Burmese food - a beautiful mix of all things Asian

Traditional Burmese fermented tea-leaf salad. Apart from the actual tea-leaves, it was really good.

Burma (Myanmar) is one of the poorest countries in Asia, it is on the verge of possibly overthrowing decades of military rule, and their are still ethnic and religious violence in the northern provinces. Nevertheless, in addition to its stunning beaches and friendly people, the food holds promise an amazing future as a tourism destination. 

Burmese food is an amazing mix of the regional cuisines - Chinese, Thai and Indian - with additional influences from the rest of South East Asia. This is what we saw (and partially ate) the week before Christmas 2013: 

Bye, bye birdies - see you in a wok full of oil!

Vietnamese 'raw' spring rolls.

Squid salad, Thai style.

Fried pancake batter of some sort.

Fish and chicken in a street stall.

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Fried sweet dough with sesame seeds; in Chinatown.

Tiny mandarins.

Spring rolls and fritters are always popular street food all over SE Asia.

Hot pot - another Chinese influence. I have had it in Guizhou; in Switzerland we called it fondue Chinoise.

Palm sugar.

Rice with beans (left); also served for breakfast in our guesthouse.

Whole durian fruit.

Durian opened - and smelly.

Dried seafood.

Fried bugs of some sort; the kids guessed cockroaches, but I think not.

Green papaya, sold by the slice.

Samosas.

Rice, rice, and rice, and also some rice at the back.

Breakfast from the steamer.