We were hiking in the Shan state hill tribe area of Myanmar (Burma) when we came across a group of Akha women selling their handicrafts. One of the women in our group, Yona Davis (pictured above, center) from New York, NY, asked if she could try on one of their beautiful headdresses. Before we knew it, several Akha women were dressing her in their traditional headdress, jewelry, and vest. We had a lovely chat for a few minutes with lots of laughing. The women then stopped for photos, which they don’t often do. I felt so lucky to witness this spontaneous exchange with these friendly, mountain women.
–Text and photo by Carmen Gomez, WT staff, Burma: Wonders of the Golden Land
