Oh, Jules, I'm so glad you loved Burma! And I'm delighted you had a good time with Min Thu. I'll look forward to your report.

You went to some places that are on our list for next trip, Mrauk U, in particular. I can't wait to hear all about it!

Waiting with great anticipation!!!

So glad you had a good time - looking forward to all the details.

Me, too!!

We really loved it too. Am looking forward to hearing more about your trip - it sounds amazing!

Patty don't you go soon? I am afraid I won't get much written before you go so if you have any questions fire away. We are going to be out of town & out of internet for a few days later this week. I think you are interested in photography which we are too. Won't tell you how may photos we took!!!

Yes, Jules, we leave Jan. 24th! Since you're interested in photography, I do have a couple of questions. Did you take a tripod? Monopod? If you did, any problems taking it aboard planes? Any not-to-miss places for us? Any problems recharging your camera batteries? Thanks.

Patty we took a monopod. No probs with it except we did not use it except maybe onece! We had no probs recharging batteries but we do have spares & we charged when we had the chance. As for not to miss places...I am not sure of your itin but just take it all in especially the little things. Got to go to work now!

Thanks, Jules. The tripod/monopod question is a big one for me.

Arrangements: As mentioned previously we used Santa Maria in Yangon to arrange some things for us. In the end We had them book all our hotels as they were getting better rates than I was & I was having trouble communicating with some of the hotels.

They booked our internal flights & our Ballons over Bagan tickets. They also arranged cars for us as we drove between some stops rather than fly just because we wanted the oportunity to see a bit more of the countryside as we traveled.

Santa Maria did a great job & would not hesitate to use them again. They shone when Yangon Airways stopped flying with very little notice & they were working on new flights for us before we had ever had a chance to talk to them about it. (Apparently travel agencies all over Burma were in a big tiz trying to sort things out when that Y angon Airways news came out as you can well imagine!!)

Money: You need to take US$ cash & the notes need to be in pristine condition. Take a bit more money than you anticipate needing. Never assume you will be able to use a credit card.

Jules, I am awaiting your trip report. I really want to hear about Mrauk U. How does it compare with Bagan?

Kathie I promise I will get there!!!

YANGON November 21st 2010 We arrived in Yangon from Singapore at about 920am so we had most of the day left ahead of us. Arrival formalities were very easy. Had arranged for Santa Maria to send a car to pick us up which was waiting for us. We have decided we like to have someone waiting for us when we arrive somewhere after a long flight it is so smooth!

The driver took us to our hotel The Park Royal. Which was good. Worked well for us. The driver than took us to a place to change money. Scotts market was closed so he took us to a store in another hotels shopping archade. Got a rate of 860 which was what we were expecting.

Headed out to see some sites. Reclining Buddah, Pagoda with Buddah relics. Also just took in the feel of Yangon the old colonial areas & then the areas that are reminisent of some Indian cities with dozens of stores/schools offering computer classes etc. Then there are brand new sparkleing department stores! The city has an air of crumbling colonialism & you cannot but know you are in a very Buddist country with temples/pagodas/monks everywhere you look.

Had lunch at a place called “Feel Myanmar” A noisy bustling place filled with about a dozen tourists & all the rest locals. The food was good a tasty Chicken curry, rice, soup & they give you a kind of coconut soup for dessert. All for 3000K for 2 of us.

That evening we were in for a real treat. Headed to Shwedagon Paya about 4pm. This day was one of the full moon festival days. The place was crowded with locals. At sunset they started lighting litterally thousands of candles around the base of the golden dome. It was absoultely stunning & created an incredible atmosphere as the whole place glowed in candle light. I confess to not ever realising this was happening on the day we would arrive. The only light the candles for this full moon so only once a year. We felt so incredibly lucky to have timed this so well without even trying! We spent a few hours there walking around the dome & just taking in the glow of it all. Very peaceful despite being so busy which sounds strange but that is how it felt. I would encourage anyone who is going to be in Yangon around this time to find out when the candles are going to be lit.

The next morning we flew to Mandalay. An early flight so we left the hotel by 5am. On the drive to the airport we saw lots of locals out exersicing in the pre dawn cool. The flight actually left 30minutes early. I guess everyone was checked in so off we went! We landed in Mandalay at about 720am.

MANDALAY: Mandalay airport is a good solid hours drive from the city. I had heard that it could be difficult to find a taxi so arranged a driver to pick us up. The airport is quiet & we could not find our driver. My hubby went to look around while I stood in the arrivals area. Within seconds a tour guide came up to me & asked who was meant to meeting us. She then pulls out her phone & makes a call & finds our diver who comes running into the terminal so sorry to have not been there. This tour guides help is just a small example of how any of them would be willing to just step in help you even though you are not their client & had not actually asked them for any help.

Checked into our hotel Mandalay City Hotel which is right in the middle of the city. Then went our walking. It was hot! Mandaly is a sprawling city & the traffic feels a lot more “crazy” than in Yangon. There are thousands of motor scooters buzzing around. The driver from the airport told us traffic gets worse every year as now there are cheap Chinese motor scooters available so more people can afford them. I rememner driving past 2 girls on a scooter as the friend on the back chatted her friend driving had this look of total happiness on her face. Her eyes were smiling so brightly.

We walked around the city side streets just taking in the life in the tea houses which are always a hive of activity. Walked around the edge of the palace & stopped for lunch at Koh’s Kitchen a Thai place. Yummie food & lovely air con!! At this point we felt we were flagging still suffering from the international flights. Decided to go back for a rest but also decided to find a car & driver to take us out that afternoon as we feared we would sleep the rest of the day away!

Headed out about 230 to U-bien bridge. This turned out to be one of our favorite locations in Mandalay. It is a lovely peaceful spot despite there being quite a few people around. In late afternoon the bridge is the route taken by locals back to their homes so you really can just find a quiet spot & watch life go by. School children on bikes on the way home, monks, fishermen….The light on the bridge in late afternoon is stunning. The teak poles glow orange. This visit we chose to just wander across the bridge to the village on the other side & then walk up through the village.

There are lots of fishermen in the lake submerged so that all that is above the water is from their noses up. The are perfectly still & then whoop they pull out a fish! There are also lots of duck hearders which are a treat to watch. Hearding ducks is definitely an art! Water buffallo were also being hearded back to their homes as evening fell.

This was the first of 4 visits we would end up making to the bridge over the next few days! An early morning vistit had the lake shrouded in mist & gave it a very magical air. We took a boat ride out on the lake at sunset the following 2 nights. As I said the light is just spectacular at this time.

Ah! Loving your report!

Wonderful! Looking forward to more. Thanks so much for your report.

Thank you so much for the encouragement.

Other things we did in Mandalay. Visited the 3 ancient capitals of Amarapura, Ava & Sangaing.

Amarapura is where U Bein bridge is. There is also a large monastery here that at 1100 each morning the monks file out to eat their main meal & the tourists gather. It is a little weird to me as there are lots of tourists. The meal is usually donated by a group of some sort. On the day we went it was a Thai group that was on a religoius trip to Burma. The monks file out of their buildings & gather on the main lane & with alm bowls in had walk slowly to the dining area. One thing I noticed was that prior to the monks coming out the tourists were standing around chatting & laughing etc & as the monks started their walk the place fell silent. You could almost hear the bere feet of the monks hitting the ground as they walked. I obviously have no idea if this happens every day but it was very interesting. Some tourists headed straight to the dining room to take photos of the monks eating. We felt weird doing that so just wandered around to a quiet courtyard area & watched as the monks finished up & went back to the rest of their daily tasks.

Ava. You get a small boat across the river & then get a horse cart to get around the area. This horse cart was not very comfortable as you sat on wooden benches as you bounced along! Went out to an old teak monastery which was lovely. The smell of the oiled wood in the heat is intoxicating. There was no one else here except a few monks so we enjoyed just wandering around. There were very few tourists at Ava when we were there . We past a couple of horse carts going in the opposite direction or we arrived at a site as others left. It felt very remote. There are some temple ruins that have a definate feel of Cambodian ruins.

Sagaing is on the opposite side of the river (Ayeyarwady) to Ava. It is set on a hill & has hundreds of stupas & monasteries & nunneries. It is forested & feels cool & yet tropical. The people walking the roads seem to be all monks or nuns in their pink robes. The view from the top of the hill gives you a good perspective on the number of supas around & is also great for getting your bearings on the relationship between Sagaing, Ava the river & Mandalay itself.

Mingun is about a one hour boat trip up the Ayeyarwady from Mandalay. We had a small “private” boat to take us up there. You get to see some good river life as you go. I have read reports of people not liking Mingun because it is a tourist trap & you get hammered by touts as soon as you get off the boat. The was fortunatley not our experience. When we arrived we headed in a slightly different direction to most people & we ended up having a peaceful visit with no hassels. The huge base of the unfinished pagoda with the impressive cracks left after an earthquake is quite simply huge! You can only imagine how big this would have been had it actually been finished. The Mingun bell is a 90 tonne bell that is apparently the largest uncracked bell in the world. There was a child there who was quite physically & mentally disabled. It seemed his job was to use a piece of wood to ring the bell for visitors. As we walked up he was sitting to one side. Saw us & jumped up with his wood. He then donged the bell & then just laughed hard as the sound rang out. The child was probably about 14-16yrs old & this really seemed to be his job. He was well fed & did not appear to live on the streets. I thought that in so many poor countries you would see this child in a bad way begging on the streets.

Hsinbyume Paya is a pagoda that is starkly white washed. Its whitness is accentuated in the bright sunlight. Surrounding the base of the pagoda are 7 levels of terraces that are shaped like hundreds of humps of the loch ness monster. It makes the whole thing look like an elaborate cake! The whitness of course relfects the sun & it is hot climbing the steps & looking around. I found myself taking refuge in spots of shade to take it all in.

One day in Mandaly we had a driver take us somewhere for lunch. Have no idea of the name of the place or anything but it was good! It was an open fronted store & busy. We were the only foriegners in there & the locals were more business people at lunch & some families. Ordered fish curry & it came with about 5 different plates of sides. Have no idea what most of them were but there was bamboo, lentils & others. It was very good food & tasty.

Oh my gosh my spelling is awful & I have somehow lost spellcheck on my computer! Sorry!

Don't worry about the spelling ! I just want to hear more!

BAGAN: We opted to drive from Mandalay to Bagan to be able to take in a bit of the countryside. Santa Maria had arranged a car & driver for us. We left Mandalay at 7am & arrived at Bagan at 130pm.

Along the way the landscape was often very desertish. For those of you who have travelled through Rajasthan, India some of the landscape had a very similar feel. We stopped a couple of times to take photos & also just to walk for a while. He driver would let us wander off down the road & then drive closer & park again until we were ready to get back in the car. On one of our little walks we stopped because there were some lovely red brick pagodas set amongst some green fields & palm trees. We took some photos & wandered along. There were some school kids coming down the road & 3 girls timidly came over to us. They stopped & we said hello etc. They wanted to look at the photos on our camera of the pagodas. We showed them & then they were keen to have their own photos taken. Amid giggles we took some photos which they loved looking at. There was a lady walking along the road also & she was having a good laugh at the girls. It was fun.

In Bagan stayed at Tharabar Gate Hotel. We had a standard room which was US$85. They are very nice rooms. A good size & a nice little patio area with lounge chairs out the “back door”. The hotel staff were all lovely. We only ate a couple of lunches at the hotel which were OK.

I had been in touch with the famous horse cart driver Min Thu prior to arriving & about 1/2hour after checking in there was a call from reception that he was waiting to meet us. All reports that rave about Min Thu are spot on. He is a lovely person. Quiet. Excellent English & excellent temple knowledge. We don’t usually like to have guides as we feel cramped by them at times but we felt he was a perfect balance. He quickly understood that photography is big for us & we would rather not be where everyone else is. He did an excellent job at keeping us away from the crowds. We decided to just let him call the shots that first afternoon & then we would see how we felt & let him know if we wanted to do different things. Well it turned out that we let him call the shots for just about everything! We would chat about our options for the day he would give us some suggestions & then we would pick. We went from sunrise (left the hotel @515am) to sunset everyday so the cost was about US$20. We did have the needed break from the heat in the middle of the day, usually stopping about 1 & heading out again at 3 getting back after sunset. Luckily the horse carts in Bagan are a lot more comfortable than the one we travelled in in Ava. Min Thu has great cusions to relax on. My hubby usually sat up next to Min Thu & I relclined in the back. I was made great fun of for having such a stressful time on vacation! We loved seeing Bagan by horse cart. The relaxing rhythm of clip clopping along amongs all these ancient temples. Somehow in the horse cart you feel like you are more a part of that time gone by. We enjoyed it so much that we actually spent the whole 3 ½ days we had in Bagan touring this way. We were very content!

Thanks for the spelling break Kathie!

Loving your report, Jules! I am especially glad to hear that you can drive between some major stops as you did---since we still are wait-listed on three of our four flight segments! Reading your report is reassuring for ours in two weeks.

Jules..love your descriptions..Could you tell us a little about the facilities at the hotels, particularly bathroom setups.

Just finished Amitav Ghosh's book, "The Glass Palace." Your trip report is right where much of the action was in the book.

enjoying your trip report, jules.

Hi Jules, just giving you a little nudge to write more about your Burma trip.

Kathie I am here & haven ot forgotten! I hate when work gets in the way of life! It has been a bit of a crazy week but I am going to try & write a bit more tonight.

b_b what particular question do you have about the bathroom setups?

Small correction to one item above. We actually got a rate of 890K to the US$ in Yangon

Over the 3 ½ days in Bagan we toured a lot of temples. I do actually have all the names written down but I will only really name a couple here. There are so many temples that I think you can see many different ones & be equally delighted. As I mentioned we travelled by horse cart everywhere & I think this really helped us sink into the ancient atmosphere so easily as you trot down dusty deserted lanes. We were often the only or one of just a couple of tourists at any place at any time so it was usually very peaceful. The exception was sunrise & sunset but even at that we asked Min Thu not to take us to the popular sunrise & sunset spots but less visited places. So even then we were often only with another dozen people spread over a couple of terreces on the temple so you were basically alone in your views. Our sunset spots were May-Bon-Tha temple, Shwe-NanYin-Taw monastery complex, Bu Paya &Ta-Yoake-Daye Temple. All offered stunning sights. The only one that was less than spectacular was Bu Paya on the banks of the Ayeyarwaddy river & that was because of thick clouds.

For sunrise we went to the same place twice as we really liked the view & that was MI-Nyein Gon temple. Sunrise to us was more magical than sunset. We would leave the hotel at 530am in the dark. As we headed off the sound of Su Su clip clopping seemed to echo in the pre dawn light. There seemed that no one else was out just us! As we got to the temple there was not another soul to be seen. As we left our shoes at the door & headed into the pitch dark we could hear the bats high above inside the temple stir & fly. I hoped none would come too close!! As you walk along totally barefoot on the stone floor I remind myself to pick my feet up as I walk & clime the steps because a nasty stubbed bleeding toe would not be a good thing to have. You then find yourself climbing a steep small totally enclosed stairway. As we emerge on the first level you can feel that the first signs of dawn are here. We climbed higher & found ourselves a spot to sit & take it all in. As the dawn arrived you begin to see the smoke from fires in the villages arise as breakfast happens for the villagers. This smoke mingles with the morning mist & both rise just a little. The temples rise above the mist. At first the temples are just black. Then you begin to make out the details of their rooflines etc as the sky gets lighter. As the sun gets higher the temples glow golden orange & the mist adds a totally magical addition to the whole experience. It is truly beautiful. We sat for a while after the true photographic moment had passed & just let the whole thing just soak in.

Jules,

Your report bring back some fond memory of our trip - thanks! Interesting transportation mode but how were the road condition from Mandalay to Bagan?

Hanuman we did not think the road conditions were too bad at all. But do bear in mind that we were happy to drive long distances in India also!

The temples are dark inside. Some have some great natural light shafts that will perfectly light the face or statue of a Buddha in a way so much softer & more beautiful that any artificial light can. Some of the bigger more popular temples do have lights. If you look inside the door of all the little temple you go past you will sometime see Buddha temples just catching some light & “smiling” out as you as you pass by. There are so many temples & so many Buddhas you can never see them all. Pahto-tha-mya temple is one temple I remember that has some lovely mural paintings inside & a statue that was perfectly lit with a shaft of light when we visited in the late afternoon. There was another time when we were in a temple with large Buddha statues but it was not a “popular” temple I guess as we were the only tourists there. There were however a couple of locals. Three of which were young children. They were playing with candles in front of one of the large Buddha’s as their (?) grandmother sat to one side. As they played with the candles this was the only source of light in the area. The children laughed & their faces glowed in the light. The Buddha too seemed to smile & bask in the glow.

Besides temples other things we saw whilst in Bagan included a teak wood monastery with lovely carvings. A 17th century brick monastery. We spent an afternoon wandering in a village taking in village life, collecting water etc etc. Great to be able to see. Spent a morning at Nyaung Oo Market. This was a great bustling market where no one really gave us a second glance. We seemed to arrive as a few groups of tourists left & then only saw one or tow after that. We wandered the whole market & then had to do it all over again because we really didn’t want to leave! As we sat at the corner of the tea house in the market watching life happen I became aware of the song playing in the tea shop. It took me a second to convert the music & lyrics in my head from Burmese to the English version….”Material Girl” by Madonna. How totally sureal!

From the fruit, veg & fish section of the market we walked through the town to the meat section. As always this can be an education as you watch the bargaining & then the selection process as the customer seems to handle every piece of meat available for sale before actually choosing a piece or two!

Ballons over Bagan. We were lucky enough to take the balloon ride on our first morning in Bagan. The morning was a beautiful one. On that mornign 4 balloons flew. We were in the air for about an hour. It was a great flight. I really liked the perspective you get of the temples. This is the only way you really really get a feel for just how many temples there are & how they are located on the planes. It is a great & very memorable experience. Loved it. When you are low a local will often wave up to you. Our balloon ended up landing in a plowed field as it was the only cleared spot around. The pilot said they have been forced a couple of times to land in an unplowed field & then they will compensate the farmer. After our first touch down it was realised that there was a dry sandy river bed between us & where the pick up vehicles could get to so they put us airborn again just high enough to get over the steep river bank & land on the other side. The champange was waiting. Meanwhile the farmer had appeared & just stood watching us for the whole time. Joined by a couple of young boys. This company is definitely well run & as well as a good group of foreign pilots they have a fantastic group of locals working for them Watching these guys pack up the baloon & get it & basket on the truck was a seamless operation. Definitely recommend it if you have the time & don’t mind the expense. You will get a cheaper rate if you book through an agent.

I think that is a summary of our time in Bagan. We loved it there. 3 1/2 days was not too long at all. So often we felt like we could have pulled out a deck chair on the upper level of a deserted temple & just sat there for hours soaking it all in. Amazing place & atmosphere. Time to move on to our next stop!

Wonderful report! Your description of the dark/light interiors of the temples is just right!

The day we left Bagan was a driving day as we had chosen to drive between Bagan & Inle Lake. This we did not do in one whole day but broke into 2 days spending a night in Kalaw on the way to Inle.

We left Bagan at 700am & arrived in Kalaw at 430pm. A full day for sure. We had Santa Maria arrange a driver for us & he was waiting for us right on time. Interestingly it seemed the further we got from Yangon a little older the vehicles got but we had not problems with them. We were forwarned my Santa Maria that it would be very likely that the air con would not work on any hills so we were not surprised when this was the case!

The drive started off in the dry low area of Bagan & then we started to climb the mountains. The trees became much more dense & you could imagine that in the rainy season it would be very tropical. The roads were in pretty good condition & there were areas where there was active road work happening. At one point my hubby asked if we could stop & take a photo in the road work area & our driver said no. A couple of minutes later he explained that it was not allowed to take photos of the road works. He seemed a little embarrassed so we just brushed the whole thing off.


Kalaw is a former hill station where the British would go to cool off. It appears set along a mountain ridge & almost has a feeling like you are in the foothills of the himalaya even though you are very far from there!! It was definitely cool in the evening & I felt cold at night walking back from dinner. Arriving at 430pm we did not have any time to explore & we knew that would be the case. We stayed at Hill Top Villas. These are a way out from the centre of the town but have a fantastic view across the town & valley. Each room is an individual cabin which has some feel like you are staying at someones Grandmas house! The rooms are decorated like a guest room in an eldery ladies house but with Shan state crafts etc. They are comfortable & the staff are lovely but the place is not fancy by any stretch if that is what you are looking for. We spent the rest of the afternoon sitting on our porch overlooking the valley as the sun set.

Thank you Kathie

jules39 -

I’m enjoying every line of your report! I was in Burma in October and had the pleasure of one day with Prof. Min Thu - but 4 nights in Bagan would be perfect. Glad you mention the fascinating temple lighting systems.

You have a wonderful itinerary & I’m looking forward to the rest of your report. Thanks for posting & hope you’ll share your photos, too!

In retrospect, would you recommend driving from Bagan to Inle
Lake? Did you see enough pretty/interesting scenery on the way to make the drive worthwhile? I usually prefer driving to flying if there is good scenery along the way. But 2 days in the car is a long time. I am enjouing your report and will be referring to it as I plan our trip to Burma, either next Jan. or the following Jan.

Thanks m-bran.

Shelly it would really depend on how much time I had available. We had a good amount of time. But if the drive meant we would have only had 2 days in Bagan then perhaps we we would not have done that. The scenery was pretty & we just enjoy being able to see some life going on as we drive along. Stopped at a nice breezy restaurant for lunch along the way.

Kalaw to Inle via Kakku. The driver was wating for us at 7am to leave Kalaw. The drive down to where you would turn off for Inle lake probably took only about 1 hour. Most of the drive was in fog so we were not able to see the view of the lake as we came down off the mountain. We continued past the turn off to Inle on to Taunggyi where we had to stop to pick our permit & compulsary Pa-Ou guide for Kakku. We then drove though Pa Ou villages to get to Kakku. All up the drive from Kalaw to Kakku took about 3 hours.

Our Pa-Ou guide was great. Very informative but not overbearing. When we first got to Kakku he spent a period of time giving us the information & then left us to wander alone for the rest of the time. During conversation with him over the day was when I became confused yet again as to whether it is Myanmar or Burma? His conversation with us sort of lead you to believe that if you refer to the country as Burma then you are igonoring the minority non- Burmese. I did not like to lead any political conversation but other comments he made certainly lead to the belief that he was not in favor of the current govt so that would not be his motivation for the Burma comment. Just a comment I thought I would pass on.

Kakku is pretty amazing. I didn’t even see it coming up! Looking out the other side of the car I guess & as we slowed down & turned & there is was. About 2400 stuppas grouped very closely together on a small hill. There was nobody there. The site only sees about 300 tourists a year.

As we walked up through the center of the stuppas a breeze blew & the bells on the stuppa umbrellas rang softly. It was magnificent. I sat at the base of one of the stuppas off to one side and just listened. I had “lost” my hubby for a while & when we found each other his first comment was “did you hear the bells!” Some of the stuppas have been renovated & some in my opinion not very well they look way too new. But that is just my opinion. There are plenty that still look more original. We spent nearly 3 hours & could have easily sat in a shady area for longer just listening to the breeeze & the bells.

Had lunch at the only retaurant in the area that is right across from the complex.

On the drive back to Tauggyi we stopped & walked through a Pa Ou village. It was lovely & very neatly laid out. It also seemed incredibly quiet. One reason was that a lot of people were off working in the fields but the other reason our guide told us about was that there are no animals living in the village so you don’t have all the animal noises.

We dropped our guide off in Tauggyi & then went on to Inle Lake.

Yes, the bells at Kakku were magical!

The comment you got on Burma vs. Myanmar is interesting. It's clear that there is disagreement among those who live there that are not based on political leanings.

Yes Kathie the comment has made me think a little.

Oh those bells!! Have to admit that the only thing I really wanted to buy after this was a bell & some wind chimes that have that sound. Looking forward to summer and hearing them chime as we sit outside bringing back great, relaxing memories!

We stayed at Inle Lake for 5 nights at the Inle Lake View Resort. Thank you Kathie for your report as that is why we chose this place. We really liked the resort. Great location set back a little from the lake so it is quiet & if you have time you can stretch your legs by walking in the town just outside. Our room was a junior suite & just lovely. The staff at the hotel were fantastic. The front desk manager helped us arrange our boats each day & the restaurant staff were just lovely.

Each day we tried a different restaurant for lunch. The food was OK in each but it was probably the locations that were the highlight. On the different areas of the lake overlooking lots of different activities. At night we ate at the hotel. Again the food was OK although on our second last night we took the suggestion of the waiter who said if we like spicy food we should try the Prawn Sambal This was the tastiest dish we had there & ended up having it again the next night! Also discovered the chocolate mouse on the second last night which was yummie enough to have again the last night.

Five nights is definitely not a “normal” stay at Inle. Most people stay 3 or less. We met several people who were only their one night. Personally I think 1 night is nowhere near enough. Those folks seemed to be madly rushing to see as much as possible & I feel you could not enjoy the beauty of the lake. But….if that is all you have & you really want to go.

So what did we get up to on those 5 days? We spent a lot of time in boats & at markets. It was foggy every morning we were there so we did not head out until 8am The first morning we were a little worried about this “late” start that we would get out there & be in the middle of hoards of visitors but it turned out that everyone went out later because of the fog & those who would usually head out very early were the 8am starters & the others were later. So we did in fact get to markets etc a little ahead of others. A note here. Our boatman spoke very little English so we talked with the front desk man at the hotel & explained to him what we wanted to do & what we would like to see. He would talk to the boatman each morning & give him an itinerary & also let him know what things we like. For example to go slowly through villages whenever possible. When we were going to dinner each night he would chat with us find out what we enjoyed most that day & what we wanted to see more of. This worked out very well.

The first morning we went ot Inthein. It was market day so it was busy. We spent a couple of hours in the market. Came across the obviously not allowed gambling area where a very polite man came up to us & asked us to feel free to watch but to please take no photos. Had a laugh at the dogs helping themselves to snacks of dried fish from the stalls on the ground. After the market we headed for the pagodas. First of all crossed over the bridge & saw the hive of activity in the river. Turns out market day is also a great day for dozens of people to drive their motorcyles into the river & wash them While you are at it strip the clothes off the kids so they can bathe as well. Oh & if you like bring some laundry down as well to do on the river bank. And don’t forget the water buffallo this is when they like to have the dust washed off them too!!! It was almost like one of those “Where’s Willy” posters were there are so many different activities going on that it takes you a while to register it all!

Across the bridge & up a dirt lane there is a cluster of totally unrestored & crumbling pagodas. They are mostly red brick as any stucco that was on them has come off. They look great encompassed by thick trees. One of the pagodas has its roof fallen in & when you get closer you can see thought he main doorway the fallen head of Buddha lit by the sun coming through where the roof should have been.

From there we decided not to go inside the main pagoda back by the bridge & walk up the hill under the covered walkway but rather to take the dirt road that goes up the hill a little to the left of the walkway. We did this beacause there were no people there & it just looked inviting! The road goes through a lovely bamboo forest to Shwelnn Thein Paya. Once there you can walk thorough the grounds where there are something like 1050 stuppas. Some are still beautifully original. We spent ages wandering among them. You only have to wander off the main trail to have no-one else around. We spent long enough there that by the time we decided to walk down the covered walkway there was only one other family dong the same thing. Everyone else had gone. We did go back to Inthein on another morning when there was no market. It was totally deserted then. We spent more time in the pagodas & stuppas & also hiked further up the hill along what turned out to be one of the hiking trails to Kalaw & also a well used trail for locals heading to market. Some were totally facinated to see us just wandering along obviously not on a hike but just wandering.

The other morning market we visited was Nant Pan Market. When we first arrived there the front stalls were tourist stalls & thought we wold not be there very long but we only had to walk a few isles in & there was all the stuff the locals came for & we only saw 2 other tourists back in this area. Spent 2 hours in there. Totally facinating. You see so many different ethnic groups out doing their shopping. It is so culturally rich. In the fresh meat/fish section we spent time watching as dogs tried their best to get tid bits from the lady chopping up her fish for sale. Every now and again she would toss them a treat to scatter them but they would be back! When they annoyed her too much she had a long boat paddle by her side which she would pick up & threaten to wack them with!

Went throught the floating garden area of the lake several times on our way to or from places. Here the plants are bobbing up & down & the farmers are harvesting from their boats. Had our boatman take us through villages whenever he could rather than just go straight from point A to point B. This way we had plenty of oportunity to see village life on the lake. Take in the house styles etc. If you happen to be going through before school starts watch out for the school “busses”! Longboats packed with kids usually just with a bigger kid driving heading to school. They will smile & wave at you like crazy! The people are just so friendly with beautiful smiles.


Went to the jumping cat monastery & confess to being facinated at the novice monk gently coaxed the cats to jump through the hoop. The cats loved him because he was obviously gentle & gave them lovely treats!

One day we took a whole day trip down to Sankar. You go all the way to the southern end of the lake & then through a long narrow canal to a second lake. This day trip is well worth doing if you have the time. The views change as the valley narrows as you go further south so that you are closer to the mountains & you really do feel like you are infact in a valley. The landscape just becomes more intimate. To visit this area you have to pay an entrance fee & have a compulsary Pa Ou guide. So our first stop of the morning was to pick up our guide. This guide was a very nice young man. He was a pleasure to spend the day with. About an hour into the trip there was a small market happening so we stopped for an hour to look around. It took about 3 hours to get to Sankar. Most of the trip was through the narrow canal area.

As you pull into Sankar village there are ruined pagodas right on the edge of the lake. I have seen photos of these surrounded by water but the water level was low enough that we were able to walk amongst them. As with every walk we took in fields or rural Burma our guide warned us continually about snakes. We got this warning a lot all over the country & the locals were really skittish & looking around. Understandable when I read that it has one of the highest rates of death from snake bite than any other country.

From the stuppas we walked through the village. School was just letting out for lunch so all of a sudden we were surrounded by kids & the total focus of their interest as they headed home. The monastery is the only place in town with a power generator so this is were the locals gather in the evening to watch TV! Particularly soccer a national passion.

Stopped to see the activities on the rice wine making “hut” They make 60% alcohol rice wine during the day & in the evening the “hut” is a karaoke bar! Had lunch at the only restaurant in Sankar. Perched on stilts over the lake. Noodles again!!!

We headed slowly back north. Dropped our guide off & got back to the hotel about 445pm. Great day.

One afternoon we got back from our lake touring about 2pm & the front desk manager asked if we would like to go & take a look at Nyaung Shwe village. This is the village where people would stay if they don’t stay on the lake or at the likes on Inle Lake View resort. It is also where there are budget accomidations available. So we headed there for a few hours. The boatman dropped us off & then we just wandered around for a couple of hours. It was actually good to do a good walk after so much boating! A couple of early evenings we would head out the front gate of the Inle Lake View Resort when we got back from the lake & walk for an hour through the village area. Always interesting things to see when you take a walk.

Well I think that just about sums up Inle Lake. It is a beautiful area & it is surprising relaxing going everywhere on a motor boat. The noise of the motor did not bother us at all. It is cool in the mornings. I had a fleece jacket & a light weight raincoat/windbreaker which were enough to keep me comfortable. We took a small extra bag into the boat & as we warmed up we just put these extra layers into the bag & left them in the boat for the day. Do not forget sunscreen! Reapply it at regular intervals during the day. We saw a few people with some sunburn that was going to hurt! The boat has a few golf sized umbrellas which make good sunshades. Bring a sun hat though.

At night it was cool but we were warm enough in the room & actually left windows open all night but we do like cool weather to sleep.

Through the hotel a whole day boat trip was US$35 & the Sankar trip US&$75. At the end of our time they actually gave us some discounts probably because we were there so long!

I wish I had tried the spa at the hotel. It gets good reviews but I didn't have time!!

I'm so glad you liked the Inle Lake View Resort! We felt our time on the lake was magical.

And like you, we felt the trip to Sankar was well worth it.

I feel a bit like I'm re-living our trip to Burma through your report.

From Inle we had to fly back to Yangon & overnight before we could fly to Sittwe. This was the only way that we could make it work. Originally we had an early morning flight out of Heho (The airport near Inle) but a week before this it was announced that Yangon Airways would stop flying on Dec 3rd & our flight was Dec 5th. This was a fact that Min Thu our horse cart driver in Bagan casually mentioned to us one afternoon that he had heard on the news!! So when we got to Inle we handed the front desk manager at the hotel our air tickets & said we were going to ask him to reconfirm them but we heard they are out of business! He confirmed this & said he would call Santa Maria's local agent & find out what they said. The next day he told us they were working on it already & later confirmed they had us confimed seats on an Air Mandalay flight the day we wanted but it was later in the afternoon. This was fine especially since it had taken no time out of our vacation to fix. So on our last day at Inle instead of an early morning flight we did not fly intil about 2pm. As promised by Santa Maria a driver came to take us to the airport with our new airline tickets in hand. The downside was that we did not have the day in Yangon we thought we would have but that was OK we had seen what was important to us in Yangon on our first day in the country.

So we flew from Heho to Yangon. That night really did not do much except have dinner!

The next morning we had a few hours after breakfast before we had to go to the airport. We decided to just spending this time walking around. So we did just that navigating the crazy Yangon sidewalks!

Next Sittwe & Mrauk U…

Kathie I think Inle Lake View Resort was probably our favorite hotel in Burma. I thought a lot about whether to stay right on the lake but I just kept coming back to ILVR. I liked the idea that we could drive there initially & on our last day & that there was the possibilty to just take a walk if we wanted to. So again Thanks! It was just what we wanted!

Oh & Kathie when you say you felt your time on the lake was "magical" I totally agree.In all the days we were there every morning as we headed out into the mist to begin our days exploring it was always such a wow feeling! I would find myself taking a deep breath & just settling in for the day!

I was just informed that an ultra luxury, over the water villa type, resort has open up there. The Auruem Inle is suppose to be open and I was wondering if you saw this property Jules?

Sorry Hanuman we did not see it.

Just finished posting my Burma report. Were we at Tharabar Gate at the same time? Guess not since we used Min Thu for 3 full days too. I' so glad you also had a rich experience in Burma. You were so lucky to be at Shwe Dagon for full moon night. This was our second trip and I can imagine returning, can you?

Jules, your report is exciting,especially since we leave for Myanmar next week. You faced some changes and difficulties and still you title your posts this way (Burma is wonderful.) We still don't have our internal flights confirmed (are wait-listed), but trust a good journey will happen anyway. Thanks for your friendly descriptions!

I think the Lonely Planet describes Sittwe as a “scrappy” town & in fact this is a very good description! It definitely has the feel of a place that once thrived & is now not as prosperous. Arrived mid afternoon & spent the remainder of the day seeing some things. There are several Buddhist museums with eclectic collections & monks who beam when they see a vistor arrive & come over to chat.

There is a view point where locals gather to see the sunset & you will also probably see every tourist that happens to be in town that evening. But since there are not many tourists the place is not crowded at all! You can watch the sun set over the Bay of Bengal enjoying the sea breeze.

Did see a lot UN & Save the Children vehicles & staff in Sittwe.

We stayed at Shwe Thazin Hotel in Sittwe. It was fine but nothing special. I could not find information nor did I see any other hotel that looked better than this so there is definitely not much choice for accomidation. That evening it was interesting to watch the thousands of fruit bats that hang out in the trees take flight. They are big bats. The next morning the woke us as they returned to their trees for the day.

Before heading to Mrauk U we made an early morning stop at the Sittwe fish market. This was one of the most facinating markets we went to. Not just your run of the mill fish here but you had to watch you didn’t step on a griant sting ray. There were sharks, eels, & all sorts of other things. One lady had a bunch of live frogs tied together by their legs for sale! The market was incredibly busy. It is on the water edge & there were lots of boats still off loading there catch or selling straight from the boat.

We had a private little boat for our trip to Mrauk U. It was comfortable enough. Lounge chairs undercover & a bathroom. The trip took 5hours.

When we were leaving from Sittwe one of the crew came & told us we could take photos of anything but to please not take a photo of the Naval boat or base. He then pointed out the Naval boat to us. Had to smile at this. It was something out of Mchale’s navy. Laundry hanging out to dry on the deck!

The ride up to Mrauk U was interesting. The river gets narrower & narrower so you get to see life going on on the shore. Small huts dot the riverside where farmers live. There are always pagodas to be seen in the distance. Initially the riverbank is flat & stretches a long way before you see hills but the closer you get to Mrauk U the closer the hills are to you & the denser the trees. This felt the most jungle like of anywhere we visited.

Arriving in Mrauk U felt a bit like stepping back in time. The place has a very laid back feeling. We were met at the dock by a very tall young man as arranged by Santa Maria. His vehicle was an old (?Willey) jeep. He was very proud of it & especailly proud to tell us it had a new Toyota engine! We drove through town to our hotel which was like Sittwe was called the Shwe Thazin. It is owned by the same family. This place had only been open since April. It is set up like a cluster of huts which was nice. The staff were lovely. It is a nice place but not 4 star if that is what you are looking for.

Oh, I've been waiting for this part of your trip report!

When we had checked in the man who had driven us from the dock said that he would come back at 230pm & drive us around the town if we liked that he was available to us for the rest of the day. Decided to take him up on the offer so we could get our bearings. It was also very hot so it we thought it would be good to be driven from spot to spot. We chose to not go to the temples as that was our plan for the next day. So we headed out to some places on the edge of town to see the old city wall & the palace site & ended up with a hill top temple for sunset. There are some lakes that were created 1000 yrs ago to supply water to the town. The feel of Mrauk U is so different as I said. It is much more treed & tropical than anywhere else we went. The village is laid out so you wander through the lanes with houses local shops etc. As always we found ourselves with troup of kids joining us most places. Mrauk U only gets about 3000 visitors a year so you really feel like you are the only ones there most of the time.

The next day we just wanted to walk & discover some temples. We ended up spending most of our time in the northern group. First thing in the morning we walked to this place from our hotel. Ther is a whole cluster of temples & payas here. They are definitely different to Bagan. You tend not to climb up to see views of temples like you do in Bagan but rather go in & experience the inside of the temples. There are passageways that take you deep into the center of a pyramid style temple. Dark & musty (need a torch/flashlight) there are rows of Buddha’s leading the way. In one you climb up at the center to what is the center of the temple. It is facinating as you really explore the depths of the temples. From the main temple area we took a dirt road & just walked. Came across a small cluster of village homes & then some more temples in total ruin amongst the jungle . Found ourselves at a monastery as we energed into a clearing on one of the dirt trails. Of course there are payas atop every hill. By noon it was getting very hot so we decided to wander back to the hotel to cool down a little. Headed out again about 230pm & ended up going back to the same area we had been in the morning as we still felt we had more to see there. Spent the entire afternoon & hiked up a hill to watch the sun set over the hills & temples.

One day we planned to take a trip upriver to the Chin villages. When we got up that morning we saw something we had not seen on our entire trip in Burma….rain! You have to have a Chin guide to go to the villages. Our guide met us at the hotel along with our jeep & driver who would take us to the river & the boat. This is a different place to where you arrive from Sittwe & is about a 30 minute drive. We commented on the rain & the Chin guide said there was a storm in the Bay of Bengal. We headed off. The jeep had a cover however it was just fabric as it is intended primarily as a sunshade! Within about 5 minutes we were getting pretty wet! We had on our rain jackets & even umbrellas up inside the jeep!! We pushed on but after a little while with the rain getting heavier & heavier we decided we did not want to go to the villages if this was the way the weather was going. Three or four hours in a boat to get there & not being able to see much as we went was not sounding appealing. By then we were only five minutes from the boat so we kept going so we could tell the boat man we would not be going. Have no doubt he was happy about that! So then the drive back to the hotel. The rain by now was a true tropical downpour but with no signs of letting up. As we pulled into the hotel it seemed all of the hotel staff were standing under the front porch area as if waiting for us! We were totally soaked to the skin except for the rain jacket had done its job! We climbed out of the jeep & the staff were all immediately around us with big umbrellas & looking so worried for us! We were fine just wet! They ushered us back to our room where a hot shower & hot tea was very welcome! The rain poured for hours!

At about 2pm it stopped/lightened up enough for us to get back into the rain coats roll our trouser legs up & go for a walk. We walked for a few hours & then found the only restaurant mentioned in Lonely Planet for Mrauk U. Moe Cherry. It is an incredibly crooked two story building where you feel like your table, chair & you are going to slide off the 2nd floor into the street below! Fried noodles were ok. We left there just in time because on the 15 min walk back to the hotel the rain started to really pour again.

It poured as only tropical rain can pour all night long. There was no wind so I told myself it was not a cyclone! The next morning we were due for a 530am start to get the boat back to Sittwe. At 530am it was still raining but not quite as heavy. One of the hotel staff told us that it was going to start to clear by late that day. Our jeep driver arrived but without his jeep. He had a truck. The three of us climbed into the cab & our bags were buried under plastic in the back! We got to the boat dock in the dark & climbed over wet planks to get onto our boat. Once on board we settled into our lounge chairs for the trip back to Sittwe. They were able to position our chairs so we did not get wet on the boat. Luckly as time went on the rain got less & less & within a couple of ours we were drying our raincoats & umbrellas in the sun! The trip back to Sittwe took about 5 hours & by the time we arrived the rain had stopped & it was hot & very steamy. Sittwe was a lot muddier than when we had been there a few days ago!

We had about an our to spare before we needed to be at the airport for our flight back to Yangon but we decided to just go to the airport as there was nothing else we thought we wanted to do. The airport is tiny. Across from the entrance there is a row of outdoor cafes. So we just sat there for a while. This was the only flight we had that was late by an hour or so.

We really enjoyed making this trip to Sittwe & Mrauk U. It felt so different to anywhere else we went. The temples are different to those in Bagan & being in a smaller area felt more accessable. It is a great complement to Bagan to see a different area that was once a great capital. It is a place to go to when you want to get off the beaten trak a little. I would not skip Bagan to go to Mrauk U.

So that is about it. From Sittwe we only had one night in Yangon & then it was our flight home. A fantastic trip without doubt.

Jules, thank you for a wonderful report. We are considering a return trip to Burma for Nov/Dec. If we go, our main destination would be Mrauk U. Of course, we'd spend some time elsewhere as well.

How many days would you suggest allotting to Mrauk U? You know we are templed fanatics!

Kathie I think you would want about 2 full days in Mrauk U & then another day if you want to go up to the Chin villages. You can get away with one full day especially if like us you arrive in Mrauk U before lunch so have the whole remainder of the day. But I don't think you would have too much trouble filling another day.

Thanks!

Jules- I really enjoyed reading your report. All of the little details will be so helpful in planning our trip to Burma. We have not decided when, but it is on our "to do" list. Thanks for taking the time to post.

You are welcome Kathie.

Shelly, Thank you for reading!

Jules, we just got back yesterday afternoon and I just read the last installments of your report. Loved the specifics. Also used some of your tips (thanks!) on our trip. Will post soon with our stories!

Patty glad some info was useful to you. Looking forward to hearing about your trip!

Loved your report Jules. Still on the top of my list. We were in India (Varanasi) the same time as you last year but never met. This year I did Laos instead of Burma as I want my husband to come with me and he couldnt get away this year.

I know it is hard to compare, but would you rate Burma as good or better than your trip to India?
Just curious.
My trip to Laos was great, but if I compared, India was much more memorable for me.

Thanks live42day. Sorry it has taken me so long to get around to answering your question. As you infer it is really really hard to compare India & Burma. They are just so very different. Loved them both. India as you well know is so intense. It is in your face 24/7 full of noise, colour, chaos everything. But that is a main component in making India such an amazing place to visit.
Burma is definately quieter. There is just not the sheer volume of people & hence the intensity. As you know Varanasi is one of the peaks of Indian chaos.
We would go back to both places but they are very different experiences. We haven't been to Laos so I can't put that into the equation. By the way I enjoyed following you on your Laos trip.

Thanks Jules. I let my husband pick our next destination as he could not come this year. He has chosen Russia and Turkey for Spring 2012 so will have to wait for Burma another year I guess. I really enjoyed your report and it will help with my planning when we do go.

jules-Did you have Santa Maria arrange drivers and guides for you in Mandalay and vicinity, or did you hire taxis/drivers at the hotel?

Do you think it is worth spending an extra day in Kalaw to hike to some minority villages, or did you feel you saw enough minority villages during the rest of your stay at Inle Lake.

I know most people stay oin the lake, but I was wondering about staying in Nyang Shwe either instead of or in addition to staying on the lake, just to get some more walking into the trip. Since you saw Nyaung Shwe, could you tell me the pros and cons of staying in this village and doing boat trips on the lake.

Thanks

Shelley We did have SM arrange a car & driver for the 2 full days we had in Mandalay. Initially we did not have them organise a guide but the office in Mandalay did send a guide. It actually turned out to be a good thing because he did a good job at keeping us far from the tourist "crowds" timing things really well.

I don't know if I would spend time in Kalaw to hike to a minority village. I find that I really enjoyed seeing the locals come to the markets from these villages & seeing them interact with each other on their own terms rather than waiting for the tourists to arrive in the village. But I did not do it so it could be a great thing to do.

Inle Lake. Went into Nyang Shwe & was glad we were not staying there. Dusty & noisy. I found were we stayed (Inle Lake View Resort) to be really good for us. It is very close to the lake so you are on the lake just a few minutes after taking off from the dock. You are back enough from the lake that you don't have the motor boats roaring by. You can drive there which means you can take walks from there.On a couple of occations we went walking passing schools with kids waving etc. From NS it is probably a good 30-40 mins to get to the lake by boat. However at NS you will probably find cheaper accom & will be able to go out & find different places to eat. If we were to go again I think we would choose somewhere like Inle Lake View Resort.

Hope that helps

Jules, this is useful and timely information. I am continuing my research for our Nov-Dec trip. One of our stops is to be Mandalay for the ancient capitals outside the city. My plan was to ask SM just to arrange a car and driver. It sounds like you got a guide as well, without asking. Is this what you recommend or do you recommend requesting a guide as well? We are also considering a day trip to Pyin U Lwin (Maymo) while we are in the area.

Kahtie I actually think the guide worked out well for the ancient cities area. On our first day there we just had a car & headed out to Unbien. But I do feel that when we went to some of the other places he timed things really well so that we avoided any groups. When we were out at Ava we were the only ones going across on the small boat & although we encountered a tour group leaving the only restaurant on the island as we got to the rest we had not seen them at all whilst we were there & they were done with the island just as we were. We had a late lunch before heading back across the river. Could we have done this without a guide quite probably. He was a great guide for us though & it was worth it. Out at U Bien you really do not need one & in fact we just left him with the car there & wandered off. Although saying that we did have him explain to the boat driver exactly what we wanted to do rather than just letting the boat driver take us & that worked out well.

Thanks so much, Jules!

While we had a guide there, we were on our own with the boat driver at U Bein and we found boat driver of # 38 to be excellent. He got us to the right places for photographs. We used him two nights in a row there.

kathie, a little info on our time in Mandalay may be of interest to you too.
While in Mandalay we just used a driver, arranged by Shan Yoma tours, who drove us to the sights. While he didn’t speak much English it was not really required as the guidebooks cover most places. Shan Yoma also arranges a small boat to take us to Mingun at our leisure, this took around a half day but you could easily spend more time there. We also went to Ava which to me was one of the highlights of the trip. I loved the teak wood monastery there.
We also took a day trip to Pyin O Lwin, again just with our driver. its not a short drive be quite nice and a different atmosphere up in the mountains. Again the sights are well covered by the books and a guide was not necessary.
Our driver was aware of the crowds and suggested changes to avoid any crush.
We visited Mandalay Palace on our own and although it is largely rebuilt it would have been nice to have a guide here.

If you want any further info or a copy of our itinerary please ask.

Shellyk
We did a one day trek at Kalaw and although we enjoyed the trek and the guide was excellent we felt the trek didn’t compare to others we had done ( e.g. Sapa in Vietnam). The scenery isn’t as nice and the villages are more modern. Having said that our guide was excellent and I would really recommend him. He was formerly a teacher and his English was excellent. I dont have his name but he worked from Uncle Sams Guides in Kawlaw ( he is Sam's son-in-law). He was provided by Shan Yoma but you can contact Sams Guides on 9581 50237

gmoz Ava was also a highlight for us. The teak monastery is beautiful. We hung out there for quite a while.

Thanks, patty and gmoz for your thoughts. Gmoz, would you please post a short trip report, including your itinerary? I'm still debating various parts of our itinerary.

I'll also make a separate post one of these days when I am clearer about our plans, asking for more advice. I really appreciate your input1

gmov-Thanks for your comments on Kalaw. I did not go to Sapa during our Feb. trip to VN because it would have been too cold. Since I won't be comparing it to Sapa, would you still feel that if I skipped the Kalaw hike I would not be missing a "wow" moment. Time is not an issue, but a hike does take some effort, and I might put the effort into doing something else.

I too would like to see your itinerary and would appreciate any other comments you would care to make concerning your trip. Thanks.

Hi Jules, I just posted a question on whether you need a driver to go to Amanpura and Sagaing and then decided to read your report again.

Did you just arrange it from your hotel or through Santa Maria? It does not sound as though it is too far out of Mandalay but I am unsure. Any tips would be appreciated, thank you.

Hi live I answered on the other post. Arranged it through Santa Maria. The distance gets a bit blury but I think it took us about 30-40 mins to get out to Ubien on the first afternoon we were there but that was only about 230pm so before the majority of tourists head out there. Coming back it definately took longer due to traffic. Our driver told us that the traffic has got significantly worse each & every year around Mandalay as more people are able to get access to Chinese built motorcyles. We set off about 730 in the morning & I think it took about 30 mins to get to A then. We loved Burma!

jules-How was the location of the Shwe Thazin Hotel for walking around the temples. And how was the air conditioning, and electricity situation. Was it on 24 hours. Santa Maria recommended Narawit B and B for us because he said it was more centrally located than Schwe Thazin.What do you think?

Shelly I don't know where Narawit is so cannot compare. If it is the same as the hotel by that name then it is definately closer to the northern temples in fact it is right there. Shwe Thazin was close to walking to the northern temples but too far from the others but an extra 10 mins walk than the Narawit hotel. I did not see inside the Narawit. The electricity got turned off during the day but when we wandered back in the middle of the day they turned it back on for us. If I remember correctly the aircon/electricity was on all night.
Wish we were headed back soon!!

It actually is the Narawit Hotel. I guess I'll have SM book it, since we would like to attempt to walk around the temples if it is not too hot. Thanks so much for all the information I got from your TR and postings. It does makes for a better trip if one can make educated decisions as to where to stay and what is worth doing.

I have a few more questions: Did you take the boat both ways to Mingun, or did you drive one way?
Can most sites in Mingun be seen by walking?

How far was the boat dock from the Mandalay City Hotel?

I assume there was no problm getting taxis in Mandalay or Yangon for short rides in the city, correct?

shelleyk,

We took a taxi from Mandalay to Mingun, a quick ride and when we arrived at Mingun there was no crowd. Later when the ferry arrived there were so many people there and all the touts came out as well.

For us in Mingun we visited the "cave" temple and then the marble temple with the big bell. All within a short walk of each other.

Hi Hanuman-I did want to go by boat as I heard the scenery was nice along that stretch of the river. I am thinking of going by private boat. What time does the public ferry arrive at Mingun. I will try to get there before then.

I don't have that information shelleyk but from my memory it was roughly mid morning.

Shelly we took a private boat either way. We left Mandaly i think about 8. We definately beat the ferry there. When we were able to walk everywhere no problem. We were also had no problem at all with touts or crowds.

jules-I'm planning on taking the private boat. I'll request we leave at around 8 as you did. We are staying at the Mandalay City Hotel, as you did. From looking at a map the boat dock looks like a five or ten minute taxi ride from the hotel. Is that about right? How were the breakfasts at the hotel?

Shelly we also stayed at Mandalay City hotel, seems we had a very similar trip route. The breakfasts at Mandalay city are fine, its a buffet style and mainly European food.
You will be surprised when you arrive at the Mandalay City Hotel as it is down a sort of covered in lane but inside it opens out to quite a little oasis in the centre of town. The hotel is fine, maybe 3-3 stars, but its in a handy position to the markets, night markets and restaurants.
A restaurant worth trying is " A little bit of Mandalay" . Our driver took us there for lunch one day and it was very nice. We found Myanmar food on the whole to be a bit bland but this was one of the better places.

Shelly gmoz describes the Mandalay City Hotel very well. The breakfast was fine. We ate at a Thai place for lunch one day which was good. I am pretty sure the name is in my report.

Koh's Kitchen! Thai food & tasty. Wish I knew the name of the local place the driver took us for lunch one day

jules-I am trying to decide between flying or driving from Mandalay to Bagan. Normally I would opt to fly, but the only flights from Mandalay to Bagan depart in late afternoon, making for a relaxing, but wasted day in Mandalay, as we will have done all our sightseeing the previous 3 days. If we drove, we would arrive in Bagan before the plane. Do you remember what the roads and scenery were like on the way to Bagan. Was the scenery interesting or monotonous, and how did you tolerate sitting in the car for 6.5 hours. Knowing what you know about the drive, would you fly or drive to Bagan from Mandalay.

The drive was fine Shelly. I think we left about 8am. We stopped along the way to take a few photos & at one point we stopped & walked for about 30mins & our driver would just drive ahead of us alittle way until we were ready to get in again. We encountered some school kids on the walk & had a good laugh with them taking some photos of them & showing them to them. Also an older village lady wandered along with us for awhile. We enjoyed the drive but we do like to drive places. To me it gives me the oportunity to see what is going on in real life a little more than flying between places. If we were to do it again we would drive if the choice was that or more time in Mandaly, But a relaxing day in Mandalay is not something we would choose to do. Hope that helps

Thanks. In view of what you said, I think I am leaning toward driving. I think the price should be pretty much the same as 2 airplane tickets plus airport transfers.

As I said Shelly we do like to do "road trips" so keep in mind what your tollerence for long drives is.

Just heard back from SM. Driving is considerably more than flying, so we will fly. Thanks for your input.

Well that made the decision easy for you!! I certainly don't remember there being a considerable difference a year ago. It was worth the drive for us to get a whole extra afternoon in Bagan. Have a fantastic trip. It is a beautiful country with lovely people.