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Published: July 19th 2010
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If this is the Mandalay made famous by the Las Vegas elite at the Mandalay Bay, then somebody in the marketing department either needs a big raise or should transfer to Disneyland's creative innovations department. First off, Mandalay doesn't have a bay. It is on a river and a lake, but there is no bay. And while it is one of the coolest places I've been, it definitely lacks...how would you say it... the five star ambiance boasted at the Vegas counterpart.
After surviving the bus (barely), we easily hopped on a taxi/truck/go-cart type vehicle and headed to the Royal Guest House where we were to stay while in Mandalay. The accommodations were really nice for only $12 USD per night. Chris and I aren't too picky but do require clean beds and an in-room shower/toilet. This one also had fans, air conditioning, and a mini fridge.
I should mention that Mandalay is FREAKIN HOT!! We discovered how hot Mandalay can be on our first day while exploring the city on bikes. We rented bicycles for 1500 kyats and cruised around the city looking for payas and other sites recommended in our bible. The most exhausting portion was to
the Golden Buddha in the Mahamuni Paya. This was a huge Buddha where people bought prayers in the form of gold foil to add to the statue. It took a while to get there and the sun was relentless—over 100 degrees. The locals enjoyed watching us trudge by or stop in for water.
CULTURAL SIDENOTE: To shield the sun, the locals wear thanakha—yellow make-up/sunscreen made from the bark of a Burmese tree. It is mostly worn by women and children in decorative patterns. The men sometimes wear it too.
After the Golden Buddha, we were disappointed to trek to a vegetarian restaurant across the city and find it closed for two weeks. Hot and tired, we settled for The Green Elephant, an up-scale restaurant that was nearby. It was very nice, even by American standards. I enjoyed my first Myanmar Lager to chase away the heat. We ate a lot of food (pasta with veggies, garlic chicken, tomato salad, rice, French fries, and steamed bananas in coconut milk) for less than 10,000 kyats. Refreshed, we continued to a conglomeration of payas and monasteries. The most stunning was the Shwenandaw Kyaung which was built entirely of teak wood sometime
in the 1800s. Every square inch of it was intricately carved by hand. Impressively beautiful. It was quiet and peaceful there and more like the Myanmar I was hoping to experience. There was another interesting paya which housed 729 marble slabs in separate stupas. Each slab was over five-feet tall. It is often dubbed the world's biggest book.
Payaed and stupaed out, our last bike stop was to climb Mandalay Hill. The climb was by way of shaded stairs, but after a day full of heat and adventure it took a lot of energy. The 230 meter climb was worth it though, with a full panoramic view awaiting us at the top. We could see the palace, hundreds of payas, and the tree-filled topography of the area, including the powerful Ayeyarwady River. Exhausted, we finished our day with traditional Shan food. (Shan is a Burmese state and ethnic group). After eating fried potatoes, rice, pork meatballs, and veggies with noodles, I melted into my bed at 8:30 pm.
What a day.
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