Officially relaxed at Yangon's The Governor's Residence
Yangon governor's residence turned hotel is a haven of tropical tranquility, writes Graeme Green
There are parts of Yangon, Myanmar's largest and most industrialised city, that can feel noisy and hectic. That fades away, though, as my car turns onto a leafy backstreet in the embassy quarter of Dagon, where The Governor's Residence is located.
A walk across a wooden bridge brings me into the large colonial mansion, where waiters and other staff are milling about. There's a large pool to one side of the bridge and a peaceful green lawn to the other.
The mansion, with white paint contrasting with teak, was built in the 1920s. "It was the official residence of the British-appointed governor of Kaya state," the hostess, Mar Mar, says as she leads me past lily pad-covered ponds to my room.
My suite is spacious, clean and uncluttered, with a large bed, sofa and drinking cabinet. The bathroom has a shower and a huge modern tub big enough for two.
In the evening, I find it difficult to choose between the two restaurants.
Downstairs, Mandalay's menu of Eurasian fusion, looks good, including a good selection of fish and seafood. But the hostess recommends the curry buffet upstairs in the Mindon Lounge as "an opening to Myanmar".
