Pagan and Irrawaddy River, Myanmar March 5th-10th

Ananda Temple

Pagan sunset

The planning involved to visit Myanmar began months ago.  With the United States disapproval of the rigid military junta government rule and treatment of their citizens, they were not too keen on the idea of my visit to “The Golden Land”.  Several times my visa application was denied and just minutes before I left Australia, the embassy finally stamped my passport. I let out a monstrous sigh of relief and began my intensive study into this historically rich country.  With no idea of what to expect, we arrived in the capitol of Yangon (Rangoon), knowing only that emails, international websites and television channels would be blocked, yet anxious to meet the locals, marvel at the beauty and consume the spicy cuisine.  We breezed through customs, grabbed our duffels (mine marked with 7 chalk X’s) and were greeted by our local guide, Win.  We stepped into the Governor’s Residence Hotel along embassy row, sad that we would have to put of the highlights of Yangon till the end of our time in Myanmar.  It turned into an early night—due to a total of 10 planes servicing the entire country, flights begin taking off quite early in the morning, and we would be on a 6:30 am flight to the ancient capitol of Pagan.

With a croissant to go and a quick flight, we arrived in Pagan before 8 am ready for a full day of temple sight seeing.  As we drove inside the old city wall of Pagan, thousands of temples begin rising from the ground like mushrooms.  Within the sixteen square miles of this holy land, over 4,000 temples remain—despite several large earthquakes, 2,217 of them remain in great condition!  A skyline unlike any other I’ve ever seen, towering stupors with brick, gold and silver extend for miles.  With no time to waste, we stopped at the Ananda Temple first.  Built in 1090 AD, the perfect execution of the unique, practical and massive architecture led to the murder of the architects to ensure no replica ever built.  Although UNESCO Status has been revoked due to political reasons, this truly is a breathtaking sight.

Our day continued with an essential stop at the Shwe Zi Gone Pagoda with the towering gold stupor.  Legend tells of the famous white elephant choosing this sacred spot for the enshrinement of Buddha’s teeth relic.  We managed to squeeze in two more big stops before lunch—a man made meditation cave dating back to the 11^th century and the Gubyaukgi, the great painted cave temple.  With paintings dating back to the 12^th century, the bright colors and details still remained in excellent condition.  Every where you looked told a story of Buddha’s life, providing a book for the people to learn of his life path.  Here we sat on the top of the temple, taking in the view of the city.  Our guide shared his personal feelings on life in Burma, for both himself and his children, many thoughts which related to the oppressive junta rule.  With the magical background and deeply intimate conversation, I just had to pinch myself to ensure this setting truly was a reality. 

Irrawaddy River Sunset

After a full lunch and a necessary siesta, we ventured to the local handicraft studio to marvel at the lacquer ware work.   Although stunningly beautiful, I seemed to fall for the smiles of the local children; a love affair that lasted our entire time in Myanmar.  With the sunset nearly approaching, we saved the Gu Byuak Gyi Temple for last and rightfully so.  One thousand year paintings adorned the ancient temple, still in stunningly perfect condition.  The beauty on the inside could not compare with the sunset view as we ascended to the top of the temple.  A skyline sunset unlike any other, we sat upon the temple walls and marveled at the beauty of this city.  One couldn’t help being overwhelmed with this sense of spirituality.  A day like ours could only be topped with a massive local meal and traditional puppet show.  Between the heat, the early morning flight and the busy day, we all knocked out early, ready to wake up for another full day in Pagan.

Our day began with a festively large visitor at breakfast—an enormous peacock to wish us well for our adventures in Pagan.  Throughout the day we stopped at many villages to meet the locals and gain insight into the real life in Myanmar.  We brought clothes, pens, soccer balls and balloons for the kids, as they shared their smiles and gracious offers into their homes.  Children as young as two years old joined in on the family chores of carrying water from the well, shucking peanuts, making beautiful pottery or climbing up trees to collect sap.  Over 80% of people in Burma, particularly in the villages, remain without electricity as the government sells the hydropower to China.  It didn’t take long for the locals to offer us a sample of their moonshine—a 50% alcohol content which left my throat on fire for hours!

Filled with liquid courage, we drove to the highest mountain in Myanmar ready to climb to the adjacent temple.  Although known for its size, it is truly valued as the official home of the thirty seven nats (spirits) of Burma.  All tell a story, yet the romantic epic of the nats Lady Golden Face and Mr. Handsome won me over.  The temple provided stunning views of Pagan, great exercise and a true test of agility as one must dodge monkeys while climbing.  A horse drawn carriage led us back through the dirt roads of Pagan for another majestic sunset atop our own private temple, a memorable scene I hope never to forget.

The following morning took us in the steps of Kipling, as we boarded a boat on the Irrawaddy River to travel the “road to Mandalay”.  For the next two days we took in the rural views of Myanmar, along one of the most historically important trading rivers of the world.  I took the opportunity to read an unsettling book telling the story of political prisoners in Burma, with many necessary games of family Uno in between.  Each afternoon we stopped at a local village, meeting the effervescent children who were anxious to practice their English.  I marveled at the workmanship of the women carrying up to three pots atop their head and one in each arm. 

After finding out I was a teacher, our guide even gave me a tour of the village school and set up a meeting with the local school teacher.  The school children proudly sang their ABC’s in English and Burmese, recited their single digit addition and seemed so thankful for the opportunity to learn.  It took the group to pull me away from the classroom, wishing I could do more to help and only  solidifying my passion for education.  On the morning of the third day, the temple skyline of Mandalay came into view, sadly concluded our Irrawaddy cruise.  With the cool river breeze, village stops and continual eating, you couldn’t beat the mode of travel to Mandalay.  Now onto Mandalay….