We had to hire a driver for our second day in Mandalay since the outlying areas are quite far away. Before we headed out on the town, we stopped by the river so Adam could get a morning workout. Ha!
On our drive, we passed many farms and pastures with huts that workers took refuge under once it got really hot. Seriously- it was almost unbearably hot on this particular day!
We had the opportunity to see some of the industries in the area, including marble carving and silk weaving. Nearly everything is done by hand or with very basic machinery. It was quite interesting to see. Most of the marble carvings are for temples, both in Myanmar and in other countries (such as China and Thailand).
Some final products
Women weaving silk into various patterns for skirts, shirts, and scarves (many of them sold for special occasions such as weddings)
I liked that this girl decorated her area with pictures of famous movie stars
We also visited several temples, including one that was made entirely of teak wood. I cannot recall all the names of the temples that we visited, and plus it was incredibly hot so it was pretty tough for us to focus! Lol.
Remember the Buddha I mentioned that is covered in something like 6 inches of gold? This is the one! I couldn't get close to it (no women allowed in the area up close to the Buddha) but you can probably Google this and find a better quality photo!
Again, gorgeous views once we got to the top
I couldn't even count the number of figures!
Teak wood temple
We also took a boat across to see....more temples!
These are our "It's soooo hottttttt!" faces
Andy at one of the temples (photo courtesy of Andy)
We did ride on horsecarts again, but it was nothing like the leisurely ride in Bagan. The drivers were moving super fast, so I was holding on for dear life to not fall out.
*photo taken by Andy
We then arrived at Ubein Bridge, which is the world's longest teak bridge. It is made of teak wood and stretches across the Taungthaman Lake. Andy got some awesome photographs at the U Bein Bridge that I'll post here. Andy, Tim and Shara also saw the sunset by taking a boat on the lake. Adam wasn't feeling like it, and I didn't want him to be alone, so I got photos of the sunset at the bridge from higher ground.
We were told by some locals that during the rainy season, sometimes even the trees are under water. I can't even imagine!
Like kids in most countries, they aren't shy about shouting "Hello!!" and posing for a photo
Lots of ducks swimming in the lake
*photo taken by Andy
*photo taken by Andy
*photo taken by Andy
As with other places in Myanmar, we encountered some very nice people that were open to chatting with us. At the U Bein Bridge, a group of men (most of them monks) approached us to ask if we spoke English. They are studying English in their first year at one of the local universities and were looking for people to practice with. They were very friendly and accompanied us on almost the entire stretch of the bridge.
This might be the point where one of them thanked me profusely for being so nice!
*photo taken by Andy
Andy, Adam and new friends. Note that Adam is holding hands with one of the monks (not uncommon but still took Adam by surprise) * Photo courtesy of Andy
Sunset on the U Bein Bridge
After sunset, we headed back into Mandalay for dinner. We attempted to go to another restaurant named "The Green Elephant" but it just seemed that destiny did not want us eating at any place called the Green Elephant because our driver took us to a Nepalese restaurant that we had mentioned prior to deciding finally to eat at the Green Elephant. It worked out though because the food was quite tasty.
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