Since leaving Yandabo a couple of days age we have been cruising up to Mandalay and other towns and cities. A relentless series of amazing experiences and photo ops. In order to catch up will post a load of photos with brief explanations etc. Several villages along the riverbanks when we start to wonder who is more fascinated by who. The facial expressions (Happy !!) say it all…
Sunsets and Sunrises at a variety of locations including the U-Bean Bridge ( the longest Wooden bridge in the world).
A selection of paintings and faces to get started ….
The unfinished Pagoda which is the largest brick structure in the world. Had King ??? not run out of bricks and money it would have been higher that the Great Pyramid at Giza. Then it was hit by a huge earthquake which cracked and sealed its fate. Also the large working bell in the world and other mind blowing sights. A multitude of friendly faces selling all sorts of stuff.
Some of the merchandise and more faces….
A selection of the boats and ships (including our loyal Kanee Pandawt at various moorings) that we have encountered on our journey. This huge river is very shallow except in the rainy season when it floods and water levels rise – in some places by 20 meters). The sandbanks and islands, visible in the photos and a Google Maps screenshot, become submerged and are constantly emerging in different locations which makes navigation quite a challenge !!
Monks (in dark red robes) and Nuns (in pink) and foreing (in saffron) are everywhere. All with shaved heads which makes it a tad tricky to work out monks from nuns, apart from the colour of their robes !! Many clutching their cell phones which have just arrived in Myanmar……….
Needless to say more Pagodas, Stupas and Buddhas everywhere…
And should you want to buy a Buddha they come in all shapes and sizes !! Also hand pounded gold leaf that covers them all……….
Dogs everywhere but all healthy and fed and taken care because they are Buddhists.. A neutering programme wouldn’t go amiss !! But all seem content …….
The cruising part of this adventure is coming to an end and we are moored on a sandbank in the middle of this extraordinary river while the crew are setting up all the deck furniture for a beach barbecue. So will post this now and more photos and stuff will follow tomorrow……….