I set the alarm for 0500. It was an unusually warm morning; even in the lowlands including Yangon, it is normally quite cool. Despite that, it wasn’t warm enough to cycle in just a thin T-shirt. I felt apprehensive wearing my black raincoat cycling on the poorly-lit road from Nyaung U to get to Shwe San Daw pagoda over in Bagan, which is highly recommended by locals for sunrise.
The 6km ride took about half hour. It was just after 6am when I arrived and climbed up to the highest possible point on the pagoda, joining a handful of others. More people came but I wouldn’t describe it as crowded.
The sky gradually lit up allowing us to see the distant temples where several balloons slowly became fully engorged. The balloons lifted off one-by-one hovering across the temples at rather different heights. I’d be asking for a refund, if I had been in that super-low one (that appeared to just clear the trees). On the subject of money, I heard the balloon ride was around USD200. Ouch! With a set amount of money and no access to ATMs, it wasn’t even something I could consider.
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- Waiting in the dark for sunrise.
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- Hint of the rising sun appears.
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- Hint of the rising sun appears.
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- The rising sun illuminates the stupas.
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- One of the few photos of me!
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- Balloon at sunrise in Bagan.
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- Balloon at sunrise in Bagan.
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- Sunrise in Bagan.
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- Sunrise in Bagan.
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- I climbed up in the dark; no problem. I didn’t like going down and looking down at the same time.
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- I climbed up in the dark; no problem. I didn’t like going down and looking down at the same time.
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- Balloon recovery truck taking it back to base.
I quickly cycled back to drop my laundry off at the hotel reception. The per-piece price here is less than that in Mandalay (both at the my hotel there and on the street). There, I had resorted to hand-washing in the shower.
The rest of the day was spent relaxing; I’m continuing with my plan to only do half-days. I had found a traditional Myanmar massage place in town offering 1h treatments for USD6. Sadly, it was disappointing as I like it hard and strong. I could have done a better job myself but not on myself.