AROUND MANDALAY You Cansnoopaboutpottery Factories
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© Lonely Planet Publications 276 Around Mandalay What puts Mandalay on most travellers’ maps looms outside its doors – former capitals with battered stupas and palace walls lost in palm-rimmed rice fields where locals scoot by in slow-moving horse carts. Most of it is easy day-trip potential. In Amarapura, for-hire rowboats drift by a three-quarter-mile teak-pole bridge used by hundreds of monks and fishers carrying their day’s catch home. At the canal-made island capital of Inwa (Ava), a flatbed ferry then a horse cart leads visitors to a handful of ancient sites surrounded by village life. In Mingun – a boat ride up the Ayeyarwady (Irrawaddy) from Mandalay – steps lead up a battered stupa more massive than any other…and yet only a AROUND MANDALAY third finished. At one of Myanmar’s most religious destinations, Sagaing’s temple-studded hills offer room to explore, space to meditate and views of the Ayeyarwady. Further out of town, northwest of Mandalay in Sagaing District, are a couple of towns – real ones, the kind where wide-eyed locals sometimes slip into approving laughter at your mere presence – that require overnight stays. Four hours west of Mandalay, Monywa is near a carnivalesque pagoda and hundreds of cave temples carved from a buddha-shaped moun- tain; further east, Shwebo is further off the travelways, a stupa-filled town where Myanmar’s last dynasty kicked off; nearby is Kyaukmyaung, a riverside town devoted to pottery, where you can snoop about pottery factories. HIGHLIGHTS Join the monk parade crossing the world’s longest teak bridge, Amarapura’s Kyaukmyaung stunning U Bein’s Bridge ( p278 ) Look over hundreds of pagodas and the Ayeyarwady River from atop Sagaing Hill ( p283 ), one of Myanmar’s more Monywa River Mingun important religious sites Hpo Win Paya Daung Caves Ayeyarwady Climb Mingun Paya ( p284 ), an unfin- Chind Mandalay ished, but still king-sized, stupa reached Sagaing Hill U Bein's Bridge w by a boat ride from Mandalay in River Go to Bagan the back way – via Monywa ( p286 ), where you can join monkeys in admiring the Hpo Win Daung Caves ( p289 ) Peek into ancient pottery traditions at Kyaukmyaung ( p292 ), a rarely visited riverside village lined with giant pots bound for delta villages lonelyplanet.com ANCIENT CITIES •• Amarapura 277 HISTORY GETTING THERE & AROUND From the fall of Bagan (Pagan) to the end All of these destinations are best reached via of the third and last Anglo-Burmese War in Mandalay ( p255 ). Three of the ancient cit- 1885, the capitals of Myanmar played musi- ies (Amarapura, Inwa and Sagaing) outside cal chairs in the area around Mandalay. At Mandalay’s door are reached by pick-ups, first, new kings sought to build their legacy but most visitors go on day trips by taxi (see by breaking new ground (and often the bricks p278 ). Monywa and Shwebo are a few hours and wood from old palace buildings) to build west and north of Mandalay by bus; Monywa a new capital. also has air and slow-train connections with By the late 18th century, kings turned to Mandalay and a useful bus connection with astrological forces to pick a site. Generally, Pakokku ( p191 ) en route to Bagan. See the AROUND MANDALAY when a new reign began, the royal entourage Getting There & Away sections in individual of the new king took much of the construction destinations for more details. materials from an old capital and left the area to farming villagers. In the chaos after the fall of Bagan, it was ANCIENT CITIES Sagaing that first rose to prominence (in the Mandalay’s real claims to fame are its day trips early 14th century), but in 1364 Inwa suc- to some distinct ancient cities, which you can ceeded it. Alaungpaya appointed himself visit by boat, horse cart or foot – Amarapura, a royal in 1752, and the capital was briefly Inwa and Sagaing, as well as the Snake Pagoda stationed in his home town of Shwebo (then at Paleik; upriver to the north is Mingun. You’ll called Mokesebo). need to pick up Mandalay’s ‘Archaeological In 1760 the capital shifted back across the Zone’ $10 combo ticket (government-bound; river to Sagaing, where it remained for just see p261 ) to visit Inwa’s main sites, or the four years. Inwa only regained its pre-eminent Sagaing/Mingun $3 ticket to visit Mingun and position from 1764 to 1783, after which time Sagaing (if you cross the old Ava Bridge). No- Amarapura became the capital. In 1823 Inwa one checks for tickets at the other sites. was again the capital but, following the ter- rible earthquake of 1838, which caused con- AMARAPURA siderable damage to all these cities, the capital amrpšr was moved back to Amarapura in 1841. Then %02 in 1860 the seat of power was transferred Myanmar’s penultimate royal capital, the to Mandalay, where it remained until the now-modern town of Amarapura (pro- end of the British conquest of Myanmar 25 nounced amuRA-puRA), 7 miles south of years later. Mandalay, is well known by the many day- trippers for its 1849 pedestrian bridge built CLIMATE of over 1000 teak posts. The setting on the As in Mandalay, it’s hot here, sometimes wide Taungthaman Lake is gorgeous too, reaching 40°C (104°F), and April and May and there’s much more to see, though most bake. Dust cakes the trees (and the back of sites are scattered (and sometimes not easy to your throat) any time it’s not raining. find). Allow time and energy for walking if LOCAL FESTIVAL LOWDOWN Mingun Nat Festival Mingun, p285 Inwa Nat Pwe Inwa, p281 Paleik Festival Paleik, p282 Waso Festival Kaunghmudaw Paya, near Sagaing, p283 Irinaku Festival (Yadanagu) South of Amarapura, p280 Festival of Lights Amarapura’s Kyauktawgyi Paya hosts this paya pwe (pagoda festival), p279 Hpo Win Daung Festival West of Monywa, p289 .