cover will still be valid
across the country, even in Yangon. avoid leaving if you’re planning on visiting any areas that your
gadgets plugged in during a power cut, as there may home government is currently advising against
be a surge when the supply is restored. note that visiting (including, at the time of research, parts of
many air-conditioning units are fitted with special rakhine and shan states).
boxes to protect against power surges; there’s often
a delay of five minutes between turning the unit on Internet and wi-fi
and it actually beginning to work.
Until recently, Myanmar had one of the world’s
Insurance lowest internet penetration rates. internet access
wasn’t available anywhere until 2000, and remained
it’s essential to take out insurance before travel- severely limited (and heavily censored) until 2011,
ling, to cover against theft, loss and illness or although recent reforms mean that the country is

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