{"id":20756,"date":"2015-12-04T16:22:00","date_gmt":"2015-12-04T23:22:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/rivercruiseadvisor.com\/?p=20756"},"modified":"2022-05-23T14:03:53","modified_gmt":"2022-05-23T18:03:53","slug":"vikings-myanmar-explorer-day-13","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/rivercruiseadvisor.com\/2015\/12\/vikings-myanmar-explorer-day-13\/","title":{"rendered":"Viking’s Myanmar Explorer – Day 13"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

Viking\u2019s Myanmar Explorer Lives Up To Its Name<\/h3>\n\n\n\n
\"Welcome<\/a>
Welcome to Monywa, Myanmar – home to a temple that houses over 500,000 images of Buddha. Photo \u00a9 2015 Aaron Saunders<\/figcaption><\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n\n

Tuesday, December 1, 2015<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Unbelievably, we\u2019ve come to the end. Today is our last full day aboard Viking River Cruises<\/a><\/strong>\u2019 Viking Mandalay<\/em>, <\/strong>as our spectacular Myanmar Explorer <\/em><\/strong>river cruise tour itinerary that began two weeks ago in Bangkok, Thailand comes to a close.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

But that doesn\u2019t mean our adventures are finished. Not by a long shot!<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"Checking<\/a>
Checking out the local market this morning in Myint Mu, Myanmar. Photo \u00a9 2015 Aaron Saunders<\/figcaption><\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n\n

Bright-and-early this morning we boarded our coach in Myint Mu<\/strong>, a fairly large town that is once again completely missing from both of the guidebooks I brought with me. Apparently, the Rough Guide to Myanmar<\/em> should be titled, The Really, Really, Really Rough Guide to Myanmar<\/em>. But that\u2019s hardly Rough Guides\u2019 fault; it\u2019s one more example of the country\u2019s emerging presence on the world scene.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

In Myint Mu, we had 45 minutes to tour the local market, where we once again disappeared into a haze of smoke, flies, scents, people, and goods of all kinds. There was everything from boxed Colgate toothpaste to sliced fish heads on offer here. Traditionally, when refrigeration was scarce, locals would go to the market twice per day: once in the morning to pick up goods for the first part of the day; and again in the evening to pick up food for dinner.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"There's<\/a>
There’s practically nothing you can’t find at the Myint Mu market. Photo \u00a9 2015 Aaron Saunders<\/figcaption><\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n\n
\"Of<\/a>
Of course, this includes the catch of the day. Photo \u00a9 2015 Aaron Saunders<\/figcaption><\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n\n

The beautiful thing about Myint Mu was how we completely blended in with the locals. Physically, we couldn\u2019t have stood out more. But this wasn\u2019t about physical appearance; it\u2019s about how the locals treated us. We were treated with such kindness \u2013 like we lived in the village \u2013 that the thought I could be robbed or harmed in any way never crossed my mind. Markets in other countries, however, can be cesspools of crime and scams; just take a walk through a market in Morocco or Turkey to see what I mean.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Here, you get lots of curiously shy smiles. A few locals might practice their English with you; a favorite call is to say, \u2018Hey! Hey!\u2019, or perhaps the more-formal, \u201cHello.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"The<\/a>
The pretty town of Myint Mu looks almost like any other developing town, but it has a real sense of place to it. Photo \u00a9 2015 Aaron Saunders<\/figcaption><\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n\n

It\u2019s such a beautiful thing to be able to walk around the markets as a local, without any beggars or people pressuring you to buy things. All you get is genuine kindness from the local Burmese, and that encourages you to smile on a rather non-stop basis.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

I tried my luck at buying shaving cream from a few local vendors by making the international \u201cshavey-shavey\u201d motion, dragging my thumb and finger down my face in a shaving-like motion. I got a lot of razors, but no one had any shaving cream<\/em>. Despite my failure to acquire any, I was still impressed at my attempts to communicate beyond \u201cmingalaba\u201d <\/em>(Hello!).<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"Welcome<\/a>
Welcome to Monywa, Myanmar! Photo \u00a9 2015 Aaron Saunders<\/figcaption><\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n\n

Afterwards, we proceeded to the town of Monywa, Myanmar<\/strong>, which could be best described as the Buddha epicenter of Myanmar. In addition to having the second-tallest Buddha statue in the world, it also boasts a massive 95-metre long reclining Buddha, and another, even taller Buddha is under construction.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The big draw here is Thanboddhay Pagoda, <\/strong>which was originally built in the 1300\u2019s but heavily reconstructed in 1939. It has some 500,000 images of Buddha \u2013 and counting. Visitors can purchase a small Buddha and place it on one of the (few) empty pedestals to add to the growing count of Buddhas in Monywa.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"Thanboddhaya<\/a>
Thanboddhaya Pagoda is one of the most amazing sights I’ve personally seen. Photo \u00a9 2015 Aaron Saunders<\/figcaption><\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n\n
\"Inside,<\/a>
Inside, there are over 500,000 images of Buddha. Photo \u00a9 2015 Aaron Saunders<\/figcaption><\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n\n
\"You<\/a>
You can even add your own mark on the Paya by purchasing your very own Buddha to place in the temple. Photo \u00a9 2015 Aaron Saunders<\/figcaption><\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n\n

Out of all the places we\u2019ve visited on this trip, today was a real surprise. I think there\u2019s a certain amount of Buddha-temple exhaustion that creeps in during the last few days of this trip, much in the same way visitors to Europe can get bombarded with cathedrals. It doesn\u2019t help that most are named St. Paul\u2019s or St. Peter\u2019s, either. The Church of St. Bob\u2019s, I\u2019d remember.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

So don\u2019t miss out on Myint Mu or Monywa; they\u2019re two of the most fascinating, original places you\u2019ll visit in this beautiful country.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"Photo<\/a>
Photo \u00a9 2015 Aaron Saunders<\/figcaption><\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n\n

Tomorrow, we have what could be the most leisurely disembarkation morning ever. Breakfast begins, as it always has, at 7:00 a.m. Onboard accounts can be settled starting at 8:00 a.m., and luggage doesn\u2019t have to be out until 9:00 a.m. We can then enjoy the Sun Deck (where the bar will be open) or lounge in our staterooms until 10:45 a.m., when we will disembark Viking Mandalay<\/em> one final time.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

We\u2019ll then drive to Yangon International Airport<\/strong> for a quick two-hour hop on Bangkok Airways<\/strong> over to Bangkok, Thailand<\/strong>, where all of us will spend one more night at the Shangri-La Bangkok<\/strong> before going our separate ways.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

I\u2019ve taken many cruises, both river and ocean, with Viking. I have high expectations of the line in Europe, where the bread-and-butter of the river cruise operations take place on the company-owned (and superbly crafted) Viking Longships<\/strong>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"Guests<\/a>
Guests return to Viking Mandalay this afternoon. Photo \u00a9 2015 Aaron Saunders<\/figcaption><\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n\n

Here on the Mekong, though, I\u2019d ratcheted down those expectations. Surely in this exotic, hard-to-manage region of the world, on a ship not directly owned by Viking, the line\u2019s consistently-high standards would be hard to uphold.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The truth of the matter is that this voyage has far exceeded my expectations. Service is every bit as good as the line\u2019s European operations, and I\u2019d say it even surpasses that of the voyage I took with Viking in October on Portugal\u2019s Douro River. On the Douro, language issues were sometimes present with some of the staff (Viking\u2019s Douro operations are operated by another company, Douro Azul). That\u2019s not the case at all here; the command of the English language that the entire crew has is impressive.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"Tonight's<\/a>
Tonight’s locally-inspired cocktail. Photo \u00a9 2015 Aaron Saunders<\/figcaption><\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n\n

If you haven\u2019t sailed with Viking before, I\u2019ll say what I always say: you should. It\u2019s worth it to find out what all the fuss is about, and to see just how accurate all those adverts that air before Downton Abbey<\/em> really are. But if you\u2019re an experienced cruiser or traveller looking for something more adventurous, exotic and demanding, I\u2019d wholeheartedly recommend coming to Myanmar. In fact, I\u2019d encourage it. Myanmar is at the precipice of great change, and I feel sooner is going to be better than later to see it in its unspoilt splendour.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Viking may be known for their cruises along the Danube, but I think what they\u2019ve crafted here on the Irrawaddy is very special.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

I know you\u2019ll think so, too.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"Goodnight<\/a>
Goodnight from Viking Mandalay’s relaxing sun deck! Photo \u00a9 2015 Aaron Saunders<\/figcaption><\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n

Viking Mandalay - Myanmar Explorer<\/h2>\n\n\n\n\n\t\n\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t
DAY<\/b><\/th>PORT<\/B><\/th>\n<\/tr>\n<\/thead>\n
Day 1<\/a><\/td>Bangkok, Thailand<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Day 2<\/a><\/td>Bangkok, Thailand<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Day 3<\/a><\/td>Yangon, Myanmar<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Day 4<\/a><\/td>Yangon, Myanmar and Shwedagon Pagoda<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Day 5<\/a><\/td>Inle Lake, Myanmar<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Day 6<\/a><\/td>Inle Lake, Myanmar<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Day 7<\/a><\/td>Mandalay, Myanmar; Embark Viking Mandalay<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Day 8<\/a><\/td>Mandalay, Myanmar & the U Bein Bridge<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Day 9<\/a><\/td>Ohn Ne Choung, Myanmar<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Day 10<\/a><\/td>Bagan, Myanmar<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Day 11<\/a><\/td>Salay, Myanmar<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Day 12<\/a><\/td>Yandabo, Myanmar<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Day 13<\/a><\/td>Myint Mu, Myanmar<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<\/tbody>\n<\/table>\n\n\n\n\n

Our Live Voyage Report <\/em><\/strong>from Viking River Cruises\u2019 Myanmar Explorer<\/a><\/strong> has sadly come to a close, but stay tuned for a full recap of our journey and a deck-by-deck photo tour of the Viking Mandalay! Be sure to follow along with our adventures on Twitter <\/em>@deckchairblog<\/em><\/a>. <\/em><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Viking\u2019s Myanmar Explorer Lives Up To Its Name Tuesday, December 1, 2015 Unbelievably, we\u2019ve come to the end. Today is our last full day aboard Viking River Cruises\u2019 Viking Mandalay, as our spectacular Myanmar Explorer river cruise tour itinerary that began two weeks ago in Bangkok, Thailand comes to a close. But that doesn\u2019t mean […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":7,"featured_media":20759,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_genesis_hide_title":false,"_genesis_hide_breadcrumbs":false,"_genesis_hide_singular_image":false,"_genesis_hide_footer_widgets":false,"_genesis_custom_body_class":"","_genesis_custom_post_class":"","_genesis_layout":"full-width-content","footnotes":""},"categories":[96,25,417,87],"tags":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/rivercruiseadvisor.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/20756"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/rivercruiseadvisor.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/rivercruiseadvisor.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/rivercruiseadvisor.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/7"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/rivercruiseadvisor.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=20756"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/rivercruiseadvisor.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/20756\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/rivercruiseadvisor.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/20759"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/rivercruiseadvisor.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=20756"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/rivercruiseadvisor.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=20756"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/rivercruiseadvisor.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=20756"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}