Hiking Mount Zwegabin with a Broken Heart in Hpa-an, Myanmar

Am I a professional or hobbyist mountain climber? No, I am not. But if you have time around Hpa-an in Myanmar, hiking to Mount Zwegabin is a must. It was my first time hiking a mountain alone in a different country. Although there are lots of hobbyist hikers and climbers in my country, I never join them because I prefer to go to the beach.

Going to Mount Zwegabin

From my hostel, I drove my motorbike with a map going to the garden. If I remember, I need to pay 4000 Kyat for the entrance fee. There were several Buddha statues in Lumbini Garden and I like the zen feeling. It says that to climb Mount Zwegabin, it will take you 2-3 hours to reach the top.

If you want to see the sunrise, it’s better to be early as of 4 AM or 5 AM. But I woke up around 9 AM and had my breakfast. I was chill so no need to hurry. Good thing, the weather is not too hot even though the sun was up. I wasn’t sweating that much but going up makes you need to catch your breath which is normal.

Check out my video below how I made it to Mount Zwegabin or check on YouTube.

Doing a self-reflection while climbing Mount Zwegabin

While climbing, I have the time to do a self-reflection of what just happened to me in Yangon. It was about a bad break-up. Many times I asked myself if I was happy before the break-up and after. No, I wasn’t happy. After the break up I felt awful. I was doing a vlog of my climbing so I stopped the camera and cried. Should I take a video of myself crying? For drama? Nope. I just let myself cry alone.

There were too many red flags about the relationship. One thing I can’t forget when he pushed me and I lost my balance with my backpack. Just because I was grumpy when we arrived at our hostel on Inle Lake. But do I need to write what really happened before that?

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It all started when we have to leave Yangon on our third day. I was eating my breakfast when he started to bother me to be in a hurry. You know, he could just patiently waited for me. I finished my breakfast before 6 AM but he stressed me out. I can finish my food without stressing me.

So many things happened after which I begin to question what we really had. The stage of getting to know each other. I felt embarrassed and insulted while we were in the south of Myanmar. He hurt me. It was a bad break-up right in the middle of our trip.

The realization about the bad break-up

When I arrived in Hpa-an, I felt so happy alone in my bed. I was able to sleep in peace. That’s when I realized I can be myself and love myself again.

While recalling what happened about the bad break-up, I just continued climbing going up and smile again. Thought of myself that I could forgive him and continue the communication. But honestly, it was so wrong to send him a message when I was in Mawlamyine.

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Reaching the top

Anyway, I was able to reach the top of Mount Zwegabin. Before it was allowed to stay overnight but a few tourists went up to suicide.

I was able to see the sea of clouds and I just spent an hour. I went down alone and see some locals going up. Since it was past noon already, it was hot going up.