Day 80 - Taungbyone Nat Festival

I tried to plan my trip to coincide with the Wagaung Festival, which is the only festival that showed up on my Lonely Planet Book. The festival occurs in Taungbyone, about 12 miles north of Mandalay, during the week leading up to the full moon usually in August. According to some internet research, the festival celebrates “Nats,” who are Pre-Buddist annimist religious spirits. They can see through the past and future and are outside the cycle of rebirth. People from all over the country come to this small town to honor the “Nats” to ensure good fortune for the coming year. Some people even consider this a "gay Nat festival" because the Nats are considered to be transsexuals and many ladyboys come out to celebrate.

Before heading to Taungbyone, I took a motorbike to Mandalay Hill, another scene viewpoint on the summit of the tallest mountain in the city. I've seen plenty of hilltops throughout the trip, so it wasn't as special as I thought. It was a long climb up the steps (barefoot) to get to the top though, with stops at various worshipping spots, palm-reading stands, and souvenir stalls.

Afterwards, my motorbike driver took me to Taungbyone. The rural roads were packed with people trying to get to the festival. Droves of minibuses, pick-up trucks, and motorbikes clogged the streets, with people begging on the sides of the roads close to the festivities. There were so many Myanmar locals congregated in this one small town. I think I may have spotted only 5 or 6 other foreigners walking around.

The festival itself was like a countryside festival/carnival with tons of booths selling merchandise and food all around the grounds. Vendors had their own booths advertising their newest products. I didn't know what to expect, but I thought I could catch a glimpse of some dancing or music. I may have come too early, as I arrived on the 2^nd day of 7 days of festivities. The small carnival rides were not operating when I walking past them, and a bounce house was just being filled with air.

I did notice some ladyboys walking around, which was something new and unexpected in this country. I don't know what the general opinion (or even law) regarding homosexuality or transgenderism is in this country due to the political situation, but I know that it isn't as lax as a country like Thailand. I don't think there was much of a sexual atmosphere in any of the big cities (Yangon/Mandalay) I visited, and I would like the say that the country is probably more conservative than most. So it was all very interesting to see ladyboys walking around freely and holding hands. Maybe the locals are accepting of it, or maybe they just ignore it?

I walked around some more, hoping that I would get lost. People were crammed in the local temple, probably praying and giving alms to the Nat spirits for good fortune. I didn't stay too long, as most of the activity of the day was just perusing through the different stalls around the festival grounds. 

View of Mandalay from Mandalay Hill

A Monkey around Mandalay Hill

Along the steps toward Mandalay Hill

So that's how a stupa becomes golden...

Beautiful Arched Hallways on the way to Mandalay Hill

Taungbyone Nat Festival

Day 74 - Mandalay, Myanmar

I managed to get a whole row on the bus to myself, so the night was comfortable as I curled up to sleep through the night. Waking up in the morning and looking out the window was incredible, as I saw palm trees in the distance and various stupas scattered throughout the outskirts of the city.

The city of Mandalay itself was less chaotic than Yangon, but still a decently sized major city in Myanmar. All the sight-seeing was scattered around the city, and you would need to rent a bicycle, or hire a driver to take you around.

I ended up meeting a tourguide at the guesthouse I was staying at and he helped me plan the next day around the cities outside of Mandalay while dodging some of the mandatory governmental fees. He also suggested some of the sights that I should see while in the city.

I decided to walk around and head to Mandalay Hill, which would provide stunning views of the city. In the blazing sun, I walked about halfway to the bottom of the hill before realizing I was only HALF WAY to the bottom of the hill... Instead, I turned back and decided that I would rent a bicycle in the next few days and ride my way there since I underestimated how far it really was...

For dinner, I joined the two friends I met in Yangon and we made our way to a Burmese restaurant. When we arrived, we found out it was closed, so we had to walk another 15 blocks to the other location. Trying to bargain with the taxi drivers was futile, as they all quoted 3,000 kyat for the three of us. I think it's the standard fee for tourists to get anywhere around the town. We walked about halfway to the restaurant and it was still 3,000 kyat. Of course, it started to rain when we headed there, but we decided to walk the whole way since we had already covered so much ground already.

After dinner, we headed back to our guesthouse, but not before trying to find a local beer called “Spirulina” that had spirulina as one of the ingredients that would help you “live longer.” We couldn't find the beer, so we settled on a local restaurant serving the country's main beer, Myanmar Beer.

Outside the Grand Palace

Birds resting along the Stupa

New friends Matt and Haley

Traditional Myanmar Curry with Condiments