lonely-planet-myanmar-burma-11-edition

Technically, U Bein’s Bridge is part ofMandalay’s $10 combo ticket (see p 208 ). Inreality nobody checks.Around the BridgeNear either end of the bridge there’s a selectionof viewpoints, plus food stalls whereyou can buy noodles, tea and roasted crab.Kyauktawgyi PayaBUDDHIST TEMPLEekY;k'et;'äkI".ur;"Around 200yd beyond the eastern end ofside of U Bein’s Bridge, this 1847 pagoda,built by Pagan Min, was supposedly modelledon the larger Ananda Pahto at Bagan(p 156 ), but its five-tiered roof makes it lookmore like a Tibetan/Nepali temple. Whilethe paya doesn’t have the perfectly vaultedroofs or the finer decorations of the original,it does have a serene seated Buddha imageand some well-preserved frescoes in the fourapproaches. The southern entry ceiling depictssome bossy, English-looking figures inbamboo hats.Maha Ganayon Kyaung BUDDHIST MONASTERYJust west of the bridge, this sprawling monasteryis home to several thousand youngmonks. Founded around 1914, it’s renownedas a centre for monastic study and strict religiousdiscipline, and for most of the day it’sa pleasantly meditative place. But at about11am, busloads of tourists arrive to gawpwhile the whole monastery sits down to eat,their silence pierced by the endless rattle ofcamera shutters. Worth avoiding.Other SightsPahtodawgyiBUDDHIST STUPApuqiu"et;'äkI"This vast bell-shaped pagoda was erected byKing Bagyidaw in 1820. It’s the tallest structurefor miles around (185ft), a mesmerisingwhite apparition that seems to float abovethe water when viewed from across the lake.Climbing half-way to the upper terrace affordsgreat views, showing the plethora ofhti (stupa pinnacles) glittering through theAmarapura tree-scape. However, womenaren’t allowed up.Bagaya KyaungBUDDHA MUSEUMb;"kr;ekY;='"(admission $10 combo ticket) This 1996 reconstructionof an early-19th-century monasteryhas plenty of flying wooden filigreeroofwork, which looks exciting from afar.However, on closer inspection the worklooks ham-fisted and the collection of 19thcenturyBuddha images will appeal only tospecialists. In the area around here you’llfind a foundry where giant woks are hammeredinto shape, there are several distinctivetobacco drying barns and, hiddenaway at the edge of a military encampment,it’s possible to glimpse the sorry ruins ofsome former palace buildings.Ayeyarwady BridgesLinking Sagaing and Amarapura are twoparallel bridges, each with multiple metalframedspans. The newer three-span, fourlanehighway bridge was completed in 2005.The 1934 British-engineered, 16-span AvaBridge carries the railway and a narrowerroad. In 1942 the British demolished twospans of this bridge to deny passage to theadvancing Japanese. It wasn’t repaired until1954.If you cross the Ava Bridge, you’ll probablybe charged the Mingun–Sagaing $3 fee.However, if approaching from the easternside, you can stop before the checkpoint andlook down to glimpse Thabyedan Fort, oneof three chunky if far-from-dramatic fortsbuilt as a last ditch defence against the Britishadvance in 1885.Shwe-kyet-kaySTUPAS, VIEWPOINTer¯äkk'kY(Map p 228 ) One of the best places from whichto appreciate Sagaing is from across the riverat this little bluff with a cascade of small stupas.It’s part of a pair with the bigger Shwekyet-yeton a gentle rise across the road. Thename, meaning Golden Fowl’s Run, relates toa legend that in a previous life the Buddha-tobehad lived here as a golden chicken and hadfluttered up the hillock to evade royal trappers.The Buddha-bird’s younger brother hadchosen the riverside bluff.Inwa (Ava)a='"vFor over half of the past 650 years, Burma’sroyal capital was Inwa (Mandalay $10 comboticket required). Yet nowadays the siteis a remarkably rural backwater of emptyfields sparsely dotted with widely spacedruins, monastic buildings and stupas. It’sa world away from the city bustle of Mandalay,and for many, exploring by ploddingold horse cart is all part of its charm. Atthe time of research, the $10 combo ticket225MANDALAY AROUND MANDALAY & AROUND AYEYARWADY SIGHTS BRIDGES