Hot Spot

Turning back the clock is part of the charm of Burma, a land where oxen still pull wooden-wheeled wagons past pagodas in a tableau unchanged for centuries. Even in Rangoon, a languid, musty capital of tree-lined boulevards, visitors find themselves in a city locked away from the world and seemingly set in time.

For a traveler with deep pockets, there can be no better way to surround yourself with history than a stay at Burma's best hotel, the Strand. The Sarkies brothers built it a century ago as one of their grand dames of Asia, which also include Raffles in Singapore and the Oriental in Bangkok.

Many feel the Strand is the finest of the lot. In 1991, after decades of neglect under Burma's now abandoned socialist experiment, Adrian Zecha of the exclusive Amanresorts arrived. A painstaking $36 million restoration saw the cockroaches expelled, the rundown, $10-a-night rooms refitted in teak and brass, and the Strand reborn as perhaps the region's most authentic colonial-era hostelry. The creaks may be missing from floorboards and the modern age might intrude with satellite television, international direct-dial telephones and air-conditioning, but it still feels like George Orwell's haunt by the Rangoon River, a classic with old wood ceiling fans and near-forgotten elegance.

As part of its 100th anniversary celebration, the Strand is offering a variety of packages. One, Stranded in Time, covers three nights, a city tour and a round-trip flight to Pagan (see Detour). From April to September, it's $1,800 per couple. Nothing old-fashioned about the prices, but all rooms are suites that normally begin at $500 a night. For bedside reading, choose Orwell, Rudyard Kipling, Somerset Maugham or others who enjoyed sweet dreams at the hotel. Call (951) 243-377.

R.G.