Myanmar
January 2017
Yangon
The bling-tastic Shwedagon Pagoda, standing
99m tall, 16 tonnes of gold,
countless gems and a 78 carat
diamond crowning the top, is the most revered sight in Myanmar…
One of the four compass
point entries to Shwedagon Pagoda…
The Buddha’s feet show
108 auspicious symbols of Buddhism…
These colonial-era
buildings are now falling apart at the seams…
At $1 or $2 for a large
bottle, this was the first of many
Myanmar beers…
Take your pick of the
delights on ‘Grill Street’…
Ready to board the 10
hour (for just 300km!) train journey to Mawlamyine…
Upper class was full, so
we joined the locals on the wooden bench seats.
Did we mention 10 hours?
But it was the best experience…and only 1GBP or $2 each.
No shortage of food
offerings along the way…
Mawlamyine
Mawlamyine is filled with beautiful
colonial buildings from its
days as a former capital of
Myanmar…
On the boat to Hpa-An via the beautiful Thanlyin River. 6 hours to go 60km… That’s
just 10km/hr! Forced relaxation
J
We learned that
travelling in Myanmar takes longer than you would ever think…
Stopover at Kawhnat Pagoda Compound
Arriving in Hpa-An…
Hpa-An
Some of the 1080 Buddhas at the base of Mt Zewgabin…
Bike ride to Saddan Cave amongst the rice paddies and limestone peaks…
Saddan Cave…
The far end of the cave
opens out onto a picturesque lagoon…
The precarious Kyauk Ka Latt
Pagoda…
Part of our journey to
the mountain top of Golden Rock…
50+ people jammed into
the back of a truck, then tear up the windy mountain road…
Golden Rock
It’s a big rock, and it’s
covered in gold…
Golden Rock is a must-do
pilgrimage for many Burmese…
Hardy locals camping
overnight on the mountain…
This little kid is
wearing the traditional Burmese sunscreen called thanaka,
made from ground tree bark…
Inle Lake
A beautiful teak
monastery on the outskirts of Nyuangshwe
Fresh produce and
patriotism at the delightful Paw Paw restaurant…
On Inle
Lake one of the amazingly dexterous one-legged-rowers
shows off his skills…
While balancing on one
leg and rowing with the other, the fisherman tends to his net…
Visiting In Dein, a market village on the
edge of Inle Lake…
Some of the 1054 pagodas
at Shwe Inn Dein…
Lots of industry is
dotted around Inle Lake.
Here, a long-necked lady
shows how she weaves…
…an umbrella workshop…
…a blacksmith…
…and a cheroot (cigar)
workshop…
A sanctuary on the lake
to re-introduce Burmese cats to Myanmar…
The impossibly stunning
“streets” of Inle Lake…
Boarding the 25 minute
flight to Mandalay. The alternative was a 10 hour bus.
Safe? I feel better now...
Mandalay
In the heart of the city
sits the old Royal Palace…
Our chosen form of
transport for out time in Mandalay, Nay and Kyaw took
us everywhere…
Another teak monastery…
The “largest book in the
world” comprises 729 marble slabs
inscribed with the entire
Tripitaka…
Mandalay Hill at sunset…
Sunrise at U-Bein Bridge. This teak bridge is the longest of its
kind at 1.2km and is over 150
years old…
We stumbled across this
festival in a nearby town…
These “lucky peacocks”
are made entirely from money…
A weaving workshop…
Yet another teak
monastery…
The aptly-named Jade
Pagoda…
As part of our cooking
class, Su took us to the local market
to buy the ingredients…
Century eggs…we weren’t
quite brave enough…
Su, our guesthouse owner,
runs cooking classes…
A teahouse in Mandalay…
Bagan
Dotted with over 2200
pagodas, the Bagan archaeological zone is an expanse of temples
from the 9th to 13th century and
the best way to get around is via e-Bike (electric scooter).
Many of the temples still
have their wall and ceiling paintings intact…
An early start to see
sunrise…
We were pretty happy with
these quail eggs fried in batter…
Katy, placing gold-leaf
onto the Buddha statue…
Another beautifully
detailed teak monastery…
A monk carefully placing
gold-leaf onto the Buddha…
Needless to say, Katy was
not impressed…
OH&S… anyone?
Some of the wall
paintings were nearly 1000 years old…
Myanmar’s answer to
cigarettes…
Our last flight with Air
KBZ.
Each destination has a different coloured
sticker you need to wear…
Yangon
Our last day was spent
back in Yangon.
Buddhas-R-Us…
More safety hazards. This boardwalk looked
picturesque… until you got close!
One last visit to Shwedagon Pagoda in the evening.
Katy, born on a Tuesday, is
doing her water-pouring ritual at her designated corner…
Rub the apothecary’s hand
for luck (and good health presumably?)
Then it was Pete’s turn
at the Thursday corner…
It’s considered an honour
to sweep the pavement at Shwedagon…
The lady-monks (nuns)
wear pink robes…
The teahouse culture of
Myanmar…
Who knew there were so
many combinations for how sweet
and white you could take
your tea?
Singapore
On the way home, we
stopped off in Singapore for a few days.
We stayed with Kristina
in her beautiful apartment complex…and made the most of the pools and daybeds!
Chinatown, getting ready
for Lunar New Year…
Maxwell Road Hawker Food
Centre…
The beautiful green
façade of the Park Royal Hotel on Pickering…
The new Singapore Art
Gallery, combining the old town hall and
the old supreme court…
We took a day-trip to the
island of Pulau Ubin…
The best way to get
around is by bike…
More lunar new year preparations…
