Travel Blog » Asia » Burma » Bagan

Bagan Travel Blogs

Background: Britain conquered Burma over a period of 62 years (1824-1886) and incorporated it into its Indian Empire. Burma was administered as a province of India until 1937 when it became a separate, self-governing colony; independence from the Commonwealth was attained in 1948. Gen. NE WIN dominated the government from 1962 to 1988, first as military ruler, then as self-appointed president, and later as political kingpin. Despite multiparty legislative elections in 1990 that resulted in the main opposition party - the National League for Democracy (NLD) - winning a landslide victory, the ruling junta refused to hand over power. NLD leader and Nobel Peace Prize recipient AUNG SAN SUU KYI, who was under house arrest from 1989 to 1995 and 2000 to 2002, was imprisoned in May 2003 and is currently under house arrest. In December 2004, the junta announced it was extending her detention for at least an additional year. Her supporters, as well as all those who promote democracy and improved human rights, are routinely harassed or jailed.

Burma

Map of Burma

Burma's Flag

Hostels in Burma
Latest Bagan Blog Entries
Bagan Photos

By Team A2
December 1st 2009

Day 48: The Prophecy of the Nats Asia » Burma » Bagan

We have secret information about the state of the world in 2010 - and we'll be happy to share it with you. The Nats told us. Buddhism is the official religion of Burma but it coexists peacefully with ancient animistic beliefs that have been part of local culture for thousands of years (worshiping nature, like hills, trees, lakes). The Nats (spirits) are at the center of this animist worship. There are 37 "official" nats but, in reality, many more exist and are worshiped by the Burmese people. Nat altars and statues are tucked away in corners of nearly every Buddhist temple [View Full Entry]

By lanegra
September 11th 2009

4000 Temples and Stupas Asia » Burma » Bagan

Bagan Sunset from the ferry.

We arrived in Bagan after a 12.5 hour short ferry trip (7-9 hours by bus I hear). The ride was really relaxing and seeing nature and the people going about their day was nice. We decided we would walk to our hotel from the Jetty, it was only about a km. Sorry but sometimes the metric system is all I have to go by... Anywho we checked into our hotel, 2nd place with air con included for a whopping $10/night. Breakfast is included as well. We only really planned to stay here one full day and check out the temples and [View Full Entry]

By The Doc moves to Thailand
July 7th 2009

Seeing more Burmese payas, “it’s only just Bagan!” Asia » Burma » Bagan

Bagan's payas - View from Tayok Pyi Pya

By the middle of the second day (or it could have been at the end of the first) many of the ruins started looking quite similar to me. Don’t get me wrong Bagan is an amazing place, however knowing little about architectural styles except a slight understanding of the difference between Thai, Khmer and Burmese, it can get slightly monotonous. At least the vistas from the top of the payas remained amazing no matter which one or where it was located because they overlooked different viewpoints. On the second day we broke up the monotony of temple hopping and cycling by [View Full Entry]

By The Doc moves to Thailand
July 6th 2009

Bagan, an archaleogical haven of temples, payas and ruins Asia » Burma » Bagan

Sunset over Bagan

Bagan is one of Burma’s most famous attractions. It is a notable archaeological site and has over 2000 pagodas and temples of the 11th-13th century. At one time there were 13,000 temples, pagodas (payas) and religious structures. UNESCO has been unsuccessful in trying to designate it as a World Heritage Site, which is unfortunate as it is worthy of such a title. Bagan is located in the dry central plains of the country on the Ayeyarwady River, 145km from Mandalay. While the distance doesn’t sound too far, on the rough, rugged roads it takes 8 hours by bus. We decided to [View Full Entry]

One of the four Buddha images in Ananda Temple

Matt and I in front of Thathyinnyu Temple

By Asienneuburg
June 23rd 2009

Myanmar Asia » Burma » Bagan

Guide mit Tafel

Flug nach Bagan. Erster Tag wieder mit einem Guide. Zweite Lektion: Gesellschaftliches Verhalten. Sagen wir es positiv: Männer werden in ganz Myanmar bevorzugt behandelt. Sagen wir es ehrlich: Alice Schwarzer bitte kommen! Es zeigte sich beispielsweise darin, dass bereits der Guide eine Tafel in der Hand hielt mit der Aufschrift: Mr. Eckel + 1 Pers. (Foto im Anhang) Wenn die Moni eine Frage gestellt hat, musste ich sie wiederholen um ihr überhaupt eine Bedeutung beizumessen. Nach nickendem Einverständnis gab es eine prägnante Antwort mit staendig auf mich gerichteten Blick. Das Frauen selbst B [View Full Entry]

By Jack Kerouac
June 4th 2009

Pagoda Hopping in Bagan Asia » Burma » Bagan

Pagodas of Bagan

Zusammen mit Devon and Jeanelle habe ich mich nach dem Park auf den Weg nach Bagan gemacht. 16 Stunden Busfahrt sollten vor uns liegen, Abfahrt um 15 Uhr. Nach einer Stunde ist die Air-Con ausgefallen und wir haben am Strassenrand fuer ne halbe Stunde gehalten, doch es war anscheinend nichts zu machen. Also alle Fenster auf und weiter. Die ersten Stunden ging es ueber einen erstaunlich guten "Highway" nach Norden, um 22 Uhr gab es unterwegs irgendwo was zu essen, was beschraenkt gut geschmeckt hat. Ab da wurde die Fahrt dann zum Horrortrip. Die Sitze waren zu klein, der Mittelgang mit [View Full Entry]

Blick von der Dachterasse unseres Guesthouses

By Sepulchre
March 16th 2009

Last Push to Bagan Asia » Burma » Bagan

Me and the Gawdapalin Temple, Bagan

So, we got back to Mandalay and prepared for the last big trip of our visit to Myanmar - the ancient ruins of Bagan. According to Wikipedia... Bagan formerly Pagan, is an ancient city in the Mandalay Division of Burma. Formally titled Arimaddanapura or Arimaddana (the City of the Enemy Crusher) and also known as Tambadipa (the Land of Copper) or Tassadessa (the Parched Land), it was the ancient capital of several ancient kingdoms in Burma. It is located in the dry central plains of the country, on the eastern bank of the Ayeyarwady River, 90 miles (145 km) southwest of [View Full Entry]

By Bamarlay
March 9th 2009

Small, cheap and friendly guesthouse in Bagan Asia » Burma » Bagan

There is an article about a small but friendly guesthouse in Bagan, Myanmar on Myanmar2day's website. Bagan is a major tourist destination in Myanmar and it is sometimes quite difficult to get a nice but cheap guesthouse in Bagan. The article describes about a small, cheap and friendly guesthouse in Bagan. Read the full article at Small friendly guesthouse in Bagan. [View Full Entry]

By LauraDom
February 20th 2009

The blog with the maggots and a load of temples, a beach and a flight Asia » Burma » Bagan

The bus to Chaungta

Well here's our last blog from Myanmar. I'll try not to taint it with the anger I feel at the firing range here (Laos) being closed. Buses in the North of Myanmar take a great many hours to travel very short distances. Hence why the trip from Mandalay to Bagan took all day. Oh well, at least it wasn't as horrible and windy as the one from Inle to Mandalay. All the buses are crappy old Japanese bangers with rips and tears everywhere. On the plus side, we no longer have a fear of any bus ride anywhere else in the [View Full Entry]

By joe5710
February 19th 2009

bagan jan 2009 Asia » Burma » Bagan

717

this is my second trip to bagan.i help out a family there.42 square kilometres of ruins.i rented a bike.stayed at the eden hotel for 4$ a night. [View Full Entry]

Travel Blog » Asia » Burma » Bagan