Blogs from Mandalay, Mandalay Region, Burma, Asia - page 3

I can't remember the trip up from Inle Lake at all! All I know is that I arrived safe and sound to my home for the next four nights - Yoe Yoe Lay Homestay - 11 USD a night getting me into a 6-bed dorm room. It was one of those hostels that works solely on the awesomeness of the people working there! The place itself is nothing special and definitely in need of a face lift or two, but I was made to feel welcome the moment I stepped through the door and I wouldn't hesitate to go back there again should I decide to revisit Mandalay. Mandalay isn't a particularly pedestrian-friendly city (yet) so we decided that the best way to explore was via taxi. We bargained with a local taxi driver to take ... read more

Today we leave Myanmar and head to Phuket Thailand. Before we go to the airport though we make a stop at a jade market which we thought was just jewellery. Well it was a total opposite and found out most jade is mined and traded in Myanmar and specifically Mandalay. When we got there we litter seen thousands of people with all sizes, shapes and colours of jade trying to sell it. The main buyers were the Chinese but we believe our friend we met from LA was also there searching out a great buy. FRO there we got our stamp of approval out of Myanmar and on our flight to Phuket with a quick stop in Bangkok. When we got to Phuket it was hot and when we got to our hotel well we were ... read more

My third stop was Mandalay. It's only a short ride from Bagan, easily done by shuttle bus during the day. I met some new friends at my hostel, headed to lunch, and then a few of us went in search of a place that makes gold leaf. According to my friend's guide book, they show you how it's done and explain the whole process. And I'm sure they would have; we went on a holiday and no one was making anything. The lone man in the shop explained it all to us and we left with a pretty good idea what it might have looked like. After a quick rest detour to the mall (for air conditioning and an atm) another friend and I hired a taxi to Mandalay Hill. We could have walked it, but ... read more

Tired. Arriving at our hostel (around 4am) following an 8hr overnight bus from Nyangshwe (Inle Lake), we slept more comfortably on the reception chairs for a few hours until our room was ready. By 'more comfortably' we mean some sleep, interrupted every so often after sliding off the chair and then trying to reposition ourselves to avoid cramp. So not much sleep but more than we had on the night bus. The main thing for tourists to do whilst in Mandalay is to go on a day tour around the surrounding areas/villages via motorbike or taxi. This includes visiting Sagaing, Inwa and Amarapura. The city itself doesn't really hold much regarding sightseeing apart from the hill top monastery with great views. After a quick clean-up we opted for the friendly taxi guy 'U Chit' who seemed ... read more

Last day in Burma -- I don't want to leave as it is so peaceful here. Spent the morning on the Irewaddy river arriving upriver in Mingun Village. It is Valentine's Day and also, Saturday with lots of teenagers on a date. They enjoy cruising as they ride around on their motorbike or walk along the main drag (ok, path) through the village. The tradition seems to be that the young couples dress in matching outfits. This is another historic village where a King built the largest ringing bell, the largest Lions to guard the gates of the largest Pagoda and overlooking the largest lake. The trouble is that only the world's largest ringing bell made it. The lions are mostly destroyed from an earthquake. The pagoda is half built and unstable from earthquakes and no ... read more