Day #9 Mandalay to Mingun
January 12
Moat and Walls
Oo Myint tells us about the wall and 230-foot wide moat
around Mandalay Fort and previously the palace (before it burned down). The
wall built in 1850 is 26 feet high and is deep red-brown stone. There are wonderful photogenic
reflections of wall and trees on the moat. We are told that originally there
were human sacrifices made at each of the four corners. A fortuneteller selected
the people to be sacrificed.
I am not sure what day of the week this is. Someone tells me
it is Sunday but clearly for Buddhists this day is no different than the other
days. We take an hour-long boat trip on the Ayeyarwady River to Mingun.
This boat is relaxing compared to our other boat trips because it has rather comfortable wicker chairs and the motor seems quieter. We almost meditate on the boat as we pass all kinds of colored wooden boats and bamboo rafts carrying all sorts of goods up the river. Virginia tells me about a limerick she wrote for us because she thought it was our 47th anniversary (we are only at 42). She continues to delight us with her insightfulness and subtlety. She reminds me of my mother who was an English teacher but she has more humor. Later I find out her mother was American although her father was a Brit.
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| Our boat |
This boat is relaxing compared to our other boat trips because it has rather comfortable wicker chairs and the motor seems quieter. We almost meditate on the boat as we pass all kinds of colored wooden boats and bamboo rafts carrying all sorts of goods up the river. Virginia tells me about a limerick she wrote for us because she thought it was our 47th anniversary (we are only at 42). She continues to delight us with her insightfulness and subtlety. She reminds me of my mother who was an English teacher but she has more humor. Later I find out her mother was American although her father was a Brit.
In
Began
It
began in the year 47
The
Strattons were halfway to heaven
Began
below
On them we bestow
Hurrah for the
next 47
I wonder if I can rewrite it.
In Began
It
began in the year 42
The
Strattons were halfway to the moon
Began
below
On them we bestow
Hurrah for the
next 42
I fail to initially grasp the subtlety of her reference in
this limerick to our balloon trip!
I still love being with the English. But wonder if she will understand
the meaning of my word moon?
We arrive in the riverside village Mingun and are surrounded
by young girls selling necklaces, fans, and postcards. 
One 9-month pregnant girl who looks about 15 asks me my name, where I am from, and whether I have children. She tells me she is due the end of the month and has 2 other children. I chat with her, which indicates I am a receptive possible buyer and she sticks with me helping me climb up the hillside and greeting me later with my shoes that were left outside one of the pagodas. She tells me the fans are very cheap and it would make her happy if I buy one.
Feeling guilty and torn about whether to buy something from
this friendly girl who smiles often to me, I try to ignore her as we head first
for the Mingun Paya.
Oo Myint tells us this is a “big deal” because it is
“solid” (nothing inside it) and took 10,000 people 8 years to build. In fact,
it is a 240-foot cube that looks like a pile of bricks and apparently it would
have been the world’s largest stupa had it been finished. Now it is called the
world’s largest unfinished stupa.
Work stopped when the king died and it was only 1/3 completed. To add to
its dilapidation we see deep cracks caused by the 1832 earthquake and are told
you are no longer able to climb to the top for the fine views.
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| Mingun Paya |
Shopping, Mingun Bell,
Pagodas and Buddhas
Next we see the gigantic bronze bell,
weighing 90 tonnes and learn it is the world’s largest uncracked bell. Skip and John thump the bell to see if we get the world’s loudest sound. I think of Dubai’s Burj Khalifa tower and wonder about the obsession among countries to have the largest or biggest something. Is this a male thing?
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| Hsinbyume Paya |
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| Selling Cigars |
Our group does some shopping here ~ there are many wooden puppets and I encourage Virginia to buy a lovely horse with a rider on it for her granddaughter.
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| Virginia buy horse and rider |
I don’t want to say that I want a puppet for myself as I have no grandchildren but think I will wait until we go to the puppet factory as Oo Myint says the quality is better there.
Janonne buys a longyi for her niece but contemplates keeping it for herself. Avis and Nicole buy some beautiful fabric and think about making cushions with them or wearing while lounging in the garden. Zanny buys some jewelry, a small elephant puppet and an outfit for her grandchild ~ she is obsessed with baby gifts. I have bought an “authentic” Burmese hat which ties with some plastic bag strings, won’t stay on my head and has dye which comes off on my coat ~ but it is beautiful. I dream of having hats like this on our walls. John and Skip sit around wishing they were somewhere else dreaming of drinking beer.
We boat back again for lunch at another lovely restaurant
for Chinese food. I still am not sure I can tell the difference between Chinese
and Burmese food and am longing for a fresh salad and food with less oil. Next
we are to have a comprehensive afternoon of pagodas ~ John asks about taking a
taxi back to the hotel. Oo Myint tells him he should not miss seeing Mahamuni Pagoda, with its most famous,
star attraction Buddha 13 feet high and covered with thick layers of gold
leafs. John reluctantly agrees.
At this pagoda there is a charge for cameras and women are not allowed in near the pagoda where many faithful men are putting gold leaves on the Buddha. David offers to take pictures for me while I hold his camera bag.
Most
impressive for me are
some Hindu-Buddhist Khmer
bronze statues, pilfered from Angkor Wat (others were melted down to make canons for Mandalay’s defense against the British). These battered figures, one emasculated and another of a multi-headed elephant are being rubbed happily by locals because they believe the part of
the body that is rubbed will
correspond to part of their own
body that will be cured.
I suggest John rub his back on the elephant and he does so with Janonne
showing him the way and looking much more elegant as she does this.
It is
interesting to see
parents take their baby’s hands and rub them on various parts of these statues.
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| Mahamuni Pagoda |
At this pagoda there is a charge for cameras and women are not allowed in near the pagoda where many faithful men are putting gold leaves on the Buddha. David offers to take pictures for me while I hold his camera bag.
 |
| Monk rubs bronze statues |
some Hindu-Buddhist Khmer
bronze statues, pilfered from Angkor Wat (others were melted down to make canons for Mandalay’s defense against the British). These battered figures, one emasculated and another of a multi-headed elephant are being rubbed happily by locals because they believe the part of
the body that is rubbed will
 |
| Castrated warrior |
correspond to part of their own
body that will be cured.
I suggest John rub his back on the elephant and he does so with Janonne
showing him the way and looking much more elegant as she does this.  |
| Putting baby's hand on warrior stomach |
parents take their baby’s hands and rub them on various parts of these statues.
Shwe in Bin Monastry
This beautiful teak monastery seems like a good place to meditate. It has detailed engravings outside and inside.
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| Eva US Ambassador (ex) |
World’s largest book
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| Marble slab page inside its own stupa |
This book consists of 729 text-inscribed marble slabs each placed in its own stupa. Our guide told us it took 24,000 monks 6 months to make it. Apparently if you read 3 hours a day it takes 450 days to complete it. Again I note the obsession with having the biggest or largest something, which seems ridiculous.
Puppet and Tapestry Factory
We have run out of time and debate whether we have time to go to the puppet factory. I seem to be one of the only ones who still wants to go ~ so we agree on 10 minutes. Here we see lovely wall tapestries being made by women using detailed fine hand work. 
In addition clothes are being made for the puppets which hang in abundance every where in the store. As indecisive as I am,
I can't possibly make a decision on which puppet to buy in a few minutes ~ I decide to wait to buy the monk I am looking for.
A decision I later regret.
Burma Faces
Again I seem obsessed with taking pictures of mothers, babies and children and wonder why the funds spend on gold for temples couldn't be spent on their education.
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| Boy selling birds |
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| Burma's Future |
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| Early bike riding training ? helmets ? |
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