Isabelle Kirkwood takes the night train from Yangon to Bagan and along the way meets some friendly locals and gets to see some of Myanmar's breathtaking scenery.

INN PAW KHON, MYANMAR - The boatman frowned at my instructions. “Inn Paw Khone,” I told him, naming a village built on stilts toward the far end of Inle Lake, in central Myanmar.

MYITKYINA, MYANMAR - As the twin-engine turboprop bumps onto the narrow tarmac of the Myitkyina airport, I am acutely aware I have entrusted my safety to a man I hardly know. Acting on raw instinct, I have accepted an exclusive invitation to meet a rebel army in Myanmar’s far north.