{"id":7588,"date":"2013-09-10T22:07:30","date_gmt":"2013-09-10T22:07:30","guid":{"rendered":""},"modified":"2019-04-16T12:37:24","modified_gmt":"2019-04-16T12:37:24","slug":"mandalay-ancient-cities-the-scariest-train-myanmar-burma-html-d1","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/laughfrodisiac.com\/2013\/09\/10\/mandalay-ancient-cities-the-scariest-train-myanmar-burma-html-d1\/","title":{"rendered":"Mandalay, Ancient Cities, & the Scariest Train, Myanmar (Burma)"},"content":{"rendered":"
By the old Moulmein Pagoda, lookin’ lazy at the sea,
There’s a Burma girl a-settin’, and I know she thinks o’ me;
For the wind is in the palm-trees, and the temple-bells they say:
“Come you back, you British soldier; come you back to Mandalay!”
Come you back to Mandalay,
Where the old Flotilla lay:
Can’t you ‘ear their paddles chunkin’ from Rangoon to Mandalay?
On the road to Mandalay,
Where the flyin’-fishes play,
An’ the dawn comes up like thunder outer China ‘crost the Bay!<\/strong><\/font><\/p><\/blockquote>\n<\/span>
<\/a>U Bein Bridge<\/span><\/span> <\/p>\n
Upon landing in Mandalay (after, if I remember correctly, the scariest flight yet), we drove to our first destination, Amarapura. Once (actually, twice) the capital of Burma, Amarapura is most known for U Bein Bridge, the longest teak bridge in the world. Walking along U Bein Bridge is the thing to do. It’s a nice stroll, guaranteed warm and sunny, and buggy – make sure to use extra mosquito repellent. <\/div>\n<\/hr>\n<\/div>\n\n<\/a> <\/p>\n
A few boaters off of U Bein Bridge<\/div><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/span>
<\/a>The line for lunch at Mahagandayon Monastery<\/span><\/span> <\/p>\n
Amarapura, besides being the most fun name to say, is also home to a pretty happening monastery, Mahagandayon. Actually, I’m pretty sure all the monasteries in Burma can be called happening; it’s pretty common for young sons to be sent away to study, and they all seemed pretty crowded. <\/div>\n<\/hr>\n<\/span>
<\/a>I’m (almost) on a boat<\/span><\/span> <\/p>\n
Next, we took a boat across the river to visit the ancient imperial capital of Inwa (or Ava). Inwa is a very lush, unkempt place, very much for travelers to visit and not so much for living. A few monasteries, pagodas, and other sights await.
WARNING: Due to the whole ‘for visiting\/not for living’ setup and the whole rural, unkempt land thing, Inwa has no roads, no cars, and isn’t very walkable. The only way people get around is by horse cart. Upon landing on the Inwa riverbank and seeing what our guide was leading us to, I was vehement about absolutely not forcing a horse to cart me around. I tried to find a bike or something, anything else to use to get around. But after some effort, we learned that the choice was either to use the horses or to skip the visit. So, we went. Hard decisions regarding cultural clashes with veganism always come up when traveling, and I guess I was lucky that this was the worst one I faced in Burma. I still feel badly about it, but I’m not sure skipping Inwa would have been the right decision.
The guide didn’t speak English and didn’t understand what my problem was, so she thought I was scared of horses, and throughout the day kept holding my hand and stuff. It was weird.<\/div>\n <\/hr>\n\n<\/a> <\/p>\n
Inwa’s rice paddies and pagodas<\/div><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/span>
<\/a>Maha Aung Mye Bon Zan Monastery. Much bigger in real life<\/span><\/span> <\/p>\n
Inwa was home to one of my absolute favorite buildings in Myanmar, the Maha Aung Mye Bon Zan Monastery, or Me Nu’s Brick Monastery. Huge and colored with age, the imposing building was really beautiful. And, you get to walk around and explore all the tiers (barefoot, of course. Everything is barefoot).
The last great sight in Inwa was the Bagaya Kyaung Teak Monastery, another teak wood wonder. <\/div>\n <\/hr>\n\n\n\n