Mandalay & AroundWhy Go?For those who haven’t been there – and that includes The Road to Mandalay author Rudyard Kipling – the mention of ‘Mandalay’ typically conjures up images of Asia at its most traditional and timeless. The initial reality can be a major anticlimax – a traffic-choked grid of interminable straight roads full of anonymous concrete buildings. But don’t de-spair – though it’s a relatively ‘young’, dynamic city, Man-dalay is Myanmar’s cultural capital. It’s easy to escape from the fumes and architectural banalities of the main streets in quarters full of craft workshops and tree-shaded monaster-ies. The temple-topped Mandalay, Yankin and Yedagon Hills offer welcomed exceptions to the city’s pan-flat topography, and several mini-theatres showcase traditional performing arts. Meanwhile, Mandalay is the main transport hub for northern Myanmar and offers a panoply of easy day-trip destinations, including four former royal capitals and the site of what would have been the world’s biggest stupa, had it ever been finished.
Best Religious Structures¨¨ Bagaya Kyaung (p249)
¨¨ Mahamuni Paya (p228)
¨¨ Mingun Paya (p255)
¨¨ Pahtodawgyi (p249)
¨¨ Shwe In Bin Kyaung (p230)
Best Views¨¨ River scenes, Ayarwaddy
River View Hotel (p236)
¨¨ U-Bein Bridge (p248), Taungthaman Lake
¨¨ City panoramas, 10th-floor Skybar of Shwe Ingyin Hotel (p236)
¨¨ Sagaing from Shin Pin Nan Kain (p253) or Shwe-Kyet-Kya (p254)
When to Go
Nov–Feb Peak tourist season: days hot but bearable, eve-nings mild or oc-casionally chilly.
Apr–Sep Heat gives way to seri-ous rain midsum-mer; widespread closures during Thingyan festival.
Oct & Mar Budget hotels less busy than at peak but air-con will be useful and rain is still possible.
F DNOSAJJMAMJ
Mandalay°C/°F Temp Rainfall inches/mm
0
12/300
8/200
4/10010/50
0/32
30/86
40/104
20/68
Mandalay .................. 223Around Mandalay ...... 247Amarapura ................ 248Inwa (Ava) ................. 249Sagaing ..................... 252Mingun ...................... 255Paleik ........................ 256Pinya .......................... 256Yedagon Hills ............. 256Kyaukse ..................... 257
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andalay & aro
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KandawgyiLake
TaungthamanLake
ShwetaChaung
HantharwaddyVillage
Amarapura
PaleikVillage
Mingun
Tadu-U
Sagaing
GwagegyiVillage
YeHtwe
Mandalay
Fortress
Ayeyarwady R
iver
84th
St
78th
St
35th St
19th St
26th St
10th St
62nd
St
62nd St
NH
1
Mandalay-Pyin Oo Lwin Rd
14th St88th St
30th St
TheikPan St
Yangon–Man
dalay Expressway
YankinHill
ThabyedanFort
'Road toMandalay'Jetty
PaleikSnake
Temple
MandalayJail
Pyi GyiMyat ShinBus Station
Boss Sweet &Win-Win 35
StoneCarvers
SinkyoneFortress remnants& Jetty
RoyalLake
Emperor
ShweTaung Tarn
RuparMandalar
Hotel Shwe Pyi Thar35 Skateworld
Mya KyaukMonastery
Bus Station(planned)
Golden ToothPagoda
Pinya StupaRuins
Shin PinNan Kain
MingunPaya
MahamuniPaya
Shwe In Bin Kyaung#æ
CyclingTour
U-Bein Bridge#1
#2
#3
#4#5
#6
#7Gold-Pounders'District
See AmarapuraMap (p248)
See CentralMandalay
Map (p228)
See Royal MandalayMap (p224)
See InwaMap (p250)
See MingunMap (p255)
See SagaingMap (p253)
#e0 5 km0 2.5 miles
D
Taungbyone,Mataya
DYangon(550km)
D
D
KaunghmudhawPaya (2km);Monywa
(8km);Yangon (550km)#–
D
Railway Line toShwebo, Myitkyina
DYaytagon GolfCourse (2km);
Dhamma MandalaMeditation Centre(2.7km); Yedagon
Hills (3km)
DPyin Oo
Lwin
DPyin Oo
Lwin
1 Watch sunrise or sunset from the world’s longest teak bridge, U-Bein Bridge (p248)
2 Survey Sagaing’s monastery-dappled hills and gilded pagodas from Shin Pin Nan Kain (p253) pagoda
3 Ponder unfinished Mingun Paya (p255), reached by boat from Mandalay
4 Escape Mandalay’s bustle with our cycling tour (p233)
5 Potter around Mandalay’s lesser-known monasteries, including the teak masterpiece Shwe In Bin Kyaung (p230)
6 Arrive at Mahamuni Paya (p228) by 4am as attendants wash the face of the country’s most famous buddha image
7 discover crafts being made, including edible sheets of gold leaf, in the Gold Pounders’ District (p227)
8 Witness the two-man ‘elephant’ dance during an annual festival at little-visited Kyaukse (p257) or with free evening performances at Mya nandar restaurant (p240)
Mandalay & Around Highlights