|
Mandalay
Mandalay was the capital city of the last reigning dynasty of Konbaung Kings. It is now the second capital and center of Myanmar's art, cultures and Buddhist learning. The exquisite tapestry works, stone sculpture, the traditional art of gold leaf home industry are worth a visit. Mandalay can boast of the largest standing during the reign of the benevolent King Mindon, he had commanded the experts to chisel the entire scriptures of Tipitaka on 729 stone slabs in 1857. The mammoth book still serves as reference to the learners in Buddhist teachings. Other places of interest are the Mahamuni Holy Image, the Mandalay Hill, and the Sagaing Hill where Buddhist Sangha and nuns lead a peaceful secluded life of meditation.
History Mandalay was founded by King Mindon in 1857. Most of the monuments there including the Mandalay Palace, the city walls, pagodas and monasteries were built in that year or soon after. King Mindon planned the building of the new capital in 1857 and it was formally inaugurated in 1859. The fortified city is in the form of a square, each side of which is ten furlongs in length, a battlemented wall of brick and mud mortar has a total height of 25 feet and is backed by an earthen rampart. There are 12 gates, three on each side, at equal distances from each other. They are surmounted by pyatthats or pavilions of wood. These total 48 in number. The moat surrounding the city is approximately 225 feet wide and 11 feet deep. Four bridges spanning the moat lead to the main gates. The palace thus occupied the central spot in the city. The palace, with magnificent woodcarving embellishing it, was destroyed by fire during World War 11. However, the Lion Throne survived the war and is now exhibited at the national museum in Yangon. Today, Myat-Nan-San-Kyaw Golden Palace in Mandalay has been reconstructed; a monument of historical value, the glory of the Myanmar people -- embellished and renovated -- is a testimony to the ancient culture. The city was named after the Mandalay Hill, which is situated at the northeast corner of the present city. The hill has for long been a holy mount and it is believed that Lord Buddha prophesied that a great city, metropolis of Buddhism, would be founded at its foot. It was King Mindon who fulfilled the prophecy.
Mandalay is situated on the eastern bank of the Ayeyarwaddy River in central Myanmar. It is the second largest city in Myanmar. Towards the east, there are the blue Shan mountain ranges, which give the city a physical dignity. To the west there is Myanmar's life stream, the mighty Ayeyarwady flowing by.
How to get there Mandalay is linked by air, rail, road and river with Yangon and other principal towns of Myanmar. One could choose any one of the four modes of transportation one prefers. It takes only an hour to fly from Yangon to Mandalay and if one travels by train or car, it takes 12 to 14 hours.
 Sightseeing When in Mandalay, one should not miss, among others, the Myat-Nan-San-Kyaw Palace, the Mandalay Hill, Kuthodaw Pagoda, Eindawya Pagoda and Mahamuni Pagoda. One should also visit the recently built Zay-gyo market and various department stores. Mandalay, while retaining its reputation as the home of ancient Myanmar culture and civilization is, today, fast moving to become a busy modern and industrial city as well. Besides the Mandalay hill, the palace wall, and the palace, which is newly built, many other places in Mandalay attract tourists. Visiting the Great Maha Muni Pagoda is among them a top priority, which lies to the south of Mandalay. This pagoda was so named after the holy image, "Maha Muni" housed therein. Originally, this holy image belonged to Myohaung (a town in Rakhine State, the western coastal region of Myanmar). In 1784, King Bodawpaya (a son of King Alaungpaya who founded the Kon-Baung dynasty) got the image brought by his son to the then royal capital at Amarapura. It has been 210 years, therefore, since the holy image first arrived at the central Myanmar. To the Buddhists in Myanmar, this richly gilded Maha Muni image is not a mere representation of the Lord Buddha but is an icon which is regarded as sacred itself. And the image is also considered to be the greatest in Myanmar next to the Shwe Dagon.  Another celebrated pagoda is the Kyauk Tawgyi situated near the southern approach to the Mandalay hill. It was built in the reign of King Mindon. Also at this pagoda, there is a huge marble image of Buddha, which was carved out of a single block of marble. Situated to the east is the Kuthodaw pagoda modeled on the Shwe Zigon at Nyaung Oo. In the precincts of this pagoda, there are 729 monoliths on which the entire teachings of Buddha can be seen as edited and approved by the fifth Buddhist Synod. The Atumashi Kyaung (which literally means the inimitable monastery) also is worth seeing. Actually, it is just the ruins partly survived the fire in 1890. However, the remains seen nowadays obviously show that the Atumashi Kyaung must have been indeed an inimitable one in former times. Zegyo Market This Market is the most famous shopping centre in Mandalay, where you can buy innumerable items of consumer's goods, household appliances, etc. made in China, India and Thailand. Besides, fine handicrafts and jewellery of Myanmar origin are also available. Zegyo Market is situated in the downtown area.
Great Wall Hotel
Weather in Mandalay
Google Map
Mandalay Location: +21° 57' 58.82", +96° 5' 22.77" More information about Mandalay on Google Map
External References |
| WeatherUnderground : | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Updated: 6:30 PM MMT on September 04, 2010 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
|
Forecast from WeatherUnderground and Camp26 WF for .