Thursday 5 November 1998 (Driver Ya Rau Sou).
Relatively late start. Set off for Amarapura – looked at bronze costings and wood carving places along the way – examined one humble home in some detail, including a densely populated, young woman showing off her spread.
Then onto Mahagandhayon Monastery where we were able to witness the monks dining (circus style) while Daiso [Janie] decided that she wasn’t feeling very well. After sending out the search parties throughout the monastery, we were joyfully reunited and then looked around the masters quarters, senior students quarters and a dormitory (where Daiso’s pencils and glacier mints, went as fast as a rabbit down a hole).
Next – on to U Bein Bridge where we took pictures and bought a picture for Daiso – also bought a weird root vegetable (ice potato) which we ate for/with lunch. Then on to lunch at Emerald Green, good chicken soup, not much else.
I cannot find a modern reference to that restaurant nor to the root vegetable that Kyaw called “ice potato”. The restaurant long gone I expect, the vegetable no doubt known as something else. It reminded me of daikon, if I remember correctly.
Then on to Bagaya Monastery with 400 Buddha images – then to see silk weaving and did business on six longyis!
Then on to Aya Bridge across Irrawaddy (no photos directly, but scenes around the bridge). Then back to ferr yboat crossed river (can take photos of bridge now )– then into pony and trap for back-breaking ride around Ava [aka Innwa or Inwa] – 18th century, monasteries/temple/Paya. – Eventually (numb) get to the other Bagaya Monastery (stunning) where few monks live.
We took the bone breaking ride back to the ferry and wended our way home via the longyi shop (where they have sewn up how longyis for us). Dinner at Honey Garden restaurant where we continue to fail to get any duck, but we are compensated with excellent double cooked pork and shrimp rolls. Early night.
The photographs from this day are pictures 31 to 74 in this Flickr album – click here or below:
A placeholder piece which shows the full itinerary and has links to the albums of all our photographs for this trip can be found by clicking here or the link below: