Myanmar (former Burma) crossed by the Irrawaddy River, offers beautiful rural landscapes, archaeological areas of amazing beauty such as Bagan and the possibility to get in touch with the reserved monks. The Burmese are the descendants of tribes of southern China that around the 8th century AD occupied the central part of the country coming from Yunnan, conquering the former Mon kingdom of Indian culture. It suffered several influences having been English possession and then occupied by the Japanese in World War II. Myanmar, which became independent in 1948, has been subject to a military dictatorship since 1974 and only since 2010 has implemented a series of gradual political reforms that have allowed the establishment of a civilian government, with the consequent release of opponents to the regime and the calling of free elections.
