lonely-planet-myanmar-burma-11-edition

‚Shwe Daza Paya StMoat248NORTHERN MYANMAR MYITKYINA & THE UPPER AYEYARWADYShwebo1MahalpandulaRd ú#8Yan Gyi Aung StLetwei Thondara StAlaung Paya St66# ÿ23A#›110 200 m#e 0 0.1 milesB# ÿ6Schwebo TaungCanal6#ÿ4Mayawady StBen ShweThiStAung Zeya StDhamma ThukaStû#9To KyaukmyaungÜ## Ú ShwekyettoPaya # ñ(18mi)Naungdawgyi Rdú#710#›TicketOffice # #æ 1Zeigyo2 # Ú(CentralPalaceMarket)Myo# îGroundsHosptialMa# ð # ÿShwe5Kyet # ÚÜ#Taung ChanthayaPayaPaya# Ú# Ú3‚To Monywa(64mi)Mandalay(71mi)A‚‚‚‚To Hanlin(12mi)Bhas an abandoned wooden monastery dormitorythat’s precariously close to collapse.Shwebon YadanaPALACE(admission incl Hanlin $5; h7.30am-5.30pm) Thecity’s most striking buildings are a pairof towering gold-painted wooden thronerooms, nine-tiers high. These would havebeen the centrepiece of the King Alaungpaya’s1753 palace complex. However, inthe British era, the originals were replacedby a jail. What you see today are recentlyreconstructed structures. They are undoubtedlyphotogenic but have no furnishingsand if you’re not planning on visiting Hanlin(p 249 ), the entry fee seems farcically high –try peeping over the wall from the west toget an idea for free. If you do pay up, theticket also includes entry to a two-roommuseum displaying assorted archaeologicalfinds, manuscript chests and Alaungpaya’sroyal palanquin.Old City MoatNEIGHBOURHOODIn its 18th-century heyday, the palace wasat the heart of an enormous walled city. Thewall is now almost entirely invisible butsome sections of the wide moat are well preserved.The road to Kyaukmyaung crossesone section beside Yan Gyi Aung Park butmore attractive is the area around 2 miles‚123Shweboæ Sights1 Palace Museum ................................... A12 Schwebon Yadana...............................A23 Shwe Daza Paya ..................................A2ÿ Sleeping4 Shwe Phyu Guest House..................... B15 Win Guest House .................................A26 Zinwailar Guesthouse ......................... B1ú Eating7 Eden Culinary Garden ......................... B18 SSD Garden Restaurant...................... A1û Drinking9 Melody Music Garden ......................... B1ï Transport10 Buses to Kyaukmyaung ...................... A111 Main Bus Station .................................A3north of town where the moat is crossed bya road causeway near Maw Daw Myin ThaPaya, a pagoda built by Alaungpaya andguarded by giant chinthe.4SleepingWin Guest House HOTEL $$(%22049; Aung Zeya St; s/d $20/30, with sharedbathroom $10/20) Fresh, clean and unusuallyairy, the standard rooms are boxy but brightand share communal showers that are spotlessand spacious. A handful of top-floorrooms have private bathroom, air-conditioningand satellite TV (but no hot water). SomeEnglish is spoken and the staff is reasonablyaccustomed to dealing with foreigners. Thenobby-looking 2007 building is handily closeto the market area.Shwe Phyu Guest House HOTEL $(%22264; Yan Gyi Aung St; s/d K12,000/20,000,with shared bathroom K7000/14,000) Betterrooms have an en-suite squat, cold shower,cobwebs and geckos. Floors are neatly tiledand the manager speaks English but theroad outside is as noisy as the beer stationopposite. The similar Zinwailar Guesthouse,nearby, has a couple of rooms with air conditioning.5Eating & DrinkingOpen-air food stands set up shop aroundthe market, especially after dusk. There’s asprinkling of restaurants along Aung Zeya