We went on, enjoying the separated road (that eased the anxiety of being in a right hand drive) climbing steadily. Our first site in Pyin Oo Lwin was its huge market, with the usual stuff, plus local specialty jams, a very interesting sewing machine...
and "worm fruit", so named because it looks like worms. Yan did not know any other name for it.
We were a little surprised to see a mosque in the middle of the downtown.
We visited the Maha Anhtol Kanthar pagoda...
which was built to house this Buddha...
when it fell from its transport on the way to China, and could not be remounted.
We visited a nearby waterfall...
and then a Chinese temple, which had some great Disneyesque statuary...
as well as an antique building.
We broke for lunch at a restored colonial building, and after lunch boarded a little stagecoach...
for a tour of other colonial buildings. We first went down "office road" where we passed old colonial offices that were now being used by the Myanmar government.
Obviously, red brick was the style of the day, even in the residential estates, where it looked to be wedged between timbers, giving the buildings a Tudor appearance.
As we approached the botanical garden, we passed several plant nurseries, and these enflowered figures...
Yan said that many folks come here from Mandalay (2nd largest city in Myanmar) on the weekends (perhaps like their former colonial masters), and they no doubt patronize the nurseries.
The Garden itself was pretty well-tended, tho a bit too decorative for our tastes.
But there was a surprising petrified wood display...
and an amazing bamboo section.
We did a vigorous walk around the accessible parts of the garden for some nice late afternoon exercise, and retired to our hotel, which is quite nice, with very good wifi.
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A lot of amazing stuff in one day!
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