Blogs from Bagan, Mandalay Region, Burma, Asia - page 14

(Day 272 on the road)From Mandalay, it is possible to take a slow boat (14 hours) to Bagan down the mighty river Ayeyarwady. The boat was due to leave at 0530h, and we arrived 45 minutes early to be on the safe side with tickets. The taxi drivers to the jetty ripped us off blatantly, charging four times the normal rate we had paid previously, and at the boat we had to pay 20 times as much as the locals do for the ride (it was goverment-owned boat, so the extra money didn't even go to the local people). On top of that, the boat didn't leave until 0630. Not the best start into the day. The boat ride however was great. I had imagined it to be a foreigner boat with maybe a few locals ... read more

Bagan. Where do I start. This set of approximately 4000 Temples and Pagodas rivals only Angkor (Cambodia) for beauty. The temples which are now in all stages of decay were erected mostly from the 11th to 13th centuries A.D., when Bagan was the seat of the Myanmar dynasty. We arrived here late evening after a long boat journy down the Ayeyarwaddy River from Mandalay. We both felt a bit sick as the weather ws much colder than what we have become accustomed too. Ended up spending our first day here relaxing and recooperating from the travel. Walked the town of Nyuang U a bit. Not really impressed. Very touristy place, obviously, but once again the food quality goes down in these areas and the price seems to go up. We ended up going back to the ... read more

Het tweede deel van onze rondreis door Myanmar bracht ons naar Bagan. De wereldberoemde oude stad met haar duizenden tempels en stupa's die onverstoord richting hemel wijzen had in ons hoofd ondertussen al mythische proporties aangenomen, dus stonden we ondanks de vermoeiende bootreis van de vorige dag toch al vroeg op om de religieuze heiligdommen te verkennen. Twee dagen lang fietsten we van stupa naar tempel en van verbrokkelde ruines naar pas gerenoveerde bouwwerken, maar zelfs dat was niet lang genoeg om alles te zien. De ambitie van de koningen van Bagan was groot; zo groot dat maar liefst 4400 tempels werden gebouwd in een periode van 230 jaar tijd (tussen 1044AD en 1287AD). Elke koning wilde zijn plekje in een hiernamaals verzekeren en liet ijverig a volonte tempels bouwen. Het resultaat is een immense vlakte ... read more

Dear Patrons: Welcome to our news letter. The Staff at Different Perspectives try to bring a clearer picture of current events effecting China and Asia . Although we believe the international media driven primarily by western world's interests, is bringing the public events as they happen, we at Different Perspectives are independent and non biased without an agenda for prestige or monetary profit. We simply feel the western world may be somewhat isolated from news that is local to our office here in Beijing, China . Thank you Different Perspectives Staff Edward Recently I have returned from a 9 week tour of South East Asia and reporting on my perspective and personal experience. Currently our newsletter is focusing on my 24 day trip through the country of Myanmar. _________________________________________________________________________ Friday July 18, 2008 E... read more

Dear Patrons: Welcome to our news letter. The Staff at Different Perspectives try to bring a clearer picture of current events effecting China and Asia . Although we believe the international media driven primarily by western world's interests, is bringing the public events as they happen, we at Different Perspectives are independent and non biased without an agenda for prestige or monetary profit. We simply feel the western world may be somewhat isolated from news that is local to our office here in Beijing, China . Thank you Different Perspectives Staff Edward Recently I have returned from a 9 week tour of South East Asia and reporting on my perspective and personal experience. Currently our newsletter is focusing on my 24 day trip through the country of Myanmar . ________________________________________ Sunday July 13, 2008 Eden Guest ... read more