Sights in Yangon (Rangoon)
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Shwedagon Paya
Heart stopping at any time, the Shwedagon Paya glitters bright gold in the heat of the day. Then, as the sun casts its last rays it turns a crimson gold and orange, magic floats in the heat and the mighty diamond surmounting the summit casts a beam of light that reflects sheet white, bloody red and jealous green to the far corners of the temple platform. It can be quiet and contemplative or colourful and raucous, and for the people of Myanmar it is the most sacred of all Buddhist sites, one that all Myanmar Buddhists hope to visit at least once in their lifetime.
Visible from almost anywhere in the city, Shwedagon is located to the north of central Yangon, between People’…
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B
National Museum
Try to ignore the fact that the priceless collection at the National Museum is appallingly labelled and lit, and just focus on the treasures that lie within this cavernous building.
Highlights of the collection include the 26ft-high Sihasana (Lion Throne), which belonged to King Thibaw Min, the last king of Myanmar. It’s actually more of an entrance doorway than a throne but let’s not pick at straws, because it’s certainly a damn sight more impressive than your front door! Further signs that the kings of old didn’t understand the meaning of the word subtlety are the jewel-encrusted beds, silver and gold rugs, flashy palanquins (one of which is palatial in its size and s…
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C
Chaukhtatgyi Paya
Fifty years ago there was a giant standing buddha poking his head above the temples and monasteries here, but one day he got tired and collapsed into a heap on the floor, whereupon he was replaced with the monster-sized lazy reclining buddha you see today. One of Myanmar’s more beautiful reclining buddhas, the placid face of the Chaukhtatgyi Buddha is topped by a crown encrusted in diamonds and other precious stones. Housed in a large metal-roofed shed, only a short distance northeast of the Shwedagon Paya, this huge figure is surprisingly little known and hardly publicised at all. Close to the buddha’s feet is the small shrine to Ma Thay, a holy man who has the power to …
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