lonely-planet-myanmar-burma-11-edition

every now and again a truly monstrous onesticks its head out of the water.A short walk from Botataung Paya atBotataung jetty, you can watch ferries andoared water taxis cross the Yangon River.Sule PayaBUDDHIST STUPAzU"el.urC"(Map p 46 ; cnr Sule Paya & Mahabandoola Rds; admission$2) It’s not every city whose primarytraffic circle is occupied by a 2000-year-oldgolden temple. Surrounded by governmentbuildings and commercial shops, the tall zediat Sule Paya is another example of the strangeincongruity of the Yangon cityscape. Yet, it’sthis mix of modern Asian business life meldingwith ancient Burmese tradition that isthe highlight of the Sule Paya. Early evening,just after the sun has gone down and workershave rushed home for the night, is the mostatmospheric time to both visit the templeand make a turn of the streets surroundingit. Many take the time to pause by the SulePaya to pray and meditate on the day’s events.The central stupa’s name, Kyaik Athok,translates in the Mon language as ‘the stupawhere a Sacred Hair Relic is enshrined’. Aswith many other ancient Myanmar shrines,it has been rebuilt and repaired many timesover the centuries, so no one really knowsexactly when it was built.The golden zedi is unusual in that its octagonalshape continues right up to the belland inverted bowl. It stands 151ft high andis surrounded by small shops (including aninternet café and a guitar shop) and all thefamiliar nonreligious activities that seem tobe a part of every zedi in Myanmar. Besidesits significance as a landmark and meetingplace, maybe its most mundane function isas a milestone from which all addresses tothe north are measured.National MuseumMUSEUMamYŸi"sC"¨ptiuk'(Map p 46 ; %371 540; Pyay Rd; admission $5;h10am-4pm) Try to ignore the fact that thepriceless collection at the National Museumis appallingly labelled and lit, and just focuson the treasures that lie within this cavernousbuilding.Highlights of the collection include the26ft-high Sihasana (Lion Throne), which belongedto King Thibaw Min, the last king ofMyanmar. It’s actually more of an entrancedoorway than a throne but let’s not quibble,because it’s a damn sight more impressivethan your front door! Further signs that thekings of old didn’t understand the meaningof the word ‘subtlety’ are the jewel-encrustedbeds, silver and gold rugs, flashy palanquins(one of which is palatial in its size andsplendour), kitchen chairs made of ivory,some breathtaking ceremonial dresses anda large collection of betel-nut holders andspittoons, which alone could make the BritishCrown Jewels look like cheap tack pickedup at an ‘everything for a dollar’ shop.The upper floors are less impressive andtake you on an amble through natural history,prehistory and a very poorly lit art gallery.Mahabandoola GardenPARKmhCbNÖŸlpn'"¨x®(Map p 42 ; admission K500) Just southeast of theSule Paya, this square urban park offers pleasantstrolling in the city centre’s heart, especiallyin the early morning when the air hasn’tyet filled with traffic fumes. Occupying thecentre of the northern half of the park is the41YANGON SIGHTS SIGHTSTHE GRAVE OF THE LAST MUGHALIn 1858, 27 years before they banished Burma’s last king Thibaw to Ratnagiri, India, theBritish executed a similar regime change in Delhi. Following the failed Sepoy Mutiny,Bahadur Shah Zafar II, India’s last Mughal emperor, was exiled to Rangoon with his wifeZeenat Mahal and remaining members of his family. The ex-emperor, who had a reputationas a talented Urdu poet, died four years later in November 1862.William Dalrymple, who chronicles Bahadur Shah Zafar’s life in The Last Mughal,writes of how his shrouded corpse was hastily buried in an anonymous grave in his prisonenclosure, so that, as the British Commissioner in charge insisted, ‘No vestige shouldremain to distinguish where the last of the Great Mughals rests.’A mausoleum – the Dargah of Bahadur Shah Zafar (Map p 46 ; Ziwaca St; admissionfree) – was later built on the location of the prison, but the grave itself remained a mysteryuntil 1991 when workmen discovered it 3½ feet underground during excavations for a newstructure at the site. Covered in silks and strewn with sweet-smelling petals, it is now aplace of pilgrimage for Indians, Muslims and others interested in the history of the Raj.