Day 11 7 January Bagan

The balloons were out again first thing this morning, more in number. After an early breakfast we headed to Mt Popa, a small mountain near the volcano, where the king moved all the Nat shrines from Bagan when he introduced Buddhism. On route we stopped at a small roadside village that demonstrates the different uses of the Palm tree. A man sprinted up a rickety ladder on the side of the trunk to take down the bowls extracting the sweet Palm juice. This can be either drunk straight or they showed us the fermentation and distilling process used to make the wine and spirits. Neither of which tasted particularly nice. We were then given the traditional green tea and salad, the salad consisting of tea leaves, garlic, chick peas, chilli paste and some other vegetables. Surprisingly it tastes better than it sounds. You mix it according to your own tastes and is a traditional snack in Myanmar.

It was about another hour through the countryside which was growing more lush when at the foothills of the volcano due to the volcanic ash. Lots of fruits and vegetables are grown here including crab apples, dragon fruit, pomelo and other exotic varieties. We had a quick look around the market before continuing to the mountain temple itself.

It's 777 steps apparently to the top of the temple, although the steps meander in different directions and the boys counted more than 800 steps on the way up. Monkeys (Macacks) hang around the steps as pilgrims give them chickpeas in little cones of paper. The steps are covered and vendors sell souvenirs on the way up. People are trying to keep the steps clean from all the pilgrims and the monkeys. There are panoramic views from the top of the surrounding countryside and volcano. Different Shrines for the Nat spirits, which are human in form and represent different themes including gambling and travelling! Pilgrims offer flowers and money to the shrines for luck in the relevant spirit for their needs. Again there is also a Buddhist temple to be on the safe side.

We met the Gardes on the way down and agreed to meet for lunch on the way down the mountain. We headed to the restaurant which was located in a dragon fruit garden, ordering our usual lime juices. After the Gardes had also arrived and hugo had wolfed down his lunch we headed back to town. The boys not surprisingly wanted to head back to the hotel, so Mandy set out to see a local lacquer ware factory. The amount of time spent on each piece of lacquerware is quite incredible. The base of each piece is made from either bamboo (round pieces) teak wood (rectangular pieces) and or horse hair. It is a time consuming process as the lacquer from the tree is applied up to 20 times and each time it needs to be air dried for a week. Intricate patterns are etched out by the men and coloured in with natural paints by the women. All done by hand. Gold leaf can also be applied. Horse hair is woven through bamboo to make small flexible bowls. Amazingly it can hold hot and cold food and be washed in hot and cold water. One did feel obliged to buy a small couple of pieces and understood why it seemed more expensive than other souvenirs of the area.

Picked up Liam and headed to a small monastery temple for the sunset which was a lot less crowded than other temples. Apparently there are only 7 locations where you are allowed to view the sunset.

We walked up with the Gardes to another local restaurant advertising as being French as well as local cuisine, located outside in a street. It was our last night together before heading our separate ways. The kids were very happy to have burgers and spaghetti bolognese, but one had to feel sorry for the few other customers who had to put up with their very large volume.

Location:Bagan