Day 36 - More Kayin Country

Morning probe deeper into Kayin karst country, first a Kayin village, Musali, where neat houses were set against a backdrop of limestone cliffs...










and friendly folks greeted us as we strolled through...



including a very proud grandma.



We moved on to what Mr. Soe said was a replica of Buddha's birthplace in India, Lominy, with 1000 images of the Buddha...







plans for a cable car, apparently sponsored, or at least blessed, by the monastery...




and a dramatic statue of a man in traditional Kayin clothing.




We next visited Kyauk Kan Lat (pronounced a lot like "chocolate", since the "ky" is like "j") pagoda, dramatically set on a rock in the middle of a lake.




Climbing the rock yields nice views of the karst surroundings...



but the views from the bridge aren't too bad either.




The next, amazing site was built by U Nar Auk, a Mon trader who dared to compete with the colonial British (and was driven into bankruptcy as a result).












Note the Victorian touches.

Our last stop was Mawlamyine where we visited Kyaikthanlan, aka the "Kipling" pagoda, since his poem "Mandalay" mispronouncingly refers to it.



It impresses internally...




and in its setting.




We had a long ride back to Yangon, passing mile after mile of rubber plantations...



and a convoy of members of the National League for Democracy (likely headed for a celebration of her dad's birthday...





and arrived at our newest hotel choice, Great Feel, which looks to be our best in Myanmar (carries a "Fantastic" label on Agoda.com).



in any case the best hotel name ever, even better than that Marigold thing.











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