The moment I got off the bus at Mandalay Bus Station, I was almost attacked by taxi and motorcycle drivers, offering me their services to bring me to a hostel. As it was merely 5AM, I decided to avoid them and enjoy a little breakfast and the bus station. I had not booked anything beforehand, but as September is low season (with way too high temperatures) in Myanmar, I wasn’t doubting about finding a good bed. Once I finished my breakfast, I found myself a cheap motorcycle driver and with both my bags, me and the driver on it, we headed for the city centre. I had heard good feedback from AD1 Hotel, which is located very centrally in Mandalay, and could stay in a twin bed room with private bath room for 16000Kyat (€12,5) per night, breakfast included.
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| Incredible guide |
Day 1: The surroundings of Mandalay
The same day, after a quick nap (7-8AM), I reencountered my driver outside the hotel as he had offered me his services for the day. For the reasonable price of 21000 (€17), I had a guide for myself for the entire day! On his motorcycle, with helmet off course, we drove through the surroundings of Mandalay, Myanmar’s cultural capital (Lonely Planet cfr.).
Our first stop was a Buddha temple (what else?) where people nowadays still donate golden leaves to paste onto the Buddha. Some pictures, taken from 1900 upto 2013, show the increasing size of the Buddha as more and more layers of actual golden leaves are put onto him. In the same temple, some ancient artefacts, believed to be retrieved from Cambodian Ankor Watt can be seen such as: a three-headed elephant, statues etc. In some way I can now say that I’ve seen Angkor Watt. (typical jokes: Watt? It’s true?/Watt time is it?/250Watt should be enough etc.)
Next up was Sagaing, a small town where the main attraction is the monastery where several thousand monks live and meditate. Around 10.30AM they al assemle to have their lunch, as eating is not allowed after that until the next morning, causing herds of tourists to try to get the best posible picture of eating monks. Quite weird to be honest, to see tourists with five different camera’s trying to make pictures of eating bald guys in a robe… After this we hit Sagaing Hill, at 350 steps hill from which an extraordinary view is offered to you by the builders of, what else, a Buddha temple.
The same day, after a quick nap (7-8AM), I reencountered my driver outside the hotel as he had offered me his services for the day. For the reasonable price of 21000 (€17), I had a guide for myself for the entire day! On his motorcycle, with helmet off course, we drove through the surroundings of Mandalay, Myanmar’s cultural capital (Lonely Planet cfr.).
Our first stop was a Buddha temple (what else?) where people nowadays still donate golden leaves to paste onto the Buddha. Some pictures, taken from 1900 upto 2013, show the increasing size of the Buddha as more and more layers of actual golden leaves are put onto him. In the same temple, some ancient artefacts, believed to be retrieved from Cambodian Ankor Watt can be seen such as: a three-headed elephant, statues etc. In some way I can now say that I’ve seen Angkor Watt. (typical jokes: Watt? It’s true?/Watt time is it?/250Watt should be enough etc.)
Next up was Sagaing, a small town where the main attraction is the monastery where several thousand monks live and meditate. Around 10.30AM they al assemle to have their lunch, as eating is not allowed after that until the next morning, causing herds of tourists to try to get the best posible picture of eating monks. Quite weird to be honest, to see tourists with five different camera’s trying to make pictures of eating bald guys in a robe… After this we hit Sagaing Hill, at 350 steps hill from which an extraordinary view is offered to you by the builders of, what else, a Buddha temple.
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| Sagaing Hill |
After a quick lunch near the river, Inwa-Ava awaited. Via a short boat ride we got to this island where literally hundreds of small pagodas (=temples) have survived the past 400-500 years. Some of the most spectacular ones are: Nanmyin Palace, of which only the watch tower remains after it was destroyed by both an earthquake and a Japanese attack during WW2, Yedanasimi Paya, etc. Usually tourists visit it in a horse cart or by bike, but as it was only me, my guide had no problem of using his motorbike to drive around the island. This was great as we could stop where I wanted, when I wanted and for how long I wanted. In this continuous heat, 35°C and 60%humidity, that was not a useless luxury…
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| Ruins of a monestary on Inwa-Ava |
The third stop of the day brought us to Amarapura, where the U-bein bridge is without a doubt the most famous attraction. This wooden bridge is believed to be the longest woorden bridge in the world and it was certainly worth take a stroll along it with the beautiful sunset coming up. THe Maha Ganayon Kyaung Monestery is nearby as well, although it’s not really that amazing, after seeing al the beautiful stuff I’d seen that day…
Taking me back to the hostel was a long trip home, in which I almost fell asleep on the back of the motorbike. With some effort I managed to get a great dinner at ‘Why Not’ restaurant, close to my hostel and a definete recommendation as the staff is local but very motivated to speak english with you.
peace out_
or as say the travellers I’ve been meeting: safe travels!
posted from Bloggeroid
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