|
Yangon (Rangoon)
| Bagan
|
Mandalay
Yangon (Rangoon).
Yangon meaning "End of Strife" (also known as Rangoon from
the British colonial times) has earned the name "The Garden
City of the East" due to the large number of tropical trees,
it's cool, shady parks and beautiful lakes. Although the
population hovers around 5 million, the city seems so full
of trees and shade that some areas are practically jungle.
Yangon offers a totally different feel from other Asian
cities of a similar size and it's not yet overwhelmed with
the desire for modernization. It's making its own progress
at its own pace, in its own calm, unique way. At night,
Yangon's wide boulevards come alive with hordes of stalls
selling delicious food and piles of huge cigars. If you can
close your eyes to the decay of the old colonial
architecture downtown, you'll probably agree that this is
one of the most charming cities in Asia.
Yangon Highlights
A visit to Myanmar is incomplete without
seeing the Shwedagon Pagoda. This glittering world famous
gold-plated Pagoda is 100 meters high, and surrounded by 64
stupas. It dominates the city from its hilltop site. This
mighty monument was built in the 18th century and is
surrounded by an incredible assortment of statues, temples,
shrines, images and pavilions. The Shwedagon was called 'a
beautiful winking wonder' by Kipling and it truly is a
magical place, especially at sunset.
In Yangon, you'll also find the legendary Strand Hotel, the
colossal reclining Buddha in Chaukhtatgyi Paya and the
peaceful Kandawgyi and Inya Lakes.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Bagan.
Bagan is one of the main tourist attractions in Myanmar.
Located on the eastern bank of the Ayeyarwaddy River, it is
also one of the richest archaeological sites in Asia. Once
the capital of the first Myanmar Empire, Bagan contains over
2000 well-preserved pagodas and temples from the 11th - 13th
centuries and covers an area of over 40 sq. kms.
Bagan Highlights
1. Ananda Temple
Built by King Kyansittha in 1090, the Ananda Temple is the
masterpiece of early style temple architecture. There are
four huge Buddha images in the standing position and a
series of eighty relief's depicting the life of the Buddha.
2. Thatbyinnyu Temple
Over 66 metres high, the Thatbyinnyu Temple, built by King
Alaungsithu in the middle of the 12th century, overtops all
other monuments and it terrace affords visitors a
magnificent panorama of the Bagan plain.
3. Gubyaukgyi Temple (Wetkyi-in)
A 13th century temple with a spire resembling the Mahabodhi
Temple at Bodha Gaya in India, the Gubyaukgyi is noted for
its wall paintings, depicting scenes from the previous
livers of the Buddha.
4. Htilominlo Temple
Built by King Nadaungmya in 1211, the 50 metre high
Htilominlo is one of the largest temples of Bagan and is
noted for its fine plaster carvings.
5. Dhammayangyi Temple
This massive temple: built by King Narathu in the 12th
century, displays the finest brickwork in Bagan.
6. Shwezigon Pagoda
Built by King Anawrahta, founder of the first Myanmar
Empire, and finished by King Kyansittha in special reverence
by successive kings and became the prototype for later
Myanmar pagodas.
Mandalay
This sprawling cultural centre is the most Burman of
Myanmar's cities. It was the last capital of Myanmar before
the British took over and is the country's second-largest
city.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Mandalay Highlights.
Shwenandaw Kyaung, the sole remaining building of the once
extravagant moated palace. Mandalay Hill, with its
spiralling stairways, temples and sweeping views. The
ancient Rakhine Buddha image at Mahamuni Paya. You'll also
find bustling markets that sell produce and handicrafts from
all across Upper Myanmar.
There are four 'deserted cities' nearby: Amarapura, Sagaing,
Ava and Mingun. Mingun is the most appealing of the four; A
delightful river trip from Mandalay is required to get to
this marvelous unfinished temple. Famous for the 90-ton
Mingun Bell, supposedly the largest hung bell in the world. |
