Mandalay

My third pre-dawn start in a row was a bit of a killer, but needs must and I was up early again to get the train to Mandalay. 

Bagan train station

Burmese trains have a reputation for bumpiness but this route was fairly mellow, probably just because we never picked up enough speed to get the train rattling. The route took us through rural farmland and seeing the rudimentary farming methods in use gives a good impression of how little development there has been in the last 60 years. A group of women sat next to me must have thought I looked hungry as they kept feeding me their fare of greens and something similar to fried broad beans. Not actually that tasty - salty and slightly bitter. 

Cautiously saving the lives on the Rail Road

The train got into Mandalay at 2 and I had a hot, sweaty but enjoyable walk through the city to find my hostel. Mandalay is quite a new city so there's no grand colonial architecture around. It's got a great vibe though and the people seem particularly friendly. Out for a bike ride in the late afternoon, and taking the more scenic back roads, I seemed to get a shouted hello or a wave from every other scooter that passed me. I got multiple cheers from a pickup full of women.

Boats on the Ayeyarwady

Street life

I followed the magnificent river Ayeyarwady south and then headed to the famous Ubein bridge for sunset, passing through lively festive street stalls, before entering a maze of small streets and alleys in the town near the bridge. I would never have been able to navigate that confusing spaghetti mess of streets myself but everyone knew where I was going and a shouted "Ubein?" unerringly got a point in the right direction. Weaving machines are everywhere and the sound of them thrashing away filled the streets as I picked my way through the neighbourhood.

The Ubein bridge stretches across the lagoon in the background

 I found my way to the bridge just in time for sunset and although I knew it's one of Myanmar's top tourist attractions I still wasn't quite prepared for the throng of people stretching across the full length of the bridge to the other side of the lagoon. Given the stream of people leaving I thought the sun must have disappeared behind cloud but no, the fiery red ball was setting on cue, reflected prettily in the lakes water.

The teak planks of the Ubein bridge

Tourist boats vie for the best photo spot

My cycle home proved to be a bit of an adventure. A nice quiet route down the back roads proved a little too quiet and someone eventually had to lead me out of what, I think, was a sprawling monastery complex I'd somehow ended up in.

It was truly an excellent afternoon and a lot of fun. The vibrancy of the city, the sight of the mighty river, and the open friendliness of the locals made it one of my favourite experiences in Myanmar so far.

What I'd really been looking forward to all day however was the opportunity to finally remove my stitches. They smoothly slid out and my little hole had healed nicely.

I got treated to a birthday meal that night by a couple of guys from my hostel. Myanmar isn't exactly renowned for its wild nightlife but there's certainly some unique experiences to be found; dining at the Unique restaurant for example. It's a modern, sharp restaurant with great food but when 9 pm strikes, the blinds are lowered, the lights dimmed and then the DJ (yes the DJ, spinning vinyl in his DJ booth) starts pumping out high tempo techno to accompany your meal. And then there's the lasers and flourescent AK47 shishas. Definitely got a unique thing going on.