Bagan: We awoke at the sound of our alarm Saturday morning, grabbed our luggage and headed downstairs, where we met our tour guide and driver for transport to the airport. Still quite early, the hotel was not serving breakfast, but they packed us a small meal to eat while we waited to board our plane. The flight lasted just over an hour. Once in Bagan, we met up with our local guide and headed right out to start seeing the sights.
Formerly known as Pagan, this was the center of the Pagan Kingdom, which first unified Myanmar. It is known as the City of One Thousand Pagodas, although this is an underestimate. There are currently 2,217 temples and pagodas in Bagan, far fewer than the more than 5,000 estimated to have existed at the height of this ancient capital's power, many of which were destroyed in the 1975 earthquake. Although similar in design, temples are differentiated from pagodas in that temples have inner rooms into which one can enter, while pagodas are solid and can only be ascended from the outside.
Bagan has not been granted World Heritage Status because reconstruction of the temples and pagodas following the 1975 earthquake have been done with methods and materials not consistent with the original structures, nor with much regard to replicating the original design. The current government has also allowed modern-day facilities, such as a golf course and lookout tower, to be built there.
Nyaung-U Market: Our first stop was at the Nyaung-U Market. Like many markets throughout the region, fresh produce is sold daily to the locals here. Also for sale are meats and fishes, as well as clothing and household wares.
Thuhtay Mokgu Temple: After the market, we rode over to the nearby Thuhtay Mokgu Temple. This is a medium-sized temple, from which we could view the Irrawaddy river and the Shwezigon Paya, or pagoda. Inside the temple, as with most temples in Bagan, there sat a statue of Buddha. After enjoying the view atop the temple for a bit, we headed back down and walked over to the nearby Shwezigon Paya.
Shwezigon Paya: Gilded in gold leaf and believed to contain both a bone and a tooth of Gautama Buddha, the founder of Buddhism, the main structure is surrounded on each side by a shrine. Each shrine contains a four-meter high bronze statue of Buddha, the longest surviving bronze statues in Bagan. Completed in 1102, this structure served as a prototype for many future Myanmar pagodas.
Kyansittha Umin: Named after one of the most famous monarchs of the Pagan Dynasty, the Kyansittha Umin is a series of tunnels connecting several small chambers, once used as monks' residences. The chambers, as well as the passageways, are entirely covered with murals depicting scenes from the life of Buddha, as well as some depicting the Mongol invasion of the area. Although made of brick, this structure is built into a cliff face as is still considered an umin, or cave. No photographs of the interior of the cave were allowed.
Tayouk Paya: After our time in the tunnels, we rode over to Tayouk Paya. Attached to one side of the temple is a small Buddhist monastery. As with all monasteries in Myanmar, it is constructed entirely of teak wood. The side of the temple nearest the monastery was destroyed in an earthquake and had to be rebuilt. There is a large standing Buddha inside the temple, and its interior walls are covered with murals.
Htilominlo Temple: Htilominlo reigned as king of the Pagan Dynasty at the start of its decline. Due to the long-term growth of tax-free religious wealth, the royal treasury was being depleted, and he was the last of the great Pagan temple builders. Although most of the temples he constructed were in far-off lands, Htilominlo Temple was completed in 1218 in Bagan. It is an impressive red-brick structure, rising 46 meters (151 feet) high. Inside are four Buddha statues, one facing each direction, and elaborate plaster mouldings.
We spent some time admiring the view from atop one of the smaller temples located by Htilominlo Temple, where Peep purchased a traditional chime from a souvenir vendor.
Tharabha Gate: We made our way back to our car and rode to the entrance of Old Bagan, where we stopped to see the Tharabha Gate. This gate is the main east entrance leading into Old Bagan, and the only one remaining. It is guarded by two Great Nats, spirits of humans who met a violent death, each in its own shrine on opposing sides of the gate. Nat worship is unique to Buddhism in Myanmar, where shrines dedicated to the guardian nat can be found in all villages. Nats may be spirits of humans, or of natural objects such as water or trees.
Shwegu Gyi Paya: We proceeded through the Tharabha Gate into Old Bagan, stopping at Shwegu Gyi Paya. It was built in 1140 by King Alaungsithu, and is said to have been completed in seven months, seven days. It sat just outside the ancient royal palace, and is where King Alaungsithu died.
Proceeding past the old, teak doors into the temple we were greeted by a large statue of Buddha, seated against the center column of the building. Seated on each of the other sides of the column are smaller statues of Buddha. Gold leaf has been applied to these idols by worshippers who came here to pray. We headed upstairs where we again had breathtaking views of the city.
Mid-day Break: By this time it was almost noon, so we drove back out through Tharabha Gate and stopped at a tourist restaurant for some local Myanmar cuisine. After lunch, we rode to our hotel to check in. In order to avoid the mid-day heat, we made arrangements to meet our guide later in the afternoon and headed toward our room for a nap, catching up on some much-needed rest. At three o'clock we were back in the van headed for our next sightseeing location.
Manuha Gu Paya: Our first stop for the afternoon was at the Manuha Gu Paya. Manuha was the last king of the Mon Kingdom of Thaton, located in present-day Southern Myanmar and Northern Thailand. He was defeated by the Pagans and brought back to Pagan in captivity. Many Mon artisans aided in the construction of thousands of monuments in Pagan, including the Manuha Temple, which was completed in 1059.
Said to represent the confines of the captive king, three giant seated Buddhas inhabit three rooms within the temple that are barely big enough to hold them. In front of the entrance to the center of these rooms is a giant alms bowl, to match the grandness of the statues. Located in a separate room behind the three seated Buddhas is a giant reclining Buddha. Depending on the viewpoint, this Buddha image can appear to be frowning or smiling.
Golden Cuckoo Laquerware Workshop: We next stopped at the Golden Cuckoo Laquerware Workshop, where we saw artisans meticulously etching designs into different laquerware objects with sharp-tipped pen knives, preparing them for a new layer of color, and saw others polishing up the final product by hand. We browsed through the store admiring the creations on display there, a laquerware guitar being Peep's favorite.
Ananda Paya: The Ananda Temple was built in 1105 by King Kyansittha, and is revered as one of the finest, best-preserved temples from its time. The main exterior of the temple is whitewashed while the spires were gilded in gold leaf in 1990. Inset into the exterior were 554 green glazed tiles depicting jataka scenes, scenes from the life of Buddha, although many have gone missing.
Inside the temple are four, large standing Buddhas made of teak and gilded in gold. As with the reclining Buddha in Manuha Guphaya, the facial expression of one of the statues changes as the viewer's perspective changes. The chambers holding the Buddhas are connected by passageways adorned with niches from floor to ceiling, each containing a small Buddha image.
Shwesandaw Paya: By this time in the day, the light was just starting to fade as the sun slowly approached the horizon, so we headed to Shwesandaw Pagoda to await the sunset. We climbed up the five terraces, each one connected with a successively steeper staircase, where we saw an all-encompassing view of the surrounding area, including the Irrawaddy River and mountains beyond. As we watched the sun lower, more and more tourists arrived by tour bus, van, car, horse cart, and bicycle. It was a very popular place to observe the final rays of sunlight for the day.
Nandar Restaurant: Our last stop before heading back to the hotel for the night was for dinner at Nandar Restaurant. We arrived before the dinner crowd and were able to choose a table close to the stage where a traditional puppet show was performed. We had spoken to our guide earlier in the day and had him pre-order a special dish consisting of eight different Myanmar delicacies, three of which were curry dishes. Curry dishes are very popular and were on every menu at every restaurant we dined at while in Myanmar, sometime being the only type of food available. After dinner and the show, we were taken back to our hotel where we retired for the night.