BELOW: Bling Bling! Wow! The one major temple in the Nyaung-U area is a massive, sprawling epic! The area surrounding the pagoda is very spacious indeed, and can be entered via four large walkways/tunnels. The centre point is this enormous site is the Shwe-zi-gon pagoda. The stupa is covered in gold leaf and dates back to the 11th Century. Shwe-zi-gon is one the major Buddhist sites in all Myanmar. I visited several times in order to really see all of the surrounding area. There are some staggering temples, frescos and stupas all around this site! Incredible! Here's some random pictures...
ABOVE LEFT: The Monk walking down the tunnel is one of my favourite pictures. ABOVE RIGHT: The sun sets nearby the Shwe-zi-gon pagoda. BELOW: A small pagoda with deteriorating artwork all over the walls. I have no information on the age of these frescos, but it's a fascinating interior!
Whilst staying in Nyaung-U, I stumbled across some kind of street celebration. There was a (LOUD!) P. A blaring, and many people were walking on the street dressed in traditional Myanmar clothing. It was a very beautiful site to behold, and after asking lots and LOTS of questions, I found out that it was a celebration of a boy becoming a monk. I'd call it an ordination ceremony, but I'm not sure if that translates into Burmese. Anyhow, the boy on the elephant is the one in question, and the parade of people are heading to the cemetery to donate various gifts to Buddha. Smashing.
ABOVE: A couple of pictures with my faithful steed 'Silver'. 'Silver' is (well, was) the name of the bike I rented for the week, and, by George, I used that bike over all kinds of terrain, sniffing out lots of obscurities all over the Bagan area. That bike was tough as old boots! As I peddled furiously around Bagan in 32 degree heat, I'd always stumble across cheeky girls. Yes, and these two were especially cheeky! Apparently, they wanted free money ! Free! Money! For free! I mean, what a concept! I hope that sort of thing doesn't catch on in Europe, boy howdy!
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