Back in November, a friend's friend making his way through Asia stopped in Myanmar. This was the perfect excuse for me to play tourist in this country which is fast becoming home. Even with less than four months here (back then), the details of the day to day and the comfort of routine had begun to settle in so this was an ideal opportunity to get out of Yangon and see some more of the Golden Land.
In order to maximize what we could do and see, I worked with a travel agent to design an itinerary and we hired a driver. This is pretty common here and definitely affordable. He picked us up at 7am Saturday morning and we were off - road trip!
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| View from the window |
It takes about 45 - 60 minutes to get out of Yangon and we enjoyed watching the city go by in the early morning. We stayed on the freeway for awhile, but then turned off onto smaller and smaller roads, passing villages and countryside.
After checking into our hotel, packing daypacks and a delicious Burmese lunch, our driver dropped us off at the base of the mountain. You take a truck to the top of the mountain and then walk the rest of the way to Kyaiktiyo (Golden Rock).
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| On the way to Golden Rock |
We got caught in a rainstorm on the way up, even though it was November (supposedly the end of rainy season). Needless to say, there were no pictures, even with our electronics buried deep in my water resistant REI backpack, we were worried they would get ruined. We were all soaked, but the weather didn't seem to dampen the pilgrims' spirits.
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| Official entrance. From here on no shoes or socks. |
While Golden Rock certainly isn't "undiscovered," there aren't a lot of westerners there. Our visit to this spot was as much a sight as the surroundings. One of my colleagues compares it to being a B-list celebrity. Stares, shy smiles, "hello's" and requests for photos are common. The best thing to do is smile and say yes.
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| Taking a picture of their picture at the entrance to Kyaiktiyo. |
The rain had stopped and the views were breathtaking from the top. The space is huge and there are pilgrims everywhere. While westerners are not permitted to camp out, this same rule does not apply to locals and most make the most of their time here, staying overnight, preparing food, praying, meditating, napping and of course, there are kids playing.
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| The panoramic mode on my iPhone! |
We wandered, taking in the whole scene of this sacred space and eventually made our way to the Golden Rock. Legend says that it is not resting on the edge of this cliff, but floating, since a strand of the Buddha's hair rests there. It is covered in gold leaf, tissue paper thin sheets of real gold which devotees press on.
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| Here it is! |
Unfortunately, only men are permitted to cross the small bridge out to the rock and touch it. There are security guards and an airport style detector to walk through, so I didn't push and try to get out on the ledge, but I really wanted to touch the gravity-defying rock.
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| Another angle - it's mesmerizing. |
We made our way down and around the rock. The other interesting thing about this site is that there are donation boxes everywhere. Most are made of clear glass and stuffed full of kyats. It's quite the combination to see so much cash against the background of this religious site.
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| Meditating next to a donation box... |
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| Setting up bowls for candles - these are Myanmar letters, but I don't know what it says. |
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| The plaza above the rock. |
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| Rainbow reward after getting drenched. |
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| Storefront selling potions on the way up. |
Although sunrise and sunset are supposed to be special and beautiful times at Kyaiktiyo, we didn't want to miss the last truck down so we squeezed into the back of a pickup and enjoyed the sunset views on the switchbacks working our way back to town.
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| Snaking our way back down the mountain. |
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| Sunset ride back. |
So, this was one full day! Stay tuned for the next entry about Bago as our trip continues - pagodas, buddhas and one very old snake.
