Transfer
Overnight in Yangon.
Flight from Yangon to Heho
By vehicle from Heho to Inle Lake
Transfer by boat
Excursion by canoe through the canals to visit various villages on the lake
Overnight in Inle Lake.
INLE LAKE: Inle Lake, located in Shan State, is beautiful, with very calm waters dotted with patches of floating vegetation and fishing canoes. High hills rim the lake on all sides. The lake's shore and islands bear 17 villages on stilts, mostly inhabited by the Intha people. Enjoy the spectacular scenery and observe the skilled fisherman using their leg-rowing technique to propel themselves around the lake. Visit the floating gardens, a market and a Intha village around the lake (please note that no markets take place on full moon or new moon days). The day sightseeing also includes a visit to the PHAUNG DAW OO PAGODA, INN PAW KHON VILLAGE (Lotus and silk weaving) and the NGA PHE KYAUNG MONASTERY.
Overnight in Inle Lake.
By vehicle from Inle Lake to Shwe Nyaung, continuing by train to Kalaw
Sightseeing in Kalaw with a light trek to nearby villages
Popular hill station in the British days, Kalaw sits high on the western edge of the Shan Plateau. It is still a peaceful and quiet place with an atmosphere reminiscent of the colonial era. The small population is a mix of Shan, Indian Muslim, Bamar and Nepali.
THEIN TAUNG PAYA: temple perched on the hill overlooking the Thazi-Taunggyi Road.
AUNG CHANG THA ZEDI: glittering stupa (Buddhist religious monument) covered in gold-coloured mosaics.
DHAMMA YON: a two-storey temple which from upstairs has fair views of the town, Dhamma Yanthi Paya and the ruins of the Hsu Taung Pye Paya.
HSU TAUNG PYE PAYA: ruins and now a field of crumbling stupas behind the Dhamma Yon towards the Kalaw Hotel.
NEE PAYA: located west of the town, it features a gold lacquered bamboo Buddha.
CHRIST THE KING CHURCH: a brick Catholic church under the supervision of the Burmese Father Paul, and the Italian Father Angelo Di Meo, who have been in Myanmar since 1931. The Christ figure over the altar came from Italy, and Father Angelo painted the mural background.
TREKKING: the plateau near Kalaw is inhabited by people of the Palaung and Pao tribes. Intha, Shan, Taungthu, Taung-yo, Danu. Kayah, Danaw and Bamar people occupy the mountains to the north and east. One of the main sources of income is the cultivation of 'thanaq-hpeq' (a large leaf used to wrap Burmese cigars).
Overnight in Kalaw.
Journey north along Highway 41 past Aungban and the Danu villages of Pwehla and Ji-Chanzi in Shan State. The Aungban-Pindaya road is scenic and there are fields of dry-cultivated mountain rice along the way and potato fields where the tuber is grown in red mud mounds.
Visit Pindaya Caves
PINDAYA CAVES: these caves are ensconced in a limestone ridge overlooking the lake. Inside the cavern there are more than 8000 Buddha images
made from alabaster, teak, marble, brick, lacquer and cement
and are arranged in such a way as to form a labyrinth throughout the various cave chambers.
SHWE U MIN PAYA: this is a cluster of low stupas just below the ridge near the Pindaya Caves. Beginning on the full moon of Tabaung (February/March), Pindaya hosts a colourful pagoda festival at Shwe U Min.
By vehicle from Pindaya to Heho
Journey south past Pwehla on Highway 41 and then due east at Aungban on Highway 4.Flight from Heho to Mandalay
Transfer
Overnight in Mandalay.
Mandalay was the last capital of Myanmar before the British took over so it still has great importance as a cultural center and historically it's the most Burmese of the country's large cities. Mandalay's Buddhist monasteries are among the most important in the country - about 60% of all the monks in Myanmar reside in the Mandalay area. The city takes its name from Mandalay Hill, the 236m-high bluff that rises just to the north-east of Mandalay Fort and its royal palace.
MANDALAY FORT: imposing walled palace compound constructed in 1857 with a channel from the Mandalay irrigation canal filling the moat. After the British occupied the city in 1885 the compound was named Fort Dufferin and became the colony's government house and British Club.
MANDALAY MUSEUM & LIBRARY: museum and library containing a collection of Mandalay regalia, royally commissioned art and palm-leaf manuscripts that were formerly housed in the palace. Most of the articles date from the reigns of the last two Mandalay kings.
KYAUKTAWGYI PAGODA: built between 1853 and 1878 and chiefly interesting for the huge seated image of the Buddha carved from a single block of marble. The marble block from the mines of nearby Sagyin was so colossal that it required 10,000 men laboring for 13 days to transport it from a canal to the current site.
SANDAMANI PAYA: a cluster of slender whitewashed stupas built on the site of King Mindon's temporary palace - used while the new Mandalay Palace was under construction. The Paya enshrines an iron image of the Buddha cast in 1802 by Bodawpaya and transported here from Amarapura in 1874.
MAHAMUNI PAYA: originally built by King Bodawpaya in 1784 when a road paved with bricks was constructed from his palace to the paya's eastern gate. The centerpiece of the shrine is the highly venerated Mahamuni image that was transported to Myanmar from Mrauk U in Rakhaing in 1784.
KUTHODAW PAYA: the central stupa here was modeled on the Shwezigon Paya at Nyaung U near Bagan. Building commenced in 1857, at the same time as the royal palace. The paya has been dubbed 'the world's biggest book', for standing around the central stupa are 729 marble slabs on which are inscribed the entire Tripitaka.
SHWENANDAW KYAUNG: monastery of great interest, not only as a fine example of a traditional Burmese wooden monastery, but as a fragile reminder of the old Mandalay Fort. At one time this building was part of the palace complex, and was used as an apartment by King Mindon and his chief queen, and it was here that he died. After Mindon's death King Thibaw Min had the building dismantled and reassembled on its present site in 1880 as a monastery.
SHWEKYIMYINT PAYA: founded in 1167 by Prince Minshinzaw during the Bagan period. He was the exiled son of King Alaungsithu and settled near the present site of Mandalay. The shrine is notable because it contains the original Buddha image consecrated by the prince.
Overnight in Mandalay.
Drive west across the Ayeyarwady River to Monywa, capital of Sagaing Division, on the banks of the Chindwin River.Excursion by boat and vehicle to the Pow Win Daung Caves
Cross the Chindwin River by local ferry and continue westwards towards the Pow Win Daung caves by open jeep.
NYAUNGBINGYI SEIK: opposite the river from Monywa, this thriving market town provides an unspoiled example of local life.
POW WIN CAVES: this series of caves is set in the hillside along a meandering path and contains Buddha images and beautifully preserved murals dating from the 14th-16th centuries.
Overnight in Monywa.
Monywa is situated on the eastern bank of the Chindwin River, with a population of 300,000, and is the second biggest town in Upper Myanmar. It serves as a major trade centre for agricultural produce from the surrounding Chindwin Valley, especially beans, pulses and sugar palm.
THANBODDHAY PAYA: built between 1939 and 1952 by Moehnyin Sayadaw, the solid section of the monument is said to enclose 7350 relics and other holy materials.
TWIN DAUNG: hill stands only 200m above the surrounding plain, but features a 50m-deep round lake known as Myitta Kan, whose water level reportedly rises and falls with the Chindwin.
LEDI KYAUNG: monastery on the north-eastern edge of town constructed in 1886 by order of renowned Pali scholar Ledi Sayadaw. Similar in concept to Kuthodaw Paya in Mandalay, the kyaung features 806 stone slabs inscribed with Buddhist scriptures.
SHWE GU NI PAYA: one of the most important pilgrimage spots in Upper Myanmar, dating to the 14th century, the main zedi of Shwe Gu Ni Paya rises 33m and is famous for its 'wish-fulfilling' powers.
By vehicle from Monywa to Pakokku
By charter boat from Pakokku to Bagan
Transfer
Overnight in Bagan.
Bagan is a spectacular plain stretching away from the Ayeyarwaddy River, dotted with thousands of 800-year old temple ruins. Although human habitation at Bagan dates back almost to the beginning of the Christian era, Bagan only entered its golden period with the conquest of Thaton in 1057 AD.
SHWEZIGON PAYA: King Anawrahta started the construction of the Schwezigon Pagoda to enshrine some relicts of Buddha. The construction was finished by his successor, King Kyansittha between 1086 and1090. Originally the Shwezigon Pagoda marked the northern end of the city of Bagan. The stupa's graceful bell shape became a prototype for virtually all later stupas over Myanmar.
GUBYAUKHYI TEMPLE at Wetkyi-Inn: This Temple was built in the early 13th Century and repaired in 1468. The great colorful painting about the previous life of Buddha and the distinguished architecture make this temple an interesting site for a visit. This temple is not to be confounded with the Gubyaukgyi Temple in Myinkabe.
ANANDA PAHTO: one of the finest, largest, best preserved and most revered of the Bagan temples. Thought to have been built around 1105 by King Kyanzittha, this perfectly proportioned temple heralds the stylistic end of the Early Bagan period and the beginning of the Middle period.
GUBYAUKGYI TEMPLE at Myinkaba: Built in 1113 by Kyanzittha's son Rajakumar, this temple is famous for its well-preserved Stuccos from the 12th century on the outside walls. The magnificent paintings date from the original construction of the temple and are considered to be the oldest original paintings in Bagan.
MANUHA TEMPLE: The Manuha Temple was built in 1059 by King Manuha, the King of Thaton, who was brought captive to Bagan by King Anawrahta. It enshrines the unusual combination of 3 seated and one reclining image Buddha. It is said that this temple was built by Manuha to express his displeasure about his captivity in Bagan.
SHWESANDAW PAYA: In 1057 King Anawrahta built this Pagoda following his conquest of Thaton. This is the first monument in Bagan, which features stairways leading up from the square bottom terraces to the round base of the Stupa. This Pagoda is ideal to watch Bagan's magnificent sunsets. Overnight in Bagan.
Flight from Bagan to Yangon
Transfer
Sightseeing Yangon
Visit Chaukhtatgyi Paya
The reclining Buddha at Chaukhtatgyi is almost as large as the enormous figure in Bago. It's housed in a large metal-roofed shed on Shwegondaing Lan, only short distance north-east beyond the Shwedagon Paya. Surprisingly,this huge figure is little known and hardly publicised at all- if you can't go to Bago to see the Shwethalyaung,then don't miss this colossal image.Visit Sule Pagoda
SULE PAGODA: this 48 meter high golden dome was used by the British as the nucleus of their grid pattern for the city when it was rebuilt in the 1880s. The pagoda's peculiarity is its octagonal-shaped stupa, which retains its shape as it tapers to the spire.Visit Botataung Pagoda
BOTATAUNG PAGODA: this paya was named after the 1000 military leaders who escorted relics of the Buddha brought from India over 2000 years ago. This ancient monument was completely destroyed during WWII. It was then rebuilt in a very similar style to its predecessor, but the zedi is hollow and one can walk through it.Visit Bogyoke Aung San (Scott) Market (closed on Mondays)
BOGYOKE AUNG SAN MARKET: also known as Scott Market, this building contains over 2000 stalls and is the best place in Yangon to browse through the complete range of local handicrafts.Visit Shwedagon Pagoda at sunset
SHWEDAGON PAGODA: the highlight of any visit to Yangon, this pagoda towers over the city and is the most sacred spot in the country, built to house eight hair relics of the Buddha. The Shwedagon and surrounding shrines are particularly beautiful during the sunset hour, as the golden stupa reflects the changing colors of twilight.
Overnight in Yangon.
