On 6th July 2019, Bagan has been ranked as one of the world heritage site in UNESCO World Heritage Committee’s 43rd session held in the capital of Azerbaijan, Baku. The ancient city, Bagan, is situated 400 miles north of Yangon and over 170 miles southwest of Mandalay. It can be found in Mandalay Region of Myanmar on the bank of Irrawaddy river and it is easily got in by air, bus, rail and even cabin cruiser.

Thousands of pagodas and temples are concentrated in Bagan plains alone which lead Bagan to become a crowd favourite. Obviously, locals and international tourists are beckoned by the architectural masterpieces of the temples along with exclusive mansory and artistry of Myanmar craftsmen. The ancient monuments proving the finest murals, frescoes and exquisite buddha images reveal the greatness of Bagan Dynasty. King Anawratha founded Bangan Empire in 1044 AD. After King Anawratha, numerous Bagan Kings constructed over 10,000 Buddhist pagodas, temples and monasteries in the Bangan plains between 11st and 13th centuries. Unfortunately, Bagan lost some of its national heritage due to the two terrible earthquakes in 8 July 1975 and 24 August 2016. Just over 2,000 pagodas and temples safely remained beyond the quakes.

Plenty of rare antique materials such as ancient stone inscriptions, wood curvings, up to 1,000 years old Buddha images, curved plaques depicting the Lord buddha and some copies of mural art from various temples of Bagan can be observed in a millennium old archaelogical Museum. Although all the temples and pagodas own their distinctive characters each, it seems that there are also most-visited temples around Bagan. The tallest temple is Thatbyinnyu Temple while the largest one is Dhammayangyi Temple. Ananda Temple, Htilominlo Temple, Mahabodhi Temple and Shwe-See-Gon Pagoda are worth a visit too.

The most wonderful view of Bagan is granted by gliding in a hot air balloon from 8,000 feet above the ground. Watching the striking sunrise and sunset from the top of some temples is the most popular thing to do in Bagan. Want to bring a souvenir back? Then Myinkabar town near Bagan has many high quality lacquerware to choose from jewellery boxes, cups and jars to coasters. Visiting temples, shopping for handicrafts, drinking a coconut juice while thinking about the ancient dynasty are the enchantment I got from visiting Bagan.

As I walked into the bagan Area, it reminded me of the glory of Bagan Dynasty. If you choose Bagan as your destination, Nature Link Travel and Tour Agency would happily arrange a tour for you. You won’t regret for your choice to Bagan, one of the magnificent treasures of Asia.

Written By Ms.Nyein Chan Htwe