Mandalay

After Bagan we made the short flight to Mandalay on our Airline, Air KBZ, or Air Kanbawza. This is a local airline started by a banking company about 18 months ago and they have a "fleet" of 2 airplanes.
They were on time or early on all 4 flights, delivered luggage without a hitch and had only one bouncy landing.
Mandalay is the area of several former capitals of The Burmar people and the home of the last capital before the British annexed Burma to India in 1886 and moved the capital to Rangoon.
The area around the city is very nice with several beautiful sites, but the city itself is noisy, dirty and has only one traffic light and intermittent electrical service. It is at the terminus of the road to China and is slowly converting to a Chinese city as businessmen from China have moved in. Because of the Western economic sanctions China has wide open opportunities there.

The photo above is that of U-Bein's Bridge at sunset. It is the longest teak wood bridge at 1300 yards in length as it crosses Taungthaman Lake southwest of the city. It is a popular tourist photo op but is a critical path for locals to use on their way around the area.

We also visited the site of a former capital- Ava- that sat on an island between the great Ayerwaddy river and a smaller river. There are only pieces of the city wall still intact, and a few remnants of the palace including a watchtower that is leaning precariously.
We were taken by horse cart around the island to see the scenes...stupas and rice paddies

 

There were monasteries such as this brick and stucco example:

and this magnificent wooden monastery:

 

And another Pagoda complex we visited:

This is where we had lunch the first day; a classy place set out in the middle of the fields next to the river:

 Our next stop after lunch was the religious center of Sagaing Hill which has numerous monasteries, stupas and shrines. As well as meditation centers and even a Hospital for only monks and nuns.

 A shrine with 42 Buddhas lined up:

A nun studying Buddhist scriptures:

The second day we took an early morning boat about 1 hour up the Ayerwaddy River to Mingun. Where there is the world's second largest intact and working bronze bell. An unfinished and partially collapsed pagoda that was intended to be the world's largest pagoda and then an unusually designed white pagoda.
The boatman pushes away from shore to start the journey:

As the sun rose:

The Bell:

The white pagoda, Hsinbyume:

The unfinished and crumbling Mingun Pagoda.

 More proof I was on the trip...after climbing up to the top of the Mingun Pagoda:

View of the Ayerwaddy River from the top of the Pagoda

A monk sitting on top....I think he was posing for tourists to snap a photo:

We ended the 2nd day on Mandalay Hill to watch another sunset.