From Myitkyna we went by bus at night to Mandalay, a good 18 hours, traveling 550 km, long but quite comfortable. Of course, could not miss the usual stop of control of the military to check our passports, from all the bus only ours … with the same menacing and distrustful face, holding his eyes as if he expected us to fall apart and confess the crime we were plotting …

We arrived in Mandalay at 6 in the morning, and once there we went to the train station to continue our journey to Bagan. The station was an underworld in itself. It was already 7 in the morning and people were still sleeping on the platforms. Entire families stretched out on cardboard sleeping and snoring at the bottom. Some were already preparing and cleaning to start the day … A peculiar panorama, a normality that escapes our understanding. The cafes along the road began to fill with people who without taking our eyes off, savored a tea ready to prepare.

The train to Bagan was slow, very slow, lasted 13 hours … to travel 180 km !!!!! Hahahaha … spectacular … It stopped in all seasons, however it was very pleasant, one of the sweetest memories of freedom and calm traveler.

The train was almost empty, the doors were nonexistent, and all the way passed between villages and forests of palm trees with carts pulled by oxen. We spent the trip leaning out the door appreciating such beautiful landscape, pure calm and tranquility.

Once in Bagan, we started walking towards the New Bagan area, where other people had recommended decent hotels. The road was long, about 8 km, which we tried to hitchhike. A couple stopped us but alerted us that at one point of the road there was a police control where the entrance to the historical park of Bagan was paid … the cost was 25 dollars per person … Tired of the trip, we decided think calmly, so we refuse to accept the transport of the couple.

In some blog we had already read about this rate, and that the fate of that money was covered in a certain occultism … and that we wanted to believe to reinforce our idea of ​​sneaking unpaid … We stopped a taxi and bargained the price with the condition that gets us, that does not stop at the control and take us directly to the area of ​​the hotels. The taxi driver accepted and for the amount of 5 dollars he took us to the roundabout in question … great!

So we got into the taxi and at the moment of passing the control we bowed our heads … Is it criticizable? Yes, a lot, we know, but we apologize for the volunteer work we do, a free service during our entire education trip and clown performances. If you want to know more, look at our website: Clown Science Dreams, there we explain all the volunteers we did in Myanmar and in other countries as volunteers.

The chosen hotel was Hotel Royal Bagan, recommended by a friend, Florence. It was a very good hotel with a pool, giant bed and very clean !! for $ 20 a night … Something expensive, but we needed a little rest, comfort and cleanliness for a change. So we stayed there for 2 nights. The first day we did not leave the room, just to eat and to bathe in the pool. We needed to rest after so much work in Myitkyina and long hours of travel.

The second day we dedicate to visit the temples. A day to visit both temple is very very fair, although enough to make us an idea. We could only see the main thing and very much above. For this we rent a motorbike for $ 4, highly recommended to travel the long distances that separates each temple.

In the main monuments they ask you for a ticket, especially during the most tourist hours, at dawn and dusk. We, as we did not have a ticket, went to see them at intermediate hours and we had no problem … Legend has it that if they ask you for the ticket and you claim that you left it at the hotel, they accompany you to look for it … …

Bagan was the capital of several kingdoms of Burma, however now it is under the control of the military junta. They have been responsible for the reconstruction, quite partial, and not with too much atino. Apparently UNESCO has tried to proclaim it a World Heritage Site but the military has prevented it …

The families of the military have built hotels so close to the temples that sometimes mix the inhabited urban area with these almost millenary temples.

The temples we visited were:
– Dhammayangyi Temple
– Ananda Temple
– Shwezigon Temple
– Shwesandaw Temple
– Sulamani Temple
– Thatbyinnyu Temple
– Htilominlo Temple
– Payathonzu Temple

 

 

And many others that I could not recognize right now … Some temples allow you to climb to higher floors, where you can observe the beautiful landscape, and better at sunrise and sunset. Other temples are in conditions not too correct, but all share their beauty and their rich history and experience. You can see the passage of time, how they have witnessed centuries of history.

Leaving the Sulamani temple, we found a cabin where they were frying pasta and preparing tea with milk. They prepared it on a wood fire in a low kitchen prepared with clay, very picturesque, all natural and all built with their own hands. There was also a table of young locals enjoying the fried delights. We found it very picturesque and endearing, and we could not help but sit down to be part of it.

We tried everything! how good and how nice they were! We tried to chat, but it was not easy. so we used to say nonsense through gestures. In this way, we continue the visit of temples with a full and warm stomach.

At the end of the day, exhausted but happy, we picked up the luggage and went to the bus we had booked a few hours earlier towards Inle Lake. By the way, book it ahead of time so that you do not have availability problems … See you at Inle Lake !!!