Monday, October 15, 2012
RV Paukan
Good morning.
We slept soundly last night and woke up before 6am. Shortly the anchor was pulled in and we moved slowly down stream to the town of Sagaing (pronounced ”Sag I ne”) passing by uncountable white and gold stupas, shimmering on a series of low hills and surrounded by dense stands of trees, mostly ironwood and acacia. The sight was breathtaking as the early morning mist gave way to the rising sun.
The river is very high and wide, as the rains have just finished. In many places trees appear to be growing in the middle of the river and there are many marshy areas that will be dry land. The captain tells us that in a few months the river will be so low there will be only a narrow channel. Hard to imagine as we float down this broad, brown waterway full of debris. Fortunately, the ship has only a 4-foot draft and can maneuver in shallow situations.
After a good breakfast, we went ashore via a small motorboat. Getting on and off the boat was a bit precarious, as no organized plan had yet been made for such departures. The crew used chairs and tables in a stack and held onto each of us to be sure we did not fall. It was comical to watch.
A bus was waiting to take us on our tour of the area. First, we up the slopes of a hill and stopped at a nunnery and wandered around the place looking for the pink clad ladies. We are told there are 150 women in the nunnery, but we saw less than 20. Some of them were preparing the mid-day meal of vegetables and rice, while others studied small books and a few were reciting prayers out loud in various buildings on the property. The atmosphere was relaxed and peaceful and no one paid us any attention. There are many fewer nuns than monks, however those who join the nunnery tend to stay, while many monks drop out after a few weeks or months.
From the nunnery we drove back down to town, which is on the flat land between hills and visited a silver factory and shop. I did not expect to buy anything, but couldn’t resist a nicely carved, 3-inch tall, old man holding a butterfly. It is made of some animal bone, possibly buffalo. Ken told me it symbolized spirituality, the need to bring one’s body and soul together in spiritual harmony.
Then we climbed up the highest hill to a temple called Soon U Ponya Shin. It had a large platform surrounding the central gold stupa. The floors were covered in colorful ceramic tiles and the central Buddha was rather gaudy with flashing neon lights haloing its head. There were lovely views of the river and other stupas from the edge of the platform, which was crowded with hundreds of local people thoroughly enjoying themselves. Families were sitting on the tile floor sharing picnic meals. Groups of teenagers were hanging around and making fun. Small children were laughing and running around with no apparent supervision. Lots of people were dressed up and having their picture taken. It was like being at a fair. I had a super time taking pictures as everyone was in a jovial mood and happy to oblige. I got caught up in the scene and ended up being the last one off the platform. The temperature had been comfortable on the platform as there was a slight breeze up on the hill. Back down at the water’s edge the hot, sticky air was stifling again and we could hardly wait to get back onto our air-conditioned home.
It was 11am and we had until 4:30pm to enjoy the ship before going ashore again. We visited in the lounge, had lunch and relaxed in our room as we watched the Irrawaddy River scenery slip by on our way to Bagan. The hills around Sagaing quickly gave way to flat bottomland with many palm trees interspersed with other trees and vegetation. Everything still looks very lush, although we are supposedly headed into the dry, arid season. Several barges and medium to small boats ply the river, but, except for the ship that passed us called the “Road to Mandalay”, our ship is king of the heap.
In the late afternoon the ship stopped at a village called Yandabo. It is well known for two things; the making of clay pots and the location of the signing of the treaty of 1826 between the British and the Burmese king that gave the bottom third of the country to England.
We walked from home to home in the village looking at hundreds of large round pots and observing women in various stages of making them. Clearly this is a cottage industry for the whole village. Once there are enough pots ready to be fired, wood is laid down in a clearing, pots piled high on top of the wood, straw and bamboo laid on top of the pots and the whole business fired up. The business is successful because good clay for making the pots is available nearby. I was more interested in taking photos of the village kids and missed a lot of Ken’s talk about pot making. We walked completely around the village and saw how the place was laid out with a dirt path passing beside each house and yard until we got back to the large open area on the edge of the river, where soccer and other social events undoubtedly take place.
After an hour we were back on the ship. We continued cruising until after dinner when we pulled up to a sand bar on one side of the river and parked for the night.
Adventures with Julia 