Lady on her sewing machine and selling various orchids.
There had been quite a bit of rain recently in Nyaung Shwe and the local dam was full. The first night we were there it rained again, but not too much. The local authorities were afraid the dam might burst it's banks soooooooooo in the night they opened the flood gates to let out some water. This is the result in the morning.
And this.....................
And this.....................
This is the U Beins bridge at Amarapura, a 2 km long teak walking bridge that goes from the mainland to a small island community in the middle of the lake.
They have these nice row boats which you can hire along with someone to row them for you.
There are ducks everywhere along the lake.
They have these nice row boats which you can hire along with someone to row them for you.
There are ducks everywhere along the lake.
Meanwhile back in Mandalay, this is what ALL the footpaths look like. Be careful walking the streets at night not because of any problems with the locals but with the big holes. Always take a torch or better still walk on the road.
This is what you will fall into if you are not watching where you are going. The footpaths were like this 30 years ago - nothing has changed.
The man road in Mandalay. The army was noticeably absent on this day, but they pop up all over the place in pairs carrying sub machine guns. We didn't get any nice pics of them this trip but will sneak some snaps next time.
Inside the big book pagoda. The colours are just superb. The building has an interesting mix of Buddhist, Muslim and Hindu influences due to the different religions of the builders. They all added something to make this quite unique.
And again a different view.
Cinthe guarding the entrance to Mandalay hill. These keep all bad spirits and influences out. There is another one on the other side.
Looking up to Mandalay hill from Mandalay city.
Part of the moat around the old Mandalay Palace. The army now use the Palace & grounds as their headquarters - well it's far too nice to leave empty or for tourists to visit.
A nice teak carving above a door.
When we headed bush with Alans old friend the retired Army Colonel, we came across many places that rarely see foreigners. Here a truckload of travelling musicians stopped to check us out. Everyone was very friendly and ever so curious as to why we were there.
Here we get the once over from a local fella wearing a longji, similar to a sarong but both ends of the cloth are sewn together to make a continuous garment instead of 1 long piece of material. I bought several of these for myself which were handmade and with very nice patterns.
When we headed bush with Alans old friend the retired Army Colonel, we came across many places that rarely see foreigners. Here a truckload of travelling musicians stopped to check us out. Everyone was very friendly and ever so curious as to why we were there.
Here we get the once over from a local fella wearing a longji, similar to a sarong but both ends of the cloth are sewn together to make a continuous garment instead of 1 long piece of material. I bought several of these for myself which were handmade and with very nice patterns.
A lot of deserted village streets but within minutes of us arriving there would be faces peering out from everywhere.
A typical village dwelling made from woven bamboo & palm fronds.
A truck stop somewhere out west.
A farmer ploughing the field the traditional way. There are Ads around trying to get farmers to borrow money so they can buy a tractor and make farming easier for themselves, but thankfully so far the farmers are resisting. These people are so poor that could never afford to run the machines or get them repaired let alone paying back a loan. They would remain in debt to these companies ( mainly Chinese ) for the rest of their life or be forced to give up their land and go and live in a slum in the city. 
A local climbing the palm to collect the juice to make palm toddy.
Extracting the juice.
Cooking up the toddy. The first process is done in the morning and the resulting drink is sweet, milky and non alcoholic. After a few hours, the juice starts to ferment and tastes a little like alcoholic lemonade,( for those of you who live in W.A. it tastes like Two Dogs lemonade ) it also has quite a kick to it. The drink then gets stronger as the day gets longer. The next process is to distill the toddy, so the resulting liqueur is clear and lasts indefinately, it is also very, very tasty.
This man is chopping chaff which he will mix with crushed black sesame seeds and feed to his cattle. Looks like wacky weed to us.
Black sesame seeds after they have been crushed. This mixture makes up part of the diet for the cattle.
Crushing of the black sesame seeds.
This nifty little 4x4 Burmese made vehicle costs approx $ 13,000 AUD.
These shelters are scattered all over Burma and are spaces that pilgrims can use for shelter & cooking as they travel throughout the country. Sort of like free camping spots in Australia.
A statue of a white elephant in a wat near Bagan.
Playing with the elephant.
Bell carriers. The bells are meant to be rung, which of course we did.
Old stupa in Bagan. There are thousands of these around the countryside.
Bagan in central Burma is rather flat and usually quite dry. There had been quite a bit of rain recently so it all greened up for us.
An example of some of the stupas. Until very recently there were villages built around these stupas but the government in their wisdom have moved the people into towns.........as governments tend to do all over the world.
Around Bagan horse and cart are still used as transport whether private use or as in this case a taxi.
Locals having a chat.
Typical Burmese meal with 3 curries, usually chicken, pork & mutton plus approx 8 side dishes. This was at a restaurant.
B in deep conversation with a local that took a liking to him at the incredible Shwe Dagon Pagoda in Rangoon. He was invited to spend a week at a Buddhist retreat with the man but B had to decline as we had other plans........but maybe next time.
The BIG bell at the Shwe Dagon Pagoda. Moments earlier A had struck the bell not realising those two children were playing underneath. It all ended happily though.
One of the many statues in the Shwe Dagon Pagoda.
Just one small section of the Shwe Dagon Pagoda.
There are little shrines everywhere and no space is spared. People leave offerings and say prayers for every imaginable thing.
These Buddhas all represent a different aspect of life such as health, wealth, happiness etc and devotees drop monetary offerings into the boxes in front of the desired one.
A museum containing very old relics, photos & gold statues. No photos allowed inside, so A found out after he had snapped away and got scolded by an attendant.
Another wing of the Shwe Dagon Pagoda. This pagoda is huge and despite the amount of people that converge every day, there is a very calm feeling.
An example of one of the Buddhas.
Another section.
The main stupa being recoated in gold. This is done every four years.
These shelters are scattered all over Burma and are spaces that pilgrims can use for shelter & cooking as they travel throughout the country. Sort of like free camping spots in Australia.
A statue of a white elephant in a wat near Bagan.
Playing with the elephant.
Bell carriers. The bells are meant to be rung, which of course we did.
Old stupa in Bagan. There are thousands of these around the countryside.
Bagan in central Burma is rather flat and usually quite dry. There had been quite a bit of rain recently so it all greened up for us.
An example of some of the stupas. Until very recently there were villages built around these stupas but the government in their wisdom have moved the people into towns.........as governments tend to do all over the world.
Around Bagan horse and cart are still used as transport whether private use or as in this case a taxi.
Locals having a chat.
Typical Burmese meal with 3 curries, usually chicken, pork & mutton plus approx 8 side dishes. This was at a restaurant.
B in deep conversation with a local that took a liking to him at the incredible Shwe Dagon Pagoda in Rangoon. He was invited to spend a week at a Buddhist retreat with the man but B had to decline as we had other plans........but maybe next time.
The BIG bell at the Shwe Dagon Pagoda. Moments earlier A had struck the bell not realising those two children were playing underneath. It all ended happily though.
One of the many statues in the Shwe Dagon Pagoda.
Just one small section of the Shwe Dagon Pagoda.
There are little shrines everywhere and no space is spared. People leave offerings and say prayers for every imaginable thing.
These Buddhas all represent a different aspect of life such as health, wealth, happiness etc and devotees drop monetary offerings into the boxes in front of the desired one.
A museum containing very old relics, photos & gold statues. No photos allowed inside, so A found out after he had snapped away and got scolded by an attendant.
Another wing of the Shwe Dagon Pagoda. This pagoda is huge and despite the amount of people that converge every day, there is a very calm feeling.
An example of one of the Buddhas.
Another section.
The main stupa being recoated in gold. This is done every four years.
