Pyin OO Lwin

We are now in Pyin OO Lwin which, as mentioned yesterday, is an old hill station.  Our day began with a walk around a local covered market which sells everything you could imagine, including Minions.  

After the rather steep price of wine in the hotel last night ($35 a bottle) we were able to find a boozeria and stock up for the next couple of days.  This little chap was patiently sitting in the shop playing with his soldiers.

We then had a 2hr walk around Burma’s only botanical gardens which were absolutely beautiful.

There was a collection of petrified wood which was gorgeous, would have loved to bring some home.

Also a small bird enclosure where we saw two magnificent hornbills, the way they moved reminded me of the bird from the cartoon ‘UP’ and how I imagine a Dodo would have moved.

And this peacock sitting on his clutch, where the female was I have no idea

The gardens also housed one of the best orchid collections I've ever seen

After yet another delicious al fresco lunch we got to ride in old stage coaches which are the only form of taxi in the town.  Beautiful old carriages, loving restored and well cared for animals but once again incredibly bumpy so the photos are a bit squiffy.  After we stopped to photograph one particular old colonial building I ask if I could ride up top which gave me a great view but was a bit hairy as the locals think nothing of hooting loudly as they pass – horse or no horse!

We ended up at the railway station where I thought the time table was very honest - guess!

Then back into town to look at All Saints Church 

and the clock tower which our guide said was donated by the composer Henry Purcell but he didn't know what his connection with the town was (apparently he donated another clock tower to Cape Town).  Having looked at Wikipedia I think the answer is no connection whatsoever, it was another person named Purcell who lived some 220 years later.

I loved this old guy with his horse and cart.

After that we went up to the old governor’s mansion, which has been reproduced inside rather than restored, complete with some rather disturbing wax works – red eyes and a strange green pallor.  This 5 bedroom building is owned by our hotel and can be rented for £2,000 per night but is completely lacking in character so personally I wouldn’t bother.  The only attractive thing about it was the indoor swimming pool sited just yards from the bar.

Dead ringer for Lord Lucan

Mingun

Today after leaving the opulent Mandalay Hill Hotel we got on a boat for an 11km trip up the Irrawaddy River to Mingun to see what they describe as the largest pile of bricks in the world (an unfinished pagoda) and the largest uncracked bell in the world (the largest, but cracked being in Russia).

Getting onboard was quite fun, down a slippery sandy bank, onto some bedded-in sandbags then along a narrow gangplank.  At least there was a bamboo pole to hold onto but when I got off I realised this wasn't fixed to anything but merely held by two guys. 

We had a good opportunity to look at river life as we passed by.

These fishermen's houses are washed away each year during the monsoon.

and in the dry season the river banks are continually collapsing

This was the first time in Burma we’d had any hassle with hawkers and they were persistent bu**ers, they just latched on and walked with us for about 1/2 mile gently fanning us all the way – I wasn’t really sure what to say as the polite “No thank you, please go away” had little effect.  On the upside, I bought a pair of trousers for £2.50!

It is considered lucky to strike the giant bell 5 times.

We also visited the Hsinbyume Palace which is a depiction of the mythical Buddhist mountain Mount Meru, the wavy concentric terraces below the stupa representing the seven ranges that encircle the sacred peak.  I’d seen a photo of this place in a competition and what made it such a great shot was the two small novice monks running along one of the terraces.  Sadly there were none today and the middle aged monk I did find there declined to move so I could photograph him.  In hindsight the shot I wanted to emulate was probably a set-up anyway.

We had a delicious riverside lunch (with puppet show!)

Then we got on the bus for our 2 our journey to Pyin OO Lwin, an old hill station about 70kms north east along the infamous Burma Road (which eventually goes to China and so carries a lot of traffic loaded with goods being exported/imported).  It’s a very steep and winding road and unfortunately about half way into the journey a lorry broke down and in their haste to overtake other vehicles either fell off the narrow tarmac and got stuck in gulleys or overheated and broke down themselves.  All in all it was a bit of a nightmare journey, we should have been at the next hotel about 4pm but saw the sun set halfway up a hill surrounding by clouds of dust and hooting vehicles.  But we were safe and warm in the bus so just sat back and enjoyed the show.

Dinner was waiting for us when we finally arrived and then we got in a golf buggy and were driven to our chalet.  It was pitch dark so I have no idea what the grounds of this hotel are like but our room is beautiful.