One Pagoda, Two Pagoda, Three Pagoda, More!

When I heard the warning from fellow backpackers in Yangon about the long bus trips necessary to get from destination to destination, I feared the worst on my 14 hour overnight journey to Bagan. I think I must have lucked out because the ride was relatively comfortable and routine aside from when I was just dozing off, I was shook awake to have my passport checked at the military checkpoint. Luckily, there was only one.

We arrived in Nyaung U, the town where most of the budget accommodation lies, and was transferred by an unusual taxi, a horse cart, to my hotel of choice.  It was only 430am and I slept until mid afternoon before I decided I had the energy to get out and explore some of the ruins.

For anyone with a budget, there are two main options for exploring  the endless plains of temples, by horse cart or by bicycle. I spent three days around the ruins and split my time between the two. I found I enjoyed my day more by bicycle as it allowed me the freedom to completely immerse myself in the ruins and get lost although the mid day sun was brutal.

At one point I was lost somewhere out on the plains I stopped to reach my map and figure out where I might be. When I looked up I could see I was surrounded by goats and cows and noticed two young farmers coming my way. They spoke a little bit of english and were happy to try their best to communicate. When I asked to take a photo of them they were thrilled but afterward what caught me off guard was when they pulled out their own digiatal camera and began taking photos of me! Not wanting to be a hypocrite I posed for a couple photos with each of them and when they approved of their results on the back screen we said our farewell. It seems everyone owns a digital camera these days.

My second Day by horse cart was far more informative as my driver acted as a guide as well. It was nice to learn more about the history and also to see things I may have missed but continually found that when i arrived at the main temples I would be met by vendors trying to sell their goods which took away some of the explorer feeling I so enjoyed while cycling.

If anyone reading is wondering what the stuff on everyones face is, many of the people in Myanmar use a homemade sunscreen made from tree bark called Thanaka. Just about every child and woman wear it and sometimes the men if they are outside for prolonged periods.

One morning I went down to the local market and enjoyed strolling around the various stalls selling anything and everything before stopping in for a tea and breakfast at one of the many tea shops nearby. Just as I was leaving I came across a procession with locals dressed in all kinds of traditional clothing parading children around on ponies before stopping outside a small temple to have photos taken of the children. I believe the ceremony was celebrating ordination into the monastery but I may be mistaken.

The plains of Bagan are literally filled with over 2.000 temples but its difficult to get a sense for how vast an area it is unless you climb one of the pagodas for a birds eye view.  Watching the sunset over the temple filled horizon is truly when Bagan reveals its magic and were certainly my favourite memories of the site.

While Bagan should be up there with the other great ancient monuments, UNESCO refuses to list Bagan due to the governments careless restoration of some of the pagodas using modern materials and untraditional styles. Places like Bagan are fragile sights and I fear this enigmatic site may be poorly managed for future generations to enjoy.

Myanmar might not see the number of tourists the countries in the region do, Bagan is still Myanmars number one tourist destination and has a small commercial side attached to it.  I enjoyed Bagan greately but was excited to move on as I boarded the bus to Mandalay.