Myanmar day 2

Myanmar day 2 Up at 4am, breakfast in room, depart hotel 5am, flight to Mandaley 6.30 am. On the road from the airport to the city, we see plantations of chili, peanuts, mangos and bananas. Grown specially for export to China are various fruits. Also Rice, pulses to India, teak and rubber are major export earners. And now too, they have offshore gas. Mandalay was created in 1857 by the King to celebrate Mandalay Hill, considered sacred by followers of Buddha. The royal family moved into the palace at the centre of the city, and a grid system around it allocated areas to various trades, weaving, shoe-making etc.. First we visit Mahamuni Pagoda, home to one of the country's most revered Buddha images. There is over 100 people paying their respects and praying to Buddha here, a continuously changing throng as more arrive to replace those leaving, there must be thousands every day.

Throughout South East Asia, this religion is alive and integral to all its followers' daily lives, seemingly in contrast to our western churches. We visit a traditional woodcarving craft shop, row upon row of beautiful pieces all hand made (although I did notice the early stages of wood-shaping being assisted with a Black and Decker drill). Also here the ladies are hand-sewing exquisite tapestries. Striking colours, beautiful designs.

Next the Gold Leaf workshop, much bashing of tiny pieces of gold to flatten them into thin leaf which is then applied to cover ornaments. Very labour-intensive with beautiful end products to sell to locals and tourists alike. Now LUNCH, Burmese Chan style in a basic local restaurant, tasty. I have decided I like Myanmar, mainly because I am taller than almost everyone here. This afternoon we get to see the palace. The rebuilt in the 1970s palace. (The original had been used as HQ by the Japanese and so was bombed to rubble and matchwood by the allies.) The modern painted corrugated roofing detracted slightly from the overall effect but still well worth seeing. In the late 19th century, a new King moved one building to another part of the city and donated it to become the Shwenandaw Monastery for the local monks. The building was the old Kings bed-chamber in which the new King saw his fathers ghost wandering about, and this apparently generous gesture ensured that the new King never had to enter that building again. Ironically, because it was moved, it is the only building to survive. We visited it but no sign of the old King's ghost today.

Next, the worlds biggest book, 729 pages of Buddhist scriptures, each on a marble slab, each with its own little house in the Kuthodaw Pagoda complex. Impressive. Lastly to the top of Mandalay Hill itself. There are 1,729 steps from bottom to top, but we don't see any of them as we take the escalator. We see the sun set over the city and the Irrawaddy River. Magnificent.

There is a temple up here too, and an air of peace and tranquility. Best wishes to you all, John