Marked i Mandalay

                  NB: Klik på billedet for forstørrelse / Click on photos to enlarge
 

Som i Yangon kører de gamle busser fra emperietidens dage stadig

En afslappet munk i Shwe In Bin Kyaung

Shwenandaw Kyaung

Den enorme siddende buddha i Kyauktawgyi Paya, skåret ud af en enkelt blok marmor

Atumashi Kyaung

Buddhafiguren dekoreres med guldblade af besøgende

The Mahamuni Buddha image is the most venerated Buddha image in Mandalay. The crown of the 4 m high seated image is decorated with diamonds, rubies, and sapphires.
The figure is covered in a 15 cm thick layer of gold because devotees apply gold leaf to the image to gain merit. Every morning at 4 am, a team of monks washes the face and brushes its teeth.

Dukketeaterforestilling i Mandalay Marionettes & Culture Show, en kunstart som næsten døde ud i 1800-tallet. Forestillingen har traditionel musikledsagelse af et femmands orkester.
Før dukketeaterforestillingen er der en kort koncert på klassisk burmesisk harpe
 

På Mandalay Hill mødte jeg Thu Thu, en turistguide, og en munk. Munken udtalte sig meget klart mod regeringen, men var samtidig hele tiden på vagt om der var spioner i nærheden. (Det hemmelige politi går under navnet KGB). Hvis vi skulle tale politik, skulle jeg komme til klosteret, hvor han åbenbart følte sig helt tryg. Det er interessant at klostrene udgør modstandslommer i landet. Munken sagde at i klostrene har man ingen forpligtelser over for familie, m.m., og derfor er munkene ikke bange for at sætte livet på spil.

The Moustache Brothers

Like stand-up comics anywhere, the Moustache Brothers love to mock their political masters. In Burma, however, such jokes are dangerous and Mandalay’s only dissident comedy troupe lives with the constant threat of a visit from the secret police. Two of the three men have already spent nearly five years chained together, breaking rocks in the company of drug addicts and hardened criminals in the mountains of Kachin State. Their crime: making the audience laugh at the military regime. Undeterred, they still perform for tourists. http://www.timesonline.co.uk/article/0,,3-1741179,00.html
 

Teaterforestilling/revy hos Moustache Brothers. Gruppen er kritisk over for regeringen og støtter åbent Aung San Suu Kyi. Lederen, Par Par Lay, har været fængslet to gange for sin kritik og har aftjent syv års hårdt tvangsarbejde. Det er ikke alle der slipper levende fra et sådant ophold i et af militærregimets fængsler. Gruppen har forbud mod at optræde offentligt og er følgelig overladt til at spille for turister i deres eget hjem. Forestillingen er åbenlyst politisk, og skuespillerne er hele tiden opmærksom på hvad der sker ude på gaden. Bedstefaderen sidder udenfor og holder udkig efter politispioner. Forestillingen er varieret og underholdende, og det er afgjort vigtigt at støtte truppen. En forklaring på at medlemmerne ikke er arresteret igen er at de også bakkes op af Lonely Planet, som har viet en side til dem i deres guidebook.

Efter forestillingen har jeg æren af at spise natmad på en gadegrill sammen med Par Par Lay og den burmesiske turistguide Thu Thu.

Par Par Lay og Thu Thu

Ayeyarwady River - The riverfront


Dagligliv ved Ayeyarwady (Irrawaddy) floden

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Mingun

View of the Ayeyarwady River from Mingun Paya
 

Mingun is located about 11 km upriver from Mandalay, on the west bank of the Ayeyawaddy River. It is reached by ferryboats and takes 1 hour up-river and 40 minutes down-river.
Mingun has a gigantic unfinished pagoda, Mingun Paya, 50 meters high, overlooking the river. In 1790 during the reign of King Bodawpaya the construction of a 150 meters high pagoda was started. It was meant to become the highest pagoda in the world. But when Bodawpaya died in 1819 work on the project ceased, so that the pagoda remains unfinished. An earthquake split the monument in 1838 and reduced it to partial rubble.

 

Mingun Paya. Murstensruinen er 50 meter høj og skulle have været fundamentet til verdens største 150 meter høje pagode. Bygningsværket blev senere ødelagt af et jordskælv i 1838.
 

Mingun Bell

Mingun Bell: In 1808 the king had a gigantic bell cast to go with his gigantic stupa.
It is claimed to be the largest hung, uncracked bell in the world.

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U Bein Bridge

U Bein Bridge is the longest teak bridge in the world, 1,2 km.
It is about two centuries old

U Bein’s Bridge is a great place to while away a few hours away from the heat and dust of Mandalay. Walk across the bridge and back, enjoy a beer and the views of the Ayeyarwady in one of the small restaurants by the bridge, and sample whole fried fish in the twilight.

Pigernes frisure er dekoreret på traditionel vis med ranker af jasminblomster

Mandalay - Bagan Ferry
 

Activity on shore every time the boat moors

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The ferry: From Mandalay to Bagan by ferry you can choose between an express ferry and the slow boat. I went on the slow boat which (in the rainy season with plenty of water in the river) was actually only about an hour longer than the express boat. (Possibly, the slow boat is run by the government.)
The express boat is for tourists and the slow boat is frequented by the locals. So experience-wise, the slow boat is the better choice. You spend the day watching how people eat, sleep and pass the time on the river. Every time the boat moors there is lots of activity to observe: people getting on and off with all their packages, saleswomen getting on and trying to get off before the boat departs, etc.
 

Passengers
 

Young saleswomen from Pakokku trying to sell their blankets