We hired a driver through our hotel to tour the environs of Mandalay (K60,000) He was awaiting us outside the hotel at 08:30 - our agreed departure time.
We drove through the outskirts of Mandalay and soon drove by the very picturesque Irrawaddy with the far shore dotted with stupas.
Young women were down by the river washing their clothes
We first drove to Mingun, a compact village on the banks of the Irrawaddy. There is a K5000 entrance fee for foreigners.
Mingun Paya would have been the world’s highest Stupa had it been completed but King Bodawpaya died with only a third completed!! There’s a stairs but it ceases before the top as it has severe deep cracks from the earthquake of 1838.
Across the street are the Chinthe ruins - the haunches of half lion / half dragon who were to guard the Paya had it all been completed
From there we visited the Mingun Bell commissioned by the above King ( biggest is best ) but the Chinese, subsequently built one higher.
For me the most attractive part was Hsinbyume Paya, composed of 7 wavy, whitewashed terraces representing the 7 mountains of Mt Meru - the mountain at the centre of the Buddhist universe.
I climbed 150 steps hoping to reach the top but alas no
- the very top terraces were closed.
We drove on to Sagaing, (named after trees bending over the river) an area studded with white and gold pagodas - a major monastic settlement. The area has a monastery (for males) and a nunnery (for females). Our driver and my Guide Book are not at idem - the former informs us that they are refuges for children without any families while the latter states that the brightest young people are educated there
Soon U Pon Nya Shin Paya was our first stop in this village
Here I met two ladies (apart from the above) - one French the other Belgian. They intended travelling in SE Asia for three months - one had family in Kinsale. They had come from Bagan, where we are sailing to tomorrow.
From there we drove to the:
The little visited cave monastery at the foot of Pagoda studded Sagaing built c.1670s The cave was very interesting as it differed from what we had seen to date in that it contained
frescoes depicting the lives of Buddha’s and life generally. Here we met two Americans who were checking the details of the frescoes. I asked if they were archaeologists but they replied in the negative - an interest they had developed. On quitting the cave, we met an American lady who said that her husband, a Liverpudlian academic had read for a PhD in Burmese. He had many postings including teaching Mandarin in China. The couple we met in the cave had invited the Englishman and his American wife to explore the frescoes - thus they had visited the caves numerous times.
We discussed Aung San Suu Kyi and her appearance before the UN Court of Human Rights. We agreed that though she is the softer face of the regime and may not have the freedom to speak her mind, her reaction or lack thereof to the account of the atrocities committed again the Rohingya Muslim minority, should have been more nuanced. The American told us that one of Aung San Suu Kyi’s sons visited her in New Orleans- he has some contact with his mother but the other son has not.
Our next stop was Inwa (Ava). We had a brief crossing of the river Myitnge on a wooden longboat and returned as advised by our driver! What we didn’t realise was that we were meant to tour Ava (as no cars are allowed in the town) and return when our sightseeing of Ava was complete!! We boarded the boat once again (no charge) and this time alighted and took the short walk from the jetty to the town.
One’s choice of transport is as follows: horse drawn carriage, tuk tuk, motor bike or bicycle. As the roads are furrowed I didn’t see many bicycles.
We took a horse drawn carriage (think the Jarveys in Killarney) to tour Ava’s payas (K15,000)
Our horse cart number 126
The star attraction is Bagaya Kyaung - unusual in that the monastery a living one - is composed of teak - creating a very cool, prayerful environment.
We were not permitted into the sanctuary where the Buddha resides
All around the area is studded with Paddy fields,
water flowers and banana trees (attempting to take a photo of a banana tree resulted in my camera falling out of the carriage - first fall !!)
We arrived st Nanmyin - all that remained of King Bagyidaw’s palace complex is a 90 ft tower, still standing after 1848 earthquake. One cannot climb - such is the state of disrepair.
and its three sitting Buddhas
A rare example of Ava 19th century architecture. The interior was so dark, I nearly fell over a sleeping dog!!
East of here ( nearby ) is Htilaingshin Paya - encompassing a number of gilded stupas
Our jarvey dropped us back to the jetty, where we got the return boat to the other side of the river. Our driver met us and drove us to Amarapura to view U-Bein Bridge in the sunset, the world’s longest Teak footbridge which curves 1300yd across Taungthaman Lake - one of Myanmar’s main tourist attractions.
I counted in excess of 25 large tour buses together with smaller ones. Mingun, Sagaing and Ava were coach free. A few visitors but nothing to compared with the crowds that thronged the Bridge. 1086, poles - many present, missing or concreted for support lined the Bridge. Far beneath the bridge flowers (sun flower) and vegetables were grown. We visited during the dry season but during the rainy season this area becomes a lake with the water lapping among the planks!
We came here to see the sun set on the Bridge and we were not disappointed
Boats were available for hire to view the sunset beneath the Bridge
If you wish to avoid the crowds, it is recommended that you come here at sunrise when it is mainly monks and locals who will be seen crossing the Bridge.
We returned to Mandalay (30 minutes), arriving back at the hotel at 18:30. It was a very interesting day, one I would highly recommend.
A note of caution - before you leave home, hone your climbing skills, toughen up the soles of your feet as you must enter all Payas barefoot!!!
NOTE: if you use a driver - he is a driver not a tour guide so take your guide book. He will take you wherever you wish. He will drive you to the main sites but you can request others. I made a list of what we wanted to see. On the positive side you can avoid being taken to craft shops etc - our guide mentioned two but we declined. He will stop as requested for photographs. We were very pleased with the arrangement organised by the hotel.
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