I'm standing in the warm breeze on the high terraces of Burma's most important Buddhist monument, the Shwe Dagon temple in Rangoon. In the failing light, the bats and martins vie for the evening's feast of insects. There's a growing cacophony of gongs, bells, tinkling chimes and prayers muttered through loudhailers. The light of a thousand candles is reflected on the temple's enormous golden dome.
An old man approaches and offers, in perfect English, to show me around. As we wander through the shrines and temples, he quietly seethes against the military regime. He was a shipping clerk during British rule, 50 years earlier; his is a changed existence. But my trip to Burma has only begun and I am nervous of his frankness. Before he disappears I ask him what he thinks the west ought to do. 'Seeing is knowing,' he replies.
The release this week of Aung Sun Suu Kyi, the political heroine in Burma's fight for democracy, will doubtless provoke interest among travellers keen to visit this isolated country. Its colours and landscapes certainly merit seeing: the languid River Irawaddy which snakes from Rangoon via Mandalay to Bhamo near the Chinese border; the pristine beaches of Ngapali on the Bay of Bengal; the crumbling temples on the plain of Pagan in the east; the floating flower islands on Inle Lake; the hill stations of the western Shan plateau. But amid such beauty you will also find one of the most underdeveloped countries in the world. Burma is both paradise and dystopia.
My own journey took me from Rangoon in the south to the placid Lake Inle and the town of Taungyii - once a British hill station, now a crossroads for brigands and gem smugglers. Climbing into the eastern marches of the Shan State was refreshing after the heat of the plains. The dust is transformed into iron-rich red soil, and acacias and tamarind trees give way to Burmese larch and eucalyptus. The crops here are different, too: the climate allows coffee and mulberry bushes to grow. The endless paddy fields give way to sunflowers, bamboo and maize.
To the west of Mandalay lies the plain of Bagan, upon which over 3,000 temples of all shapes and sizes push out of the ground like dragons' teeth. Some are vast constructions, restored to former glory; others, demurely dishevelled, crumble back into the earth. Each one has a story: a rejected queen; a relic of the Buddha; the most beautiful proportions; the finest frescoes.
Before the present regime, the temples were inhabited for centuries by lepers and outcasts, the guardians of history. Once tourism became a potential profit source for the government, a strip of hotels was planned and these undesirables were cleared out at gunpoint.
All of which means that deciding whether or not to go to Burma presents a serious ethical dilemma. For many years it has been under the control of a brutal military junta: men, women and children are used in forced labour; whole communities are displaced to make way for construction; there are still over 1,000 political prisoners; and the country remains the world's largest opium producer. While large parts of the country are accessible to travellers, Aung Sun Suu Kyi has repeatedly issued clear messages to all tourists to boycott the country.
But not everyone agrees with her isolationist policy. In a statement for the Lonely Planet Guide, Ma Thanegi, a pro-democracy activist and former political prisoner, writes that Suu Kyi's position, while highly moral, has been counterproductive, and that it is possible to travel in Burma as a socially responsible tourist. Everywhere I went I heard this view reiterated. Indeed, some believe that if you make judicious choices when visiting Burma, you can help the fight for change.
Suu Kyi is uncompromising in her approach to tourism, insisting that any contact from the outside world helps to reinforce the grip of the oppressive regime. She believes that all tourist dollars are detrimental: by turning on a tap in Burma you are contributing to the oppression of those who are forced to build the dams.
Conversely, however, many Burmese perceive direct benefits from tourism. Until 1993 foreign visitors were forced to buy package trips run by the state-sponsored tourist agency, Myanamar Travel & Tours. Since then, in a move designed to open up the country's tourism industry, the government has permitted the existence of small, independent operators. By using them, you are helping local people to make money. The publishers of the Lonely Planet Guide to Myanmar may have come under criticism, but their painstaking efforts have put many of the most offbeat destinations on the tourist map and brought valuable income to the poorest entrepreneurs.
My reasons for taking the decision to go to Burma were prosaic. I wanted to discover the truth about this country, closed off from the outside world for so many years. And despite the evils of the regime, the overwhelming message from the people I met when I was there was to encourage more westerners into the country. That way, they believe the government will have to make changes. By improving the infrastructure, communication will have to improve and eventually - inevitably, many believe - the system will crumble and freedom will be the touchstone of democracy. This argument is simplistic and flawed. But for many the feeling of connection with the outside world makes the struggle easier. After all, seeing is knowing.
Ways to go: how to travel in Burma
· Apart from a few package-tours over the Thai border, which are limited to three days, the only way to enter Burma is by flying into Rangoon. A 28-day visa is required before arrival, and an obligatory $200 will be changed into Foreign Exchange Certificates at the airport. Other than this, despite the Orwellian 'big brother' bureaucracy of Burma, there is little interaction with military officialdom except for the odd roadblock.
· Find a reliable domestic travel agent and decide the best means of getting about. Having a guide makes the journey easier and enables access to more than just the obvious tourist sites. While many areas remain off-limits, there is less likelihood of interference from the military if you are in Burmese company.
· Although you can get around by air, road, rail or river, there is little infrastructure in Burma. Even the most robust and seasoned Asia travellers will need to exercise considerable patience and resilience. Train timetables are a myth, the riverboats are interminably slow and flying can be haphazard. Even the roads, where navigable, can be washed away suddenly by monsoon floods; however, if you have the time, the best way by far to see the country is by hiring a car and driver.
· Finding accommodation is not difficult, though comforts may be few and hot water is a luxury anywhere. Guest-houses or small family hotels are the best bet, where breakfast of sweet rice pancakes, fruit and coffee is usually thrown in. Further from the main tourist areas, the choices become fewer but wherever you go, you will be welcomed.
