The Road to Mandalay. 8 Days.

Burma. "A land unlike you will ever know." —R. Kipling (1865-1936)

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urma (with a polished new name, Myanmar) is what Thailand used to be — an unhurried land of golden temples and golden-skinned people with non-commercialized smiles.

See it before it accelerates.

Begin in Bangkok, Thailand, and head directly for Yangon (once, Rangoon). Home is the gorgeous Governor's Residence Hotel, a restored teak mansion that Architectural Digest has positively gushed over.

Away we go, for there are sights to behold. The gleaming dome of Shwedagon Pagoda rises up "like a sudden hope in the dark night of the soul" (thank you, Mr. Maugham). What's a paya? A zedi? Find out at the National Museum. Witness the morning meal ceremony on a specially-arranged private visit to Kalaywa Tawa Monastery.

Fly to Mandalay. What’s here? Unparalleled romance and nostalgia. An outsized Buddha whose teeth are brushed daily by the devout.

Then the Irrawaddy River aboard The Road to Mandalay (a floating luxury hotel, pool included), We're traveling on Burma's "superhighway". Think thousands of temples, monasteries, and shrines interspersed with villages where the pace of life is much the same as it was a millennium ago.

The Road to Mandalay restores luster to the word "cruise". Explore Sagaing and Bagan (once, Pagan) along the way. Meet a silversmith whose artisanal roots stretch back generations. At Zayar Theingi, the resident nuns wear pink. Explore Bagan's Archaeological Zone, a favorite on UNESCO's World Heritage list. The Plain of Pagodas amazes us each time weÕre here.

Bid the ship farewell and fly to Heho and the Shan Plateau. Fields of mountain rice, sesame, peanuts. Hungry yet? Explore Pindaya Caves, filled with Buddha images (one cavern alone has 8,094). Ethnic villages, too, with artisans who work in paper and parasols. Meet members of the Pa-O and Danu tribes.

Inle Lake, next, and a visit with the Inthas, who live on the lake — literally — in homes built on stilts and who farm floating gardens made of mud and reeds. Get to know "leg rowers," Intha fishermen who move their canoes with their feet. Visit a local family in a private home. Discover the absolute beauty of balance. Stroll a five-day market. Drop into the Jumping Cat Monastery to see the drill. Spend a bit of time with canoe carvers and cheroot rollers.

We urge you to take this journey in conjunction with R. Crusoe’s A Dream of Indochine

The Road to Mandalay. 8 Days.

Departures: January, March, October, November and December, or throughout the year on an independent basis or as an extension to R. Crusoe's Indochine journey

Prices: Per person sharing room from $4,590
                 Internal air per person (estimate) $490
                 Single room from $5,970