Myanmar Do’s:
- Say ‚Mingalarbar‚ whenever you meet someone for the first time
- Be honest, friendly and helpful
- Remember to put ‚U‚ before the names of the men and ‚Daw‚ before the names of the women whenever you address someone (‚U‚ and ‚Daw‚ act as ‚Mr‚ and ‚Ms‚ in English)
- When you want to offer something, remember to do it with your both hands
- Bow when you meet an old person
- Speak clearly and slowly
- Follow the signs at tourist sites
- Bring with you toilet paper
- Dress conservatively when visiting monasteries, pagodas or temples. Don‚t ever wear shorts or bare shoulder dresses
- when going to these places. Also, before entering, take your shoes off.
- Show respect for the others and you will be treated with respect
- Make sure that you get an export permit when buying gems, jewelries or any expensive souvenir
- Use your right hand to receive and give things
- Only eat food at decent restaurants. If you cannot find a decent restaurant, always ask for well ‚ cooked food.
- Bring with you some drugs for diarrhea in case your digestive system is not used to the food here
- Watch out for swindlers and pickepocket
- Drink only bottled water
Myanmar Don‚ts:
- Pat anybody‚s head. This is considered to be serious offense in Myanmar
- Eat food sold by the street vendors since it is not sure if food safety is guaranteed.
- Drink water from the taps
- Point your finger towards someone‚s face. They believe that it is rude to do so.
- Use illegal drug
- Touch the monks if you are a woman
- Step on the shadow of the monk
- Offer a handshake to the monks or the nuns
- Turn your back at a Buddha‚s image
- Leave your expensive stuffs at the hotel without putting it in locked suitcases. If your suitcases don‚t have lockers, use the safe deposit boxes.
- In the western countries, it would be normal to kiss or hug in the public. However, you are not encouraged to do the same things in Myanmar