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Myanmar Sights
Kyaiktiyo (2 days)
Kyaiktiyo :
is one of the most interesting and sacred Buddhist sites of Myanmar.
The sacred boulder, covered in gold leaf, is balanced precariously
on the very edge of a cliff. The legend says that the rock maintains
its balance due to a precisely placed Buddha hair in the 7.3m high
stupa that caps it.
(Admission to Golden Rock Pagoda: US$ 6,-)
Starting very
early in the morning from Yangon, we drive 1 ½ hrs to Bago, and then
another 4 ½ hrs to Kinmon Base Camp at the foot of Kaiyktiyo
Mountain, from where you will board a truck to get up halfway to the
mountaintop. This ride takes between 45 – 60 minutes. From there you
need to hike another 45 minutes or be carried right to the top in a
bamboo sedan.
The teashop in
Waw make a good stop on the way to Kyaiktiyo. You will be staying at
one of the hotels clustered around the mountain-top.
Depending on your
perferred arrival time in Kaiyktiyo, there might be time to visit
some sights in Bago on the way to the Golden Rock.
Information on
Kyaiktiyo:
The incredible balancing boulder
stupa is about 20km from the little town of Kyaikhto, which is
midway between Bago and Thaton. The delicately placed gold leaf
covered boulder right atop Kyaiktiyo Mountain is one of the most
sacred Buddhist sites in Myanmar.
King Tissa received the enshrined Buddha hair in the 11th century
from a hermit who instructed the King to search for a boulder, whose
shape resembles the hermit's head, and then enshrine it in a stupa
on top. There are amazing sunsets and sunrises to see and the huge
rock shows its most beautiful colors at dawn and dusk, while the
pilgrims light candles and meditate all through the night.
A hike from
Kinmon Base Camp up to the top of the mountain takes about 4 to 5
hours. Part of the way is steep and hard to climb, so doing the hike
downhill is probably an easier option. |
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