Recently updated on July 4th, 2025 at 10:39 am
In a quiet corner of Yangon, near to the Ngar Htat Gyi Pagoda, is the Aung Myay Thuka Monastic School. A simple, two-storey structure surrounded by dusty play areas and thick patches of untamed foliage, the main school building might pass for any other in this part of the city, were it not for the scores of children filling the frame. A makeshift football pitch serves the needs of young schoolboys, who enjoy a quick kick around between lessons, and serene novice nuns in pale pick robes gather in small groups beneath banana palms. In an area of Yangon that’s filled with monasteries and religious sites, this unassuming school is an unlikely destination for tourists.
At Trafalgar, we feel it’s important to try and make a positive difference to the destinations we visit, while also providing guests with an immersive and emotive insight into everyday life. As part of our Trafalgar Cares program, we’ve forged a strong relationship with the Aung Myay Thuka Monastic School, donating much needed supplies including exercise books, writing materials and anything else the school might need. Many of the children here are orphans, or come from disadvantaged backgrounds where access to an education is considered a luxury. Unlike many monastic schools in Myanmar, which only teach young novices Buddhist literature, at Aung Myay Thuka all faiths are welcomed and over 415 children live and learn here for free.
Some of the students eventually become Buddhist monks and nuns, but many others go on to fulfilling professional careers they would not have had the opportunity to consider before. In fact, one of our very own Myanmar Travel Directors, Nyein Moe, was born in a school like this. At the time, his mother was one of only two teachers looking after 500 children and she refused to go on maternity leave, so Nyein Moe literally arrived in the middle of a school day. He then went on to become a teacher himself, like his four siblings and parents, eventually volunteering at Aung Myay Thuka, where he taught seven to nine year olds the Myanmar language, English, Maths and Science.
Like Nyein Moe, many of the alumni are very keen to give back and always try to involve themselves in school activities as a way of saying thank you and in an attempt to inspire the next generation. And the track record of children that do go on to successful professional careers here is strong – two of Nyein Moe’s close friends ended up working as a lawyer and a police officer, while their siblings who didn’t attend the school are still farmers and labourers.
When we take Trafalgar guests to the school they visit the classrooms and sit in on the children taking lessons, speaking with the children and giving them the essentials donated by Trafalgar, which are gratefully, and sometimes bashfully, received. Most of the children are quiet and shy, unlike their Western counterparts, and the more confident always try a word or two of English and in return our guests do their best to communicate with a little broken Burmese. For the children the opportunity to meet people from such different backgrounds helps build their self-confidence and encourages them to blossom, so much so that they begin to look forward to our guests visiting them as much as we look forward to seeing them. They are happy that foreigners are interested in them, it gives them a sense of belonging in the world, and gives them hope that they can make a positive change and ultimately improve their life chances. Supporting Aung Myay Thuka is just one small way that we can help build a brighter future and better lives for children in Myanmar, something we feel extremely passionate about.
Aung Myay Thuka Monastic School forms part of the itinerary on our Secrets of Myanmar trip.
Image credits: Yangon street life © iStock / Maxiphoto