The Complete Tourist Guide: Myanmar

The skinny Burmese man offered to buy a single placer ruby from him. It was cheap. But we did not believe that the stones were real. But who knows, maybe we missed our luck. Myanmar, formerly Burma, is known all over the world for its rich deposits of rubies and sapphires. If you can get permission from the local authorities, tourists can even visit the "secret" mines in the town of Mogok.

Valley of the Temples.

The memorable story took place right on the territory of the Bagan Archaeological Complex, which is very popular among tourists. The story happened right on the grounds of the Bagan archaeological site, which is very popular with tourists.

Bagan is the ancient capital of Myanmar, and temples were most often built not by the state but by private individuals. Long ago, when Buddhism became the state religion, King Anorakht built four stupas on this very spot and deposited Buddha's teeth (one real and three fakes) in them.

Состоятельные граждане пожелали возвести в святом месте собственные храмы. В итоге их здесь получилось 4000! Согласитесь, здесь есть на что посмотреть! Потом столицу изменили, храмы оказались заброшенными, а землетрясение в 1975 году и вовсе разрушило половину из них. Но нынешние власти начали крутую реставрацию, скорее всего для того, чтобы привлечь новый туристов, и на данный момент на этом чудесном месте красуются 3500 храмов. До желаемого числа – 4000 — осталось совсем немного.

If it wasn't for the gum ...

The government's efforts are not wasted - every year the number of tourists in Myanmar, who previously did not go here at all, increases.

However, the government's attempts to establish normal life after years of internecine strife are apparently not very successful. The poverty is striking to the eyes of newcomers, and also... the surprising cleanliness of the cities. But what are these red stains on the sidewalk? Oh, it's the traces of white gum!

Pour the Buddha!

In the streets of Yangon, the former capital, we did not see a single beggar. And the metropolis itself was striking in its abundance of greenery. The tops of monasteries and pagodas rise above large, beautiful and green squares and bodies of water.

The most important holy place in Yangon is the Shwedagon temple complex. This is where the hair of Buddha (4 of them) is located, so there is no overgrowth of people's path here. A huge gilded stupa stands in the middle, and there are many identical stupas and smaller temples all around.

The square is constantly full of barefoot worshippers who follow each other in flocks and perform the necessary rituals. Tourists are also offered to perform the ritual of watering the Buddha from special bowls. The number of people wishing to do so is huge. Toward evening, an army of cleaners comes out onto the square and begins to work in concert with broom brushes.

Bridges between exes.

Pagodas, stupas, seated and reclining Buddhas, and another attraction are the bridges in Myanmar! For example, the U Bayin Bridge. It is made of wooden boards and stands on the highest piles, also made of wood, and all this brings to mind a fence made of paling, it passes over a huge lake, and connects one of the former capitals of Mandalay with the same one of the former capitals of Amarapura.

Under this bridge, fishermen spread their triangular nets even before sunrise. And at the top, on the planks, are the locals, who - especially children and monks - immediately forget about their business when they see tourists. They are always trying to get their cameras in front of them.

Settlement "on the legs.

However, apart from bridges, houses are also built here on stilts. The village on Inle Lake grows out of the lake on the same wooden "legs". Residents move between the houses on narrow boats with oars, and tourists ride on motor boats. Tourists like most of all ... vegetable gardens! Tomato beds (!) cover the surface of the lake, and seaweed replaces the soil for planting vegetables!

A tourist's note.

Don't exchange too many dollars for local chats. Hotels, trains, and museums usually charge in dollars. So you are unlikely to spend all the chats, and you certainly won't be able to exchange them back.

Forget about credit cards in Myanmar. Only cash is accepted.

The local roads are out of hand, and toll roads at that! However, if you hire a car with a local driver, he can guide you over the rocks and sand as carefully as possible.

There's no cell phone service here. In the center of the city the Internet can help you, but the speed is terrible...

Just be careful, though; try to save money when you buy stones. You will be sold spinels, which are also natural gems; they look like rubies and sapphires, but they are not very valuable.