Myanmar was not on our original trip itinerary. Thierry had already been 15+ years ago and we mostly prioritised countries that were new to both of us. That said, with COVID-19 starting to flare up in the region (we are early February now) and our decision not to go the beach in Cambodia – we still felt a bit “beached out”, and after those magnificent weeks on the boat, were worried that we would not enjoy it as much as we’d like – we have a few weeks to spare so we review the options and it comes down to Vietnam or Myanmar. Vietnam neither of has been and the north around Sapa apparently has amazing treks, but between the fact that it is quite polluted in many places and massively developed tourism wise, which is a downer in itself, but does not seem prudent given the COVID situation, we opt for Myanmar. Not only was this clearly the right decision on the health exposure front – Myanmar to this day (end March) does not have any declared cases – but we are also simply enchanted by this beautiful country and its beautiful people – in both the spiritual as well as physical sense! We arrive in Mandalay after a somewhat tedious trip with a long wait in Bangkok. Burma is still pretty closed off, and does not have a lot of direct connections to fly into the country. Anjali is feeling very unwell and starts to have a temperature which is incredibly rare with her. Our hotel in Myanmar is centrally located, no frills, with incredibly kind staff. We already hadn’t planned to stay long in this city, but now that Anjali’s fever is spiking, we first have to sit it out. We do manage to drag her out of bed for a meal once a day, and at the lovely Mingalabar restaurant we get our first glimpse of the incredible diversity and tastiness of Burmese cuisine, most of it, to our added delight, vegetarian.
Within 48hours Anjali’s fever is fortunately gone and we can plan on. We have to decide whether to head to Bagan via the road (4-5 hours) or by longboat on the Irrawaddy river (ca. 10 hours). Charmed by the accounts we read on the web, we opt for the boat and this is the perfect decision. At 5h30 we board the boat, the sun just lifting up from the rolling hills behind. As we start puttering down the river, pagodas and temples line the coast, with shimmering stupas and giant buddha statue. In the misty, golden light of the rising sun, the view is spellbinding. I was worried that the time “locked up” on the boat for hours on end would be long for the kids, but between their drawings and watching the life on the riverbanks as we pass, the hours pass by without us noticing. We make one stop about 8 hours into the trip, visiting a village where they produce clay pots which allows us to stretch our legs a little. Our motor has a little problem that is fortunately quite swiftly resolved so that we only lose 1.5 hours. The advantage of this “loss” is that we get to pull up to Bagan smack at the time of the sunset – once again, a lucky arrangement of circumstances! Miraculously we don’t end up losing our luggage – actually, we do, because we are all caught up in the negotiation with the taxi driver, not realising that our bags are being whisked away by some porters – but manage to catch them just as they are being loaded onto a group tour bus 😆.
The city planning around Bagan is quite peculiar. There is Old Bagan, which was the capital of the Kingdom of Pagan from the 9th to the 13th centuries (so roughly the same period as the Angkor temples). This kingdom was the first to unify the area that is now Myanmar, establishing the Burmese culture and ethnicity, as well as Theravada Buddhism, in the region. Over this period of rule, as the city and kingdom grew in influence, over 10,000 temples were built on the plains surrounding the capital next to the Irrawaddy River, the biggest and densest such collection of temples and stupas. It has only very recently been granted UNESCO World Heritage status, in summer 2019 (25 years after its nomination), because the conservation planning during the military junta was deemed inappropriate and insufficient. As such it is interesting to witness how they are trying to set everything up, compared to Angkor where the checkpoints and guidelines are very clear.
The story behind New Bagan, which is where our hotel is located, is crazy: In 1990, the military junta announced that everybody would have to leave Old Bagan to start the conservation efforts. According to the accounts of our guides, families were given 2 weeks to do so, come what may. Madness. New Bagan does not have any particular interest, but it is more charming (and closer to the temples) than Nyaung U which is where the boat arrived and the hospitality hub of the area.
Bagan is famous for its stupas and temples, certainly, but it is also famous for the gorgeous pictures of hot air balloons floating above these temples. As such, I chose our hotel really for its roof top view, which, indeed, is jaw dropping. Before hiring a guide, we decide to discover the area a bit on our own. The way that is done around here is to rent an e-motorbike and drive around the many dirt roads and temples to explore at leisure. Absolutely brilliant – it’s (relatively) clean energy, no noise pollution, and, needless to say, a great motivator to get the kids to go visit the many, many temples!
One of the many lovely particularities of Burma – I always love it when a country is able to maintain strong local customs in this more and more standardised global world -, is their use of Thanaka. Thanaka is a powder derived from the bark of certain trees growing in the central regions of Myanmar. People grind the tree bark against a flat and wet circular smooth stone, mix it with water, then rub the paste on to the face. This is done as much for aesthetics, i.e. cosmetic beauty, but also for its cooling sensation and sunblock. It is also believed to anti-blemish and anti-fungal properties. Almost all women and girls wear thanaka on their face, mostly in round spots on their cheeks, but also on the nose and forehead. Some men and boys also use it. It is shimmery yellow and quite beautiful. The children get the tourist version (i.e. in a pretty leaf shape) painted on their faces at one of the temples.
At the Ananda temple, which is the biggest and the most popular tourist wise, Vyas has to go to the toilet while I had walked off to check out something. Knowing my major germophobia and fear of public toilets – especially those at big tourist sites – he already reassures me that he washed his hands properly. As we sit down for lunch just after, Vyas remarks: « Toilets here are really funny! » I realize I did not yet explain the “squat” style toilets to him. So I say: « You see: you’re lucky you’re a boy, so much easier to use those toilets than for us girls!» He answers « but I didn’t know where to do my poo. So I just did it in the water.» (i.e. the water bucket meant to rinse yourself bidet style as well as the toilet after use.) At this point, I find that quite funny. I feel sorry for the next person using the toilet, but it’s an honest mistake. However, Vyas tops himself, as I ask « so if you did it in the water, how did you clean yourself? » « Oh, there was a big brush. It was very, very scratchy, though, so I only brushed a few times. » 😭🤢🤣
This way, the days pass swiftly, between just driving around, taking in the special vibe of the temple structures, visiting the temples such as the Twin Buddhas, long, yummy lunches (they make a mean mango lassi here). For our last day, we decide to take a guide and get lucky: he is really great. We thus get to experience Bagan in quite a different way. Our morning starts off watching – and understanding – a monk procession. Boys are meant to spend some time in a monastery as a monk, at any time during the life (to be repeated as desired). To celebrate this entry into monkhood, families group their savings to launch a big party/procession. Everyone is either dressed up in formal dress, or in costumes. The boys ride on horses, the girls are pulled in chariots by bulls. There is music and cheering. It is quite a spectacle.
From there on we drive through some of the bordering villages. Life is so quiet here. We drive through ha and ha of peanut fields and one of our first stops is to understand peanut farming which is quite a labor intensive agriculture. The Burmese cuisine uses peanuts galore – sprinkled on top of salads, but peanut oil is also their main cooking oil. We thoroughly enjoyed watching how the baskets of peanuts were crushed by a giant pestle, with viscous, troubled oil trickling out slowly, not the almost watery, clear oils we get in most markets in Europe.
We also got to stop at a local laquer workshop, this being an art form that Bagan is famous for. Watching the artisans first cut the bamboo into its fine strips, then jigsawing them together (not glued!) to make bowls, cups etc. and then paint them with the thick natural lacquer, several layers, each of which requiring a dust free drying time of several days, well, we are impressed. All this before the finished products are then hand decorated. How much we would have loved to purchase a tea set or more, the products are so beautiful and when you see them made with so much skill and care, they become so much more meaningful. Our luggage won’t permit it, however, so we will simply have to keep the souvenir in our mind instead.
At one of the temples, a local artist draws some animals. The children strike up a conversation with him and he asks them their week day of birth – the Burmese believe in Zodiac animals. The twins were born on a Monday, the animal is a tiger. The boys couldn’t be happier – a tiger is much cooler than a rat or owl, in their minds. Anjali was born on a Friday – this elicits a lot of laughter leaving the sketch artist puzzled. The Zodiac animal of a Friday is a….. Guinea Pig! 😛 He kindly offers each of the kids their Zodiac animal as a gift, we look forward to framing them upon our return!
Our day finishes above a small hill with the most stunning view over the surrounding temples, and down to the river. We got quite attached to this place – everything is just so beautiful! the country, the people, even their alphabet! – tomorrow we will leave for Kalaw to walk to Lake Inlé, but in the meantime, Bagan has left an indelible mark on us.
