The Harri Diaries

Casual and random thoughts of a 20-something Sydney girl.

[theharridiaries]

Last dinner in Yangon by the lake 🌲🌺🍹 #myanmar #yangon #twilight #catseverywhere

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A cute little monk gives me a sneaky glance as he runs through the market with his friends in Lashio

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Well this is just amazing 😄🙏 #myanmar #buddhisttemple #somuchgold

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Myanmar- so not what I expected.

This morning I returned home (after a day in Singapore) from a week's long visit to Myanmar, formerly known as Burma.

I had a wonderful time. I took hundreds of photos, trying to capture the beauty and craziness of the place. I travelled to three main cities, Yangon, Mandalay and Lashio.

Myanmar surprised me in many ways. I arrived expecting it to be very underdeveloped and impoverished, with beggars out on the streets latching onto tourists for money, or pick pocketing them.

Instead, there were barely any tourists around. I only saw two beggars on the streets in Yangon, the capital (probably because most people are too poor to give any money). Yangon was developing at a rapid pace, with billboards and some high rise apartment buildings. Mandalay wasn't as developed, but it was still hustling and bustling. Lashio seemed a lot more primitive, although I noticed a lot of Chinese writing as it's located close to the border.

[theharridiaries]

Ran into Buddha. Told him I loved his temple 💐🌿🙌 #myanmar #amazingtemple #buddha

[theharridiaries]

Behind a large wall and moat is a Royal Palace complex just waiting to be explored. Barely anyone around, free to wander around all the buildings. Amazing. 🏰🌺👑 #royalpalace #myanmar #feellikeindianajones

[theharridiaries]

Rainbow cake with the periodic table in smarties. Made by my very clever brother #cake #foodporn #chemistrynerd #periodictable #notformesadly 🎂🍫👏🌈

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Introducing my new fishy friend, Mario! #fightingfish #itsmemario

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Just casually reading the mosman daily #dogsofinstagram #dogsdoingpeoplethings #smartdoggy

[theharridiaries]

Happy Australia Day cake! 🍰🙉 #whoneedsabbq #australiaday #cakeandmidori

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Cody is hopeful that he might get some cake 🐶🍰 #dogsofinstagram #puppydogeyes #feedme

[theharridiaries]

Gorgeous sunset by the Seine 🇫🇷🌇👌 #nofilter #beautifulparis #sunset #gonnamissthis

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The most amazingly decorated ceiling and walls in one of the rooms at the Louvre. Was almost speechless. 🙀🇫🇷 #louvre #frenchdecor #beautifulparis

[theharridiaries]

I've finally filled all the pages of my travel diary I got when I was 14, covering almost 9 years of travel to Europe, USA and Asia! My writing has gone from messy to very messy over the years as well. ✈️📖 #travel #nineyearsofmemories

[theharridiaries]

Rosetta Stone. Excited to see it in real life again after doing a 3,000 word essay on it 👌📝 #britishmuseum #rosettastone #archaeologistlife @britishmuseum

[theharridiaries]

Chilling in Henry VIII's garden and palace 🌳🌹 #nofilter #hamptoncourtpalace #sunnyengland (at Hampton Court Palace Gardens)

[theharridiaries]

A few days ago I went to the Warnerbros Harry Potter studios in London. Being the ultimate HP nerd, this place was incredible! It makes me want to go and watch the movies all over again. It was also an interesting way to learn about film sets and how things are done when making movies. Any HP fans, this is a must-do if you're ever in London!