This was a trip back in time at a moment when Myanmar was pivoting on change. It was eleven months before the 2015 election, an auspicious time for the country where little had changed for the ordinary person.

Because she couldn’t travel during her career, Paula Varner started traveling immediately on retirement. She sees no need to stop or slow down. She takes a plethora of photographs and puts them into books and DVD video files chronicling her trips. “That way,” she says, “when I’m in my dotage and can no longer go, I can go again in my books and videos!” Her travel is for fun and learning and she especially enjoys meeting people, learning about how they live and capturing the memory of the privilege of having been there. Words to live by: “Travel is the only thing you spend money on that makes you richer!”