Myanmar — The country formerly known as Burma remains an exotic destination

YANGON, Myanmar — When I told people I was going to Myanmar, the first question I got was: Where is that? And the second was: Why?

The first one was easy. Better known by its old name — Burma — Myanmar is located in southeast Asia between India on one side and Thailand and China on the other.

Why we were going there was a little harder to explain. After all, Myanmar has a repressive military government; Aung San Suu Kyi, the opposition leader and Nobel Peace Prize winner has been under "house arrest" off and on for a decade or so; our government is among those that have imposed economic sanctions on Myanmar because of its human rights policies. So there were lots of reasons not to go.

But in recent years, Myanmar has become more receptive to tourism, and there are people who feel this is a way to encourage change. A statement from a tour company says it well: "While we abhor Burma's repressive military regime and are committed to the Burmese people and their struggle for democracy, we feel strongly that a return to isolation could be devastating and that compassionate, well-informed travelers can have a positive impact on the future of this proud nation."

I had heard it was a beautiful country, with interesting culture. Plus, there's always the appeal of getting to a place before a KFC or McDonald's dots every other street corner.

So it was that I set off with a group of traveling buddies for a two-week sojourn in Myanmar/Burma.

Our trip took us to the capital Yangon (once known as Rangoon), to the archaeological site of Bagan (once Pagan — not such a change), on a cruise on the Ayeyarwady River (this one was harder; I still tend to think of it as the Irrawaddy), to the beautiful city of Mandalay (no name change) and to the culturally rich area around Inle Lake (we also saw it listed as Inlay — but that might be just a pronunciation guide).

It was a limited time, but over the course of two weeks, we were able to see and do a lot that gave us first impressions and lasting memories of the country. Among the things we learned:

• WE ARE WELCOME HERE. Our personable and knowledgeable guide, May, made us feel "warmly welcome" with her gift of pink roses and her gracious smile.