Kanpi, the taxi, doesn't look good. His fifteen clients ask him to speed up, As for the 16ᵉ passenger, he does not stop
not to moo his displeasure. Passengers really want to arrive fast. They want to see the deceased one last time. I understand that they are in a hurry, but I,
on this road, I can't drive too fast. Otherwise we will fall over. His old Jeep is struggling to cash the 90
kilometers of track leading to the village. Kanpi has no choice, he must pass at all costs. The funeral ceremony will not begin without the passengers. In Burma, when misfortune strikes a
family, mutual aid is still a strong value. I participate in my own way at the funeral. Only asking money for fuel. The funeral takes place in my village, And each of us helps as he can. By dint of perseverance, after 3 hours of driving, it's the end of the trip. The passengers and the ox can finally stretch their legs. Finally, for him, the end of the journey takes on a whole new meaning. This ox is going to be slaughtered. It will be eaten at the funeral. The jeep will also serve as a hearse. Only, not everything will go as planned for the driver. In Burma, the galleys are never far away. For more than half a century, the country lived in seclusion
on himself. Cut off from the outside world. By a succession of dictatorships among
the toughest on the planet. The Burmese consider their country as a beautiful sleeping girl. Today, she half opens her eyes but the awakening is hard. The country lacks everything. The infrastructure has
been abandoned for many years. But despite the difficulties, The Burmese keep smiling. We're going to leave. It's not much, we're used to it! how to complain, When many have experienced forced labor. I try to smile and be happy. It helps ! Either way, there's so much traffic
that there is not enough time to repair the road. The junta has managed the country for its own benefit. Looting the riches and getting built
a capital twice as big as New York. But hardly anyone lives there. The highways that lead to it are the
less frequented on the planet. The tracks, they are legion and they
are a nightmare for the Burmese. Burma may also hold another
record, that of the most terrifying train in Asia. After years of suffering, the Burmese
face risks and perils with a smile. For Burmese drivers, the monsoon
means recurring problems. Trucks and taxis advance in procession. Linked by pitfalls that literally nail them to the ground. In this season, many carriers
refuse to drive. Only the most courageous, or rather unconscious,
storm the mountain. Mr. Kosam is one of them. OK, we have to
say he doesn't really have a choice. When he is not riding, he earns nothing. For a while he looked for a driver
to replace it, just to rest a little. But every time the men leave
running at the sight of his truck. You know, my truck, it really shakes. And in addition, the engine, it is very noisy.
And above all this truck is really ugly. Many drivers don't want to drive it. In fact, this truck should not exist. Mr. Kosam is a bit of a
Doctor Frankenstein of Mechanics. With his hands, he gave birth to this metal creature. It drives, but it is far from perfect. The beast quickly runs out of steam. You have to stop every half hour. The brakes must be hosed down to avoid
that they get too hot on the descents. Hot brakes equals a straight into the ravine. So he invented a kind of liquid cooling. When I brake on the descents, I open this tap and the water from the tank which is on the roof falls directly on the wheel, And cools the brakes. His truck is a giant Meccano, assembled
with the parts of several carcasses. The front of the truck is original. It's a Chevy. We changed the engine to a more powerful one. Because the original one, it was too
low for the roads in the region. I also installed power steering because
that there are many turns on our roads. I had to change the suspensions for wider ones. And more robust. And then, it was necessary to replace the entire braking system,
because there are many ups and downs, The original one didn't fit. Mr. Kosam, leaves to deliver rice to the border
Indian, less than 60 kilometers away. In this wet season, it is far from easy. Especially with his machine. On the descents, I can't really rely on my brakes, So I use engine braking. I'm slowing down
the truck while remaining in first or second gear. The brakes begin to heat up. Mr Kosam,
activates its homemade liquid cooling. This bend is particularly dangerous
because I am very busy. If I don't want to fall over,
I have to turn little by little. The truck must not slip
because, for sure, it would topple over. There, as it descends strongly, With the weight of the truck, I have trouble
to control it and the steering wheel is very hard. Already 6 hours of driving and only about twenty kilometers swallowed. Mules go much faster. This part of the trail is recent. Nevertheless,
the drivers call it the passage from hell. Three little kilometers that count
already dozens of accidents. Here, due to the mud, a truck fell into the precipice. At the slightest mistake, it's a sure fall. This is where it starts to get really slippery. It worries me because the truck slips and does
lurches that I can't control. Get mud off the rear wheels! Mr. Kosam travels with a handyman. All the mud! The young man dives into the mud for him. There, I really almost knocked over. Fortunately
I could control it. My heart really beat very hard. I'm kidding, but what else can I do?
Even though I'm scared, it makes me laugh. His assistant doesn't really have the heart to laugh. When I feel the anger rising, I try to smile because it doesn't
no point getting mad at someone or something. Smiling and being happy helps. When the truck has a problem, I laugh and it
calm. So the problem becomes less serious. Frankly, it is better to live happily ever after. Mr. Kosam's good humor
quickly loses in the fog. After 8 hours of grueling driving, the smiles
gave way to a closed face. Stress. Between fatigue and lack of
visibility, to continue would be folly. The driver decides to spend the night in this tavern. Tomorrow, he will have half of the
way to go, i.e. 30 kilometres. But in Burma, kilometers count triple. In the mountains, each inhabitant of the village
of **** helps this family. The grandmother has just joined her ancestors. The beef also besides, its meat will be used for the funeral meal. It will be garnished with corn. It's Kanpi's family,
the taxi, which is responsible for cooking the ears of corn. The young driver would do without this chore, His back hurts so much after spending 3 hours behind the wheel of his jeep, equipped with shock absorbers as hard as wood. He is my little brother. He's not a doctor, but when he
mass, all my pains disappear. In the next room, it's been three days since everything
the village takes turns around the body of the old lady. It's not a question of status.
She was not rich, nor even notable, According to tradition, the vigil calms the spirit
of the dead before their journey to the afterlife. We put a lot of things in the coffin.
It's to ease our grief. Everything you put in it. These are the clothes she used to wear. And all the objects that belonged to him. Kanpi was commissioned by the family to accompany
the grandmother for her last trip. But the ride will turn out to be so much more
complicated than expected for the young man. 90% of Burmese are Buddhists. Only 1% of the
population is Christian. Like in this village. The cemetery is not very far, 800 meters,
but it is at the bottom of a hill. This road leading to the cemetery is in a very bad state. I wouldn't really like it to rain. Heaven decided otherwise for Kanpi. As the old lady enters her final resting place. The young man wonders if he will be able to leave. The rain is starting to bother me. My 4x4 does not work very well, I
can't get him to climb the slope. She is not very stiff but she is very
slippery and very difficult to climb. We will try to get out of it by deflating the tires. Once deflated, the tires sag. The band of
bearing becomes wider by a few centimeters. What hang a little more on the track. But Kanpi has another problem. Also, my clutch is failing. It makes us laugh because we thought we could
lift it but it is really too heavy. Definitely, in Burma, laughter seems
a good remedy for problems. But a little help is not too much.
1 hour later, a friend comes to the rescue. This four-wheel-drive Jeep that
work unlike my car. He will tow me. We will try like this. The danger is that his jeep hits
mine and his radiator exploded. It happens from time to time. He has been toiling for 2 hours now. Kanpi thought to himself that he could have thought of the chains a little earlier. Chains replace drive wheels. As
my car can't climb the hill, They are our last chance. Indeed, his car no longer slips.
Now she digs holes. The chains eventually break but
once again, no one is discouraged. Whatever the problem, we never give up. Often we are even happy to have problems. Me, I trust my friends and I know
that they will help me out. That's why we laugh. We are
happy to be united in the problems. We can't do it but we will continue until it works. I don't want to stay here until midnight. Well, it's already 11 p.m. A part of the village came to help. In vain. And as if that were not enough, the men
like the old Jeep begin to suffer. They've been toiling for 8 hours. Not only did its drive wheels fail, But now it's his gearbox that no longer works. I really want to sleep. I'm starving. I haven't eaten since the funeral. And I'm exhausted. For once, his prayers are heard. Around midnight, the family of the deceased
arrives with something to give them strength. We are very grateful to
those who help with the burial. We thought they were hungry, so
we brought them food. Cheered up, around 1 a.m., or 10 a.m.
later, it is finally deliverance. The Burmese have learned never to let go. To understand where their energy comes from,
you have to dive into the history of the country. The Burmese have experienced forced labor. Imposed by the various dictatorships
soldiers who ruled the country. For almost 60 years, Burma
found herself isolated from the world. Stuck in its development. Lack of equipment, electricity,
drinking water, infrastructure. However, the riches are not lacking. Its basement is full of oil, gas,
but also ruby and sapphire. Since 2011, a page seems to be turning. The junta
has softened. The doors of the country are finally opening. The economy is picking up slowly. The Burmese now hope to be
freed from the bites of life. Since those times of terror, Santin no longer fears death. The king cobra is the most dangerous of all snakes. You die within a minute of being bitten. Santin has been charming snakes for 30 years. there is no antidote to its poison. I got bitten by snakes once
twenty times. And even here, on the skull. The man says he was saved by
the magical tattoos that adorn her body. The shaman who drew them is said to have mixed medicinal herbs and extracts of venom from various snakes with the ink. After half an hour of invocation, the
Cobra is ready for the kiss of death. But this time it's not the snake
who will give it but this young woman. Sokhna and the Snake Charmer put on a show
together, but it is not without danger. I am preparing to perform a traditional dance
where I kiss a king cobra. Once a snake bit my foot. I did not go to the hospital, but a doctor treated me and kept me under observation. Even now, I sometimes feel feverish. I haven't fully recovered. When he's not exercising his talent at the Rangoon Zoo,
Santin earns a little money by scouring the countryside. Beliefs are still deeply rooted there. For some, the cobra is a beneficial animal. He would have protected Buddha from the sun by standing above his head, To shade him. For others, he represents an evil god who
destroys crops and renders women sterile. Legend has it that only a pure maiden can lift
this curse by kissing his head three times in a row. Sokhna, represents this young woman. She seems to be dancing.
In fact, these movements gradually hypnotize the snake. To avoid being bitten, the young woman must respect two rules. Never stop moving or make any sudden movements. When the cobra gets angry,
I pray to the goddess whose name is ****. I ask him that these guardian angels protect me,
so that the serpent does not attack me. The cobra is nervous. Santin, ask his assistant
to calm him down in a bath of cool water. The danger is very real. Santin does not cheat, his snake still has its
fangs and its venom sac is always full. Even if it's a show, the inhabitants
hope that with the kiss of death, There will be many births this year in the village. In the early morning, the fog is still
clinging to the tops of the mountains. Mr. Kosam did not sleep well. Stress, sure. The day before, he took 10 hours to cover just 30 kilometers and he still has the same to reach the Indian border. To make matters worse, all the drivers he
questions tell him the same story. The road is a field of mud. Everybody
gets bogged down. It took me two days to get here. I could only do 10 to 12 kilometers
per day. It's really bad. But you can pass if it stops raining.
But if it continues, then good luck! There is likely to be heavy rain and the road
will really become impractical. The worse is yet to come. The first difficulties are not long in coming. The water holes follow one another. Without Sheng, his assistant, the journey would be impossible. For less than €10 per trip, accommodation and food,
the young man saves him precious time. Without him, Mr. Kosam could not accept all the orders. I really like my job, even if it
is not easy every day. Some drivers do not work during
the rainy season because it's too tiring. I can't afford that. I can't rest. My children need to go to school
and I need money for my family. You know, often I have to accept trips
that most drivers refuse to do. My father was a driver. Maybe his blood runs through my veins. And that's why I chose this job! The water is gradually washing away this part of the road. Under the weight of the truck, the lower side could collapse. I am not very reassured. I do not think so
to the accident but if it happened, It would go so fast that I wouldn't have time to realize. With every dangerous situation, my heart
speeds up and I have a lump in my stomach. There is nobody. The driver left, we have to wait. It's not really the trap
he expected. He is condemned to wait. After the adventures of the funeral,
Kanpi put his taxi cap back on. This trip is likely to be hectic. It's necessary
pray for all problems. It must be said that he relies on these chains,
to compensate for its broken 4x4 transmission. My mother worries a lot because of the
rain and poor road conditions. And my grandmother, who is very old, worries even more. The two women know very well that the risk is
ubiquitous on the trail that leads to the city. And then again, I've been doing this for four or five years.
work and I realize how dangerous this job is. But I have no choice but to be
driver to feed my family. If by chance I could find
any other job, I would do it! But in the region, the opportunities are rather rare. So I remain a driver. It must be said that the young man makes a pretty good living. €200 per month, compared to 75 for a civil servant. With this salary, he was able to buy his jeep. Alright, a used one in poor condition.
Who has difficulty overcoming obstacles. But despite everything, customers
jostle for a ride with him. Kanpi, plays an important social role
in this part of the mountain. Because of the state of the road, the other drivers ask between two and 3€ for the transport of a bag of rice. I only ask one euro per bag. It is thanks to this award that people
in the village can eat rice. The journey ends somehow
but the main thing is to arrive. In town, garages abound. Fortunately for him, his 4x4 is more than rudimentary.
Fixing it is almost child's play. Here, the drive wheels don't last very long, they
break easily due to poor road conditions. They take three or four journeys, And again, we have to change them. I spend my time in the garage. The garage is run by little kings of the
manage. They are between seven and twelve years old. These children come from isolated villages. Since they don't go to school, they are in
the workshop to learn how to repair cars. And then it becomes their job. At the last census in 2014, Burma
had more than 4 million working children. The irony is above all that this figure is constantly
increase since the country opened up to foreigners. New businesses are looking for cheap labour. These five were lucky enough to be taken in by this monk. Worley helps disadvantaged children
whom he lodges in his monastery. He hopes they will eventually embrace the vocation,
that they will dedicate their lives to helping others. The monks take vows of poverty and live on charity. Lunch is offered to them by this man. Before meeting the monk, these children
had never left their village. And they had hardly any
hope of going beyond its borders. It's the first time in their life that they see a
train. This trip is a discovery for them. These children are my students. They come from a very poor mountainous region and cannot afford to go to school. Their baptism of the rail does not take place in any train. Much better than an amusement park, They take the narrowest and highest viaduct in the country. The structure culminates at 100 meters high and dates from 1901. Its construction is a feat for the time. I'm not very worried. The viaduct is often checked. On the other hand, I am not allowed to go more than 8 km/h. This is perhaps one of the most terrifying trains on the planet. There is no parapet. Only a few
centimeters separate the wheels from the void. Like all Buddhists, the monk Worley thinks
that there are no coincidences in life. Even if he tries to change their destiny, these
poor children surely deserve their fate. It is our past lives that determine our condition. If in a past life you did good,
in your present life, you will become rich. But if you have harmed others,
then in this life you will be poor. Further in the mountains, Mr. Kosam wonders what he could have done in another life to deserve such a punishment. A truck is blocking the way and the driver cannot be found.
Its old carcass does not turn enough to circumvent it. He is only 30 centimeters short. Mr. Kosam counts
find them by moving the rear with the jack. I'm going to shift my truck to the right. Another fifteen kilometers to reach the border.
Now the driver no longer counts his delay. He only hopes to arrive before dark.
And it is far from over. Sometimes the bus overturns. It's part of the journey. There is so much traffic that the road deteriorates. There is not enough time to fix it. A damaged portion is barely repaired when it is again destroyed by the passage of overloaded trucks. On the one hand, I would prefer to drive on a paved road. But on the other, I risk losing my
job if it becomes easy to drive here. No one will need my 4x4 truck anymore. It will become useless. And me, all of a sudden, I would no longer have a job. Mr. Kosam knows it well, tar
is not planned for immediately. He still has good years ahead of him. The country has many other priorities before tackling
to the repair of these lost mountain roads. And yet their deplorable state paralyzes
part of the country's economy. Before putting this car back on its four wheels,
passengers are obliged to unload their goods. We're going to leave. It's not much, we're used to it! During the rainy season, all drivers
have this problem at least two or three times. Just last week, seven
cars are overturned here. We are ten and we are going to try with this rope. It will work, I'm sure! Anyway, that's our way. We usually. We are not numerous enough to succeed. Someone left in the village
next door to look for reinforcements. You have to attach a chain to the front of the Jeep! Come on guys, take the one that's in my car. Tighten the chain. They will leave but only with half of the
loading. They are afraid of falling over again. Drivers help each other and if there is no one on the road, it is the villagers who come to help. It's always like that. Mr. Kosam rushes forward, he does not pass
not far from disaster. I can't see myself driving when I'm 50. Moreover, on this road, there are hardly any
of drivers of this age. It's so exhausting! Mr. Kosam will arrive just before dark. It will have taken 48 hours to travel only 60 kilometers. Burma is a country under construction.
Democracy is gradually taking hold. Although, no one dares yet
criticize the 50 years of oppression. The junta gave up power, but it is
always present in the political life of the country.
