Photos

Photographer’s Note

This photo was taken in Sittwe, while waiting for the chopper to go offshore. After arriving from Yangon, I did notice that the airport terminal does not have any bar and/or restaurant. However, a cold drink was available in one of the two local restaurants just across the road. The funny is not the advertised Myanmar beer or the restaurant’s name but the fact that the airport personnel come across the road to inform the departing passengers that the check-in is open and/or boarding has started. I have never seen anything like that in many years of traveling.

===============

Sittway is the capital of the state of Raknine, a long narrow coastal region to the north-west of Mynamar. The city is located at the mouth of the Kaladan River where it empties into de Bay of Bengal. Sittwe is a very Muslim city in a largely Buddhist country. For those two communities there is a distinctive twist on standard Myanmar culture which includes much spicier foods and brighter coloured clothing. The points of interest in Sittwe include the Atulamarazein Pyilon Chan Tha Pagoda, Mahakuthala Monastery, the Buddha Museum, the Rakhine State Cultural Museum, the old steel clock tower topped with a weathervane in the centre of town, erected by the Dutch in the 18th century and a huge local fish market.

A popular tourist destination in the Rakhine State is Mrauk Oo, an ancient royal capital known for its old temples with wall paintings of Indian cultural influence. It is also important for its fort-like temples and pagodas built of stone and brick, rich with distinctive statuary and relief. The most impressive temple is the Shitthaung Temple, meaning eighty thousand, with its seemingly endless perambulatory tunnels. It is believed that 84,000 of the Buddha's relics with the same number of the Lord's images are enshrined in it. A few kilometers north of Mrauk Oo is the archaeological site of Vassali, another ancient capital which flourished from the 7th to the 10th centuries.

Photo Information
Viewed: 1923
Points: 76
Discussions
Additional Photos by Antonio Ribeiro (ribeiroantonio) Gold Star Critiquer/Gold Star Workshop Editor/Gold Note Writer [C: 4968 W: 457 N: 6572] (21921)
View More Pictures
explore TREKEARTH