Day in Bagan Part 2: Shopping, More Temples and Sunset

Earlier I requested my tour guide Mr B to show me some shops for lacquerware, so we went to one just before lunch in Myinkaba, or the Bamboo Village, an area near Old Bagan filled with small workshops/ateliers for lacquerware, which Bagan was most famous for other than its sights.

Day in Bagan Part 1: Parade, Market and Temples

As I was planning for my Myanmar trip, I decided to add on another stop other than Yangon when I realized it would be tricky to fit enough things to do/see for 5 days in the city. So I asked for assistance from a local travel agency to help make arrangement for a side trip to Bagan, the ancient capital of the country in the north with deep history and beautiful sights.

Walk in the Historical City

Before departing for Bagan on a domestic flight in late afternoon, I spent the morning on my last day in Yangon walking with a volunteer guide at Yangon Heritage Trust, an NGO formed a few years ago to advise, advocate and provide technical assistance in conserving many of the heritage buildings. Part of their work was to bring public awareness to their cause and shine light on the architecture and historical significance of many old structures that remained in the city, so they hosted guided tours twice a week on different routes, covering a good part of the city center.

Touring Middle East 15: The Two Museums

We spent the whole day museum-hopping in Jerusalem as part of our itinerary. Our first stop is the Holocaust History Museum as part of the Yad Vashem complex, built by the Israeli Government as the memorial to the victims of Nazi Holocaust.

Touring Middle East 8: The Old City Jerusalem

Obviously, we spent most of our time in Jerusalem in the Old City (and its surroundings), just like every tourists who come over to visit. There’s no other places with a longer, more colorful history (believed to be more than 3000 years old) yet relatively well preserved, despite being fought over again and again for the past 2000 years. First and foremost, this small walled enclave of slightly less than 1 square kilometer (just to give you some reference – Hong Kong Island is 80 times bigger) is the heart of much religious significance, whether you are Christian, Jewish or Muslim, and that’s our major reason why we were here – to visit some of those Holy Sites key to Jesus’ life, especially in the last days before He’s betrayed, arrested, crucified, buried and rose again.