Client Testimonials

17 February 2013
Dear MiMi,
Thank you for going to so much trouble to organise our trip to Burma. My
grandson, when he saw the itinerary, said we would be exhausted as we were
doing so much!  In fact it worked very well as we could always relax in the
cars and were grateful for the foot wipes and bottles of water!  Some of the
guides were better than others (of course) but all unfailingly polite,
charming and considerate. We found your country amazingly calm, safe, clean
and unspoilt and really loved it and everyone we met - so welcoming and
helpful. I am looking forward to meeting you in May when I can give you much
more feedback, if you want it! Highlights probably the river cruise, Inle
and the beach. We had problems with showers in one or two places and food
was surprisingly poor at the Green Haven Hotel and at the Yangon hotel
(Chinese restaurant excepted) and it was too far to find an alternative but
it was very good in all other respects and wonderful service.
I think I need to explain more about the beach hotel:  we arrived late (we
spent nine hours at Heho airport) and were not given the usual warm welcome
but were told they only had a room with a double bed and would put in an
extra bed but we would have to change rooms in the morning. Tessa refused to
accept this as the booking confirmation specified a twin room (we had also
been looking forward to unpacking and spending three nights in one place).
Their excuse was that they thought I was with a husband and Tessa was a
child - pretty implausible as twin had been specified by you. I then
suggested, very politely, that perhaps they could put us in a twin de luxe
room for the night. The receptionist then disappeared for another age and
when she came back said we would still have to change rooms in the morning
which we accepted but then came back again to say no, it would have to be
the extra bed option and a move in the morning.  I was very aware of the
language difficulty right from the start of the trip (some of the guides
just said yes with a smile to everything) so apoke very simply and slowly.
And it was then that we rang you and you sorted it (in the way I had
suggested in the first place). However, they were not very helpful and we
were kept standing at the reception desk for ages and we felt they could at
least have offered us a complimentary drink or meal. It was so late by then
that we had a 'light snack' in the restaurant and got huges portions each of
very boring food (rice omlette for me and fried noodles for Tessa, I think,
which was too much in all respects!). I think Tessa completed the form for
the hotel which was great in all other respects (perhaps except for the
corridor light shining through the glass panel above our door all night). We
much enjoyed our sadly shortened stay, because of the plane delay and ate
very well, and modestly, at the local bars. My other favourites were the
Shan Restaurant on the way to Inle and the Green Tea in Pindaya.
Sarah

Dear MiMi,

I can't tell you how much I enjoyed the trip. It was one of the most exciting of my life, and the arrangements you made were superb. The guides were terrific, knowledgable and lovely people, all three. The hotels, the vans, the travel...everything was great. I can't thank you enough for all your efforts...and I am already looking forward to going back as soon as I can!

As soon as I get over my jetlag, I'd like to write more, and keep in touch.

Gratefully yours,

Florence

Dear MiMi,

I tried to work in all the things that I think might have interested me when I was first starting.

-- that "tours" have a bad rep and this was no tour

-- that we saw and did an amazing variety of things

-- that the guides were great

-- that we felt comfortable all the time

-- that we could afford it

-- that I would go again

But ask for any changes you want. It really was wonderful -- I don't want to give up Paris in my life, but I certainly want to return to SE Asia.

You don't arrange tours... you arrange to introduce people to countries. You gave us Cambodia and Burma - the people, places and arts old and new. The guides you chose were wonderful, helpful and knowledgeable. I always felt comfortable and cared for but never "controlled". We waded across a lake in Burma to see an elephant camp, drove down rutted roads to a pottery village outside Yangon, and wandered the markets and temples everywhere. We swam in the Bay of Bengal and saw golden pagoda and water buffalo during a six hour boat trip . In Cambodia, our guide, who knew more than an art historian about Ankgor Wat, taught us about ancient temple carving and practices -- and life in "modern" Cambodia.

Thank you so much. I never imagined it could be so easy, so full and so affordable. If possible, I want to try Laos next year.

Thanks again

Jane

Dear MiMi,

A beautifully organised trip, the balance perfect between the various destinations. We had a wonderful time.

The highlights were the Golden Rock, which we visited a festival time so it was heaving with people, many very ethnic – a lovely hotel too, but thank heavens for sedan chairs for Di at any rate for about a third of the climb up the hill.

Also Mrauk U which we simply adored. It's a great place for mini trekking up hill and down dale and seeing at close hands how real people live work and survive. Of course we saw the great temples – the Shittaung complex inevitably sticks in the mind, and the internal chambers with their magnificent carving – but the sort of impression that will stick in our minds were the little family clustered round the water pump, she working it with her feet, he taking the resulting water and sprinkling it on their small holding with watering cans made out of oil cans, and the tiny children looking after each other. And of course the voyage upstream to the Chin villages with the tattooed ladies, a wonderful happy and relaxed day. The hotel was fine, the food excellent, and the staff incredibly attentive, but it's tiring a little. Fine for us, but there are newer ones going up. We have to add that for the right people we would recommend Mrauk U for a first Burma visit as a substitute for Bagan; although there are big differences, we preferred MU, no doubt about it.

The wildlife sanctuary was quite marvellous. So many varieties of birds, and including some of our faves, specifically three different types of kingfisher. Very exciting. The accommodation not tired but verging towards exhaustion, not that we cared, although I couldn't make the shower work till early on the last day when I had already given up. I think that the comment I would make – intended helpfully – is that travellers like us will accept anything, provided we know what to expect. I think that the problem with this place is that it doesn't seem to be often used and the staff clearly didn't check whether everything worked. Food fine though.

The oxcart ride round the ruins at Thayekhittaya was also a memorable experience, for its novelty if nothing else. Rather special oxen too.

So there it is. Everything we hoped for. Thank you, thank you

Diana and Daniel

Greetings, my dear MiMi,

Did you know that I am very special as born on a Wednesday - morning - which is when Buddha was born.

Never seen so many Buddha's in my whole life - totally Buddhaed out - 90,000 in one place, 80,000 in another and the 18 inch Buddha made up of hundreds of Buddhas! Each temple one went into the Buddha - or mostly many of them were such a surprise as so different. Thank god for their faith which makes them into such accepting gentle people - need to be with the Chinese on their doorstep and infiltrating. With NIgel we were up - pre dawn, and the moody misty morning before the sun came up, and as it went down, over the Mrauk U temples was breathtaking.

Just back and had the most wonderful and fascinating time. Well done for organising it all. Everything went so well. We had amazing picnic lunches Expected sandwiches of that nasty cheap colonial bread but had chicken and noodles. So delicious. Loved it all - did not get into my drawing for the first few days but picked it all up quickly and it amused so many people and made them relax and our trip much more fun. Could not face the dreadful ex British breakfasts, the bread, nasty cheap strawberry jam and something resembling butter so it did not take me long to have Burmese breakfast of soup with noodles. Managed to try the crispy bamboo worms!

Quite one of the best trips we have all ever done.

The schedule on the last day was very tight as the plane was delayed and we had about half an hour turn around to get our international flight in Yangon. Our guide did wonders to look after us and we know she made endless telephone calls - all luggage and us out of the plane in a flash, transported by bus to the international terminal and onto the flight just in time. Nowhere else in the world could that have been more efficiently done.

We have such happy memories and my journal is a treasure. Bought me two special small golden umbrellas - those we saw at an initiation ceremony at Lake Inle so I have opened them - how exotic, and will somehow attach them to my sofa on the veranda - the others all bought huge ones, but I bought one made of saris in India so could not be too disappointed when there were not enough for the 4 of us.

Where shall we go next Christmas?

So it was great fun and marvellous adventure with lots of memories and stories to tell. All in all we thoroughly enjoyed our first visit to Burma (where my mother was born)

Best wishes for a happy year ahead.

Veronica

Dear MiMi,

I have been meaning to write to you for ages now to thank you so much for organising our trip so very well to Burma. The guides were just brilliant and the way that the last day was organised with the connecting flights was absolutely phenomenal. I don't think that an operation could have been smoother anywhere else in the world.

The itinerary was perfect and gave us just the right time in each place and having the two boat experiences was such fun - each day better than the previous day. The people of Burma were so warm and friendly and gracious and we felt very blessed to have had the opportunity to visit your beautiful country.

Thank you so much for all you did to make our trip so special,

With warmest wishes,

Sincerely

Susie Allan