Our operation manager, a trekking enthusiast, was more than thrilled to be one of the few foreign visitors exploring this remote area which has long been restricted.

Fully equipped - that's what he thought - he started the adventurous journey, together with our guide Ko Win Oo. Taking the night train to Bagan, he hoped for a good sleep on the reclining chair, but soon found out that there was no rest for the wicked…

Forgetting, that millions of people were celebrating the New Year, thus the Water Festival, in full swing, the windows of the train being open, neither umbrella nor rain coat protecting him, he gave up and even stopped counting the innumerable stops on the way.

Before sunrise, our two travellers chartered a local sampan and enjoyed a peaceful two hours river journey to Pakkoku on the Ayeyarwaddy River. Latest now our operation manager forgot his pile of work waiting for him on his desk in Yangon. The early morning colour of the mighty Ayeyarwaddy changing first from dark orange to light yellow and later shimmering through bands of dusty blue haze, gave the whole scenario a surreal experience.

In Pakkoku they climbed into a kind of American-Japanese "joint-venture" vehicle – a US World War II jeep with a Japanese engine. It was good enough for a not so heavenly, but bumpy 8 hours' drive to Mindet.

Our friend Lt.Col. Aung Moe Myint, the district commander of this area, gave us a warm welcome and also provided proof of the efficiency of his headquarter by presenting us with a complete price list of all available facilities to be offered. Well aware that we like the unusual, at the end of the business discussion he introduced a Chin nose flute player, next to him his wife with an artistically tattooed face.

Next morning before dawn, our two friends started their several days' trekking tour into the Chin Hills, accompanied with one army officer and two soldiers, a local guide and 3 porters. From the valley with its cultivated fields and low pine forest with rhododendron, the foot path soon got steeper and steeper, leading into a landscape of dark evergreen forest with large oaks and laurels. Among the spectacular scenery of this dense jungle full of herbaceous treasures, orchids and violets the small expedition visited several villages. Shy and cautiously our visitors were invited to have a cup of rice whine, which helped both parties to warm up - women in colourful traditional costumes, the older ones having heavily tattooed faces and smoking tobacco pipes, some of the men still wearing pure golden earrings, inherited by their fathers. Family stories were exchanged, questions answered, children introduced.

Packed with these memories, our crew left the friendly and shy villagers to leave for the summit of Mt. Victoria. Our party finally reached their destination. Out of the blue there was the golden shimmering 5-year old Zi Na Man Aung Pagoda which gave a nice contrast to the white and blue anemones. Our guide took off his trekking shoes and paid respect to the pagoda, wishing to have a second chance to come back to the land of the Hornbill Birds.