Here in Bagan, the locals like to call them pagodas when talking to foreigners. Whether you call them temples, stupas, zedis or pagodas, there’s enough to go around for everyone. Most of the larger temples have an uppermost tapered dome-like sikhara rather than the conventional…
Everybody gets stupafied at Bagan. How many stupas can you hold in your mind at one time? How about more than 2,000 scattered over 26 sq miles of open plains the size of Manhattan, popping up like giant mushrooms before your incredulous eyes? Some small,…
Current day Bago, one hours drive north of Yangon, once named Pegu had its first heyday in the 1400’s. It was a port city on the Sittang River leading out to the Andaman Sea. This Mon kingdom had a long golden age profiting from foreign…
I Swear to god, it’s Shwe dagon. I’m glad I’ve lived long enough to witness one of the wonders of the world. I heard this was a special place, but I had no idea. The whole trip was worth it just to see this one…
In Thailand it is called a prang. In Cambodia it is prasat. In Sanscrit the word is sikhara. You can think of it as a type of stupa, or you can argue that that no, it has its own separate towering logic. The old and…
This post is travel advice on exploring stupas/chedis, prangs and wats in Ayuthaya. I’d give your visit two or three days. With an adventuresome spirit and no hills, you can bicycle the relatively short distances with ease. Nothing like the freedom to come and go,…
Ayuthaya, the once upon a time Thai capital city that lasted 417 years, rivaling the population of London and Paris at the time, and ruled by a succession of 33 kings was sacked by the marauding Burmese in 1767. It is now a UNESCO heritage…
Ahh! There’s nothing like the wind in your face as you’re cruising down the Chao Phraya River in a ferry boat in the heart of Bangkok. The city has a nice rhythm, the people amiable and friendly. Around the water all is mellow. Doing the…
Burma, or Myanmar has the most stupas per square mile of any country in the world. There is a Burmese name for a male stupa builder, payadagaji and a name for a female stupa builder, payadagamaji. It is in their blood. I am soon to…
This second post carries the good news that I (and you as reader) are heading out to Burma, Cambodia, Laos, and Thailand in mid January 2011. The plan is to record impressions of life around temples and stupas in these three Theravadin Buddhist countries. It…
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Global SettlementThis post explores behind the scenes negotiations that…
Financial TyrannyThis post focuses on an important series of…Copyright © 2011 All rights reserved
