Day 9:
A very long day started at 4am to catch our flight to Bagan. The plane was powere by propellers, but my fear didn’t keep me from sleeping. We now call this plane the “shuttle plane” due to the three stops it takes; it was like a bus.
From the moment we landed in the middle of a desert, I knew that I was in for an interesting next few days. This was a new kind of heat; a very dry heat. Later we learned it only rains 11 inches a year.
Once off the plane, it was off to the races. We stopped by the market and I was not a fan to put it nicely. We visited three beautiful temples, but I still loved the temple in Yangon better. Before heading to the hotel, we stopped at a lacquer wear shop. We learned the tedious process that made the art. I did a lot of shopping in their show room.
I am starting to get worn down from exhaustion and heat. I sleep whenever possible and when it gets too hot, I’ll sleep because it’s better than being awake. I took a 2 hour nap this day.
It is hot here. 104 °F when we first landed. I am constantly fanning myself (thank goodness I bought a cheap fan in Vietnam) and forcing myself to drink water. I have come to the realization that no matter what I do, I will constantly have sweat pouring out of my body. Everyone here, tourists and locals, have sweat dripping down their legs, so at least I’m not the only one. The skirts help because they catch some of the breeze, but trying to stay modest in these temperatures is more difficult than anticipated.
We spent the evening at the sunset pagoda. It was a beautiful sight and it may be my favorite sight from this trip. It was breathtaking. Even though we were already at the base when the sun set, it was still a beautiful sight. Reds, yellows, pinks, and oranges painted the sky. The sun was bright orange, just peeking out over the mountain line and tops of trees. The sun set fast, almost too fast to get a picture, but we managed to get a few shots in.
Dinner was on the river and we enjoyed conversation and good food.
Myanmar is starting to grow on me–minus the heat, it’s starting to be too much to handle.
The most important lesson of the trip: there is no such thing as too much water in this heat. Keep drinking.
-Jennifer