As a traveler I usually
embark on journeys to places I have never been to before. This rule though,
comes with a few exceptions. Among the places I have returned sooner than I expected
was Bagan in Myanmar. I always feel I have some unfinished business after I
arrived home from my first trip there in March 2013. The itch to resolve that
became the sole reason why exactly three years later – I penciled a plan for
yet another jaunt to this ancient city. This time, I arrived as a solo traveler
and armed with a lengthier period of time in exploring this olden city crawling
with centuries-old temples and pagodas.
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| Temples, pagodas and monasteries of all sizes dominate your view. I spent a number of afternoons parking my e-bike on a random spot and striding aimlessly until I discover obscure ruins where I will find a quiet time to be alone with my thoughts |
Riding an electronic-bike
under the scorching sun of the summer month of March, I explored far and wide,
stopping only to take photographs of the scattered ruins of many kingdom’s pasts.
Yelling a series of ‘Wow’ to the wind
as my spirit rejoices, I marveled at the spectacular and timeless vibe that
lingers in this place. Enveloped by small pockets of towns fused with scores of
small hotels and guest houses, Bagan is inhabited by some of the friendliest
and nicest people I’ve met. My experience this time around, easily encompassed
another memorable collective incursion into the history-rich plains of Bagan.
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| Consulting my map but still ending up getting lost and having more fun |
Passing through
off-the-beaten sandy trails, I was able to visit some of the most obscure
temples and pagodas and accomplished covering more ground. As vast and
tenacious the landscape of Bagan is, there is so much to see and discover. For
five successive days, I awoke early before sunrise with an eagerness to
explore. The bursting heritage and antiquity of this place served as the only
motivation I needed.
Kingdom
of Pagan
Bagan is known as an ancient
city situating in the Mandalay Region of Myanmar. The ruins that now lay
scattered in its golden powdery plains, are from the kingdoms that flourished
during the 9th century until the 13th century, when it served as the capital of
the Kingdom of Pagan – the very first kingdom that consolidated all the regions
under one rule and is also credited for introducing Theravada Buddhism and
establishing the Burmese ethnicity and culture in the whole of Myanmar. During
the peak of this kingdom, more than 10,000 Buddhist pagodas, monasteries and
temples were built right on the vast Bagan plains.
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| What better way to remind you of Bagan’s timelessness than the many remnants of its many temples, monasteries and pagodas that still stands as far as the eyes can see. |
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| The Bagan sunset takes into another level of visual pleasure as the towering pagodas and temples serves as a beautiful foreground to the fiery setting sun in the horizon |
Traveler Meet-up and the Bagan Sunset
Upon settling in at my cabin
at Bagan Lodge and Resort, I met with a Lithuanian girl named Egle through a mobile app and decided to meet up in the
afternoon. Egle, I later learned works at a nearby hostel called Ostello
Bello. After downing one bottle of Myanmar beer she told me about her ‘secret spot’ to best watch the sunset.
Renting an electronic bike for each of us, we rode towards the lesser crowded
temple she was telling me about to watch the famed sunset of Bagan.
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| Me and Egle atop his 'secret place' where less crowd of travelers watch the sunset from |
The solemn sunset and the
striking visuals it brought, injected my insight to this place with an
increased fascination. The next day, I would start and repeat the process for
the next five days. I would rev my limited electronic bike engine to 50 kph and
battle the unforgiving heat with the hissing wind kissing my face. Temple after
temple, pagodas after the other; I hopped from one to another taking
self-portraits and meeting locals along the way.
The
Timelessness of Bagan
Other than Egle, I was
fortunate to cross paths with a number of locals; each one displaying a genuine
smile and a probing curiosity to my origin “Where
you from?” many of them would ask me. “Ah
Philippians” they would repeat back to me after I tell them “from the Philippines”. A lot of them
sell souvenir items – but everyone engaged me in a friendly demeanor because
most of them, other than wanting to earn from tourism, just wanted to practice
their English by conversing with other travelers. One young girl named Zuzo even tried teaching me a few
phrases in Japanese and Spanish. “I don’t
go to school but I learn Japanese and Spanish from tourists” she tells me. “Come, sit here teach me your words in
your country too”. I told her to remember the words “Salamat” and “Magandang Araw”
if ever she meets another traveler from the Philippines.
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| This is Kune she pointed me another #temple 'good view up there' then when I was about to leave did she only mentioned the sand paintings she is selling. "Just please take a lookie". I ended up buying one painting of two monks walking side by side for only 2,000 kyats |
My remembrances of Bagan have definitely occupied a bigger portion in my memory bank. The timeless atmosphere prevailing over these desert plains brings forth an abundance of heritage and history with it. As a traveler eager for new knowledge, exploring this part of the world is getting kind of addicting. Just like how young Zuzo’s small stall shall expand someday, I feel like the lure of this ancient city is becoming stronger to myself as well.
