Insight Guides Myanmar (Burma) (Travel Guide eBook)

Insight Guides

Description

Insight Guides: all you need to inspire every step of your journey.
From deciding when to go, to choosing what to see when you arrive, this is all you need to plan your trip and experience the best of Myanmar, with in-depth insider information on must-see, top attractions like Bagan and Inle Lake, and hidden cultural gems like trekking in Shan State.
- Insight Guide Myanmar is ideal for travellers seeking immersive cultural experiences, from exploring Rakhaing State and Ngapali Beach, to discovering the Golden Rock Pagoda in Mon State.
- In-depth on history and culture: enjoy special features on The People of Myanmar, Festivals and Temple Architecture, all written by local experts
- Includes innovative, unique extras to keep you up-to-date when you're on the move
- Invaluable maps, travel tips and practical information ensure effortless planning, and encourage venturing off the beaten track
- Inspirational colour photography throughout - Insight Guides is a pioneer of full-colour guide books
- Inventive design makes for an engaging, easy reading experience
About Insight Guides: Insight Guides is a pioneer of full-colour guide books, with almost 50 years' experience of publishing high-quality, visual travel guides with user-friendly, modern design. We produce around 400 full-colour print guide books and maps, as well as phrase books, picture-packed eBooks and apps to meet different travellers' needs. Insight Guides' unique combination of beautiful travel photography and focus on history and culture create a unique visual reference and planning tool to inspire your next adventure.

Sujets

• Southeast
• Travel
• Burma
• Asia

Informations

• Publié par: Apa Publications
• Date de parution: 01 décembre 2018
• Nombre de lectures: 0
• EAN13: 9781789192919
• Langue: English
• Poids de l'ouvrage: 6 Mo

Extrait

How To Use This E-Book

Getting around the e-book
This Insight Guide e-book is designed to give you inspiration for your visit to Myanmar (Burma), as well as comprehensive planning advice to make sure you have the best travel experience. The guide begins with our selection of Top Attractions, as well as our Editor’s Choice categories of activities and experiences. Detailed features on history, people and culture paint a vivid portrait of contemporary life in Myanmar (Burma). The extensive Places chapters give a complete guide to all the sights and areas worth visiting. The Travel Tips provide full information on getting around, activities from culture to shopping to sport, plus a wealth of practical information to help you plan your trip.
In the Table of Contents and throughout this e-book you will see hyperlinked references. Just tap a hyperlink once to skip to the section you would like to read. Practical information and listings are also hyperlinked, so as long as you have an external connection to the internet, you can tap a link to go directly to the website for more information.
Maps
All key attractions and sights in Myanmar (Burma) are numbered and cross-referenced to high-quality maps. Wherever you see the reference [map] just tap this to go straight to the related map. You can also double-tap any map for a zoom view.
Images
You’ll find hundreds of beautiful high-resolution images that capture the essence of Myanmar (Burma). Simply double-tap on an image to see it full-screen.
About Insight Guides
Insight Guides have more than 40 years’ experience of publishing high-quality, visual travel guides. We produce 400 full-colour titles, in both print and digital form, covering more than 200 destinations across the globe, in a variety of formats to meet your different needs.
Insight Guides are written by local authors, whose expertise is evident in the extensive historical and cultural background features. Each destination is carefully researched by regional experts to ensure our guides provide the very latest information. All the reviews in Insight Guides are independent; we strive to maintain an impartial view. Our reviews are carefully selected to guide you to the best places to eat, go out and shop, so you can be confident that when we say a place is special, we really mean it.

© 2018 Apa Digital (CH) AG and Apa Publications (UK) Ltd




Table of Contents
Myanmar’s Top 10 Attractions
Editor’s Choice
Introduction: The golden land
Land of rice and rivers
Decisive Dates
From earliest times
British rule and World War II
Independence and military rule
The poppy trail
The people of Myanmar
Burmese Buddhism
Festivals
A feast of flavours
Arts and crafts
The performing arts
Insight: The many images of Buddha
Temple architecture
Introduction: Places
Introduction: Yangon and the Ayeyarwady Delta
Yangon
The Delta Region
Bago Region
Insight: Getting around the country
Introduction: Mandalay and environs
Mandalay
Around Mandalay
Introduction: The plains of Bagan
Bagan Archaeological Zone
Around Bagan
Insight: Thanaka and longyi: Burmese traditions
Introduction: Northeastern Myanmar
Shan and Kayah states
Kachin State and the Upper Ayeyarwady
Introduction: Western Myanmar
Mrauk-U, Ngapali and Chin State
Introduction: Southern Myanmar
Mon and Kayin states
Myeik Region
Travel Tips: Transport
Travel Tips: A–Z
Travel Tips: Language
Travel Tips: Further Reading


Myanmar’s Top 10 Attractions



Top Attraction 1



Shwedagon Pagoda, Yangon. The supreme symbol of Burmese Buddhism and national pride, the gigantic golden stupa rising from the midst of Yangon (Rangoon) is a sublime spectacle, especially when floodlit at dusk and after dark. For more information, click here .
Corrie Wingate/Apa Publications


Top Attraction 2



Bagan, Mandalay Region. Over two thousand ancient religious buildings dating from the 11th century dot the arid plains of Bagan – one of Southeast Asia’s greatest archaeological sites and Myanmar’s principal visitor attraction. See it from the air on a magical balloon flight. For more information, click here .
Corrie Wingate/Apa Publications


Top Attraction 3



Amarapura, Mandalay. Spread around a beautiful lake on the edge of Mandalay, this former Burmese royal capital is home to dozens of flamboyant temples and a spectacular, kilometre-long wooden bridge. For more information, click here .
iStock


Top Attraction 4



Inle Lake, Shan State. “One-legged” Intha rowers, floating gardens and markets, pretty stilt villages, ancient Shan stupa complexes and beautiful scenery are just some of the attractions of serene Inle Lake in the Shan Hills. For more information, click here .
Corrie Wingate/Apa Publications


Top Attraction 5



Golden Rock Pagoda, Kyaiktiyo, Mon State. Teetering on the rim of a clifftop high in the coastal hills of Mon State, this extraordinary gilded boulder ranks among the country’s most magical pilgrimage sites. Getting to it involves a stiff hour-long hike up a sacred stairway. For more information, click here .
Dreamstime


Top Attraction 6



Ngapali Beach, Rakhine State. Kick back at Myanmar’s premier beach resort, whose brilliant turquoise waters, golden sand and superb seafood offer a welcome respite from the heat and dust of inland travel. For more information, click here .
Getty Images


Top Attraction 7



Mrauk-U, Rakhine State. Hidden away in the remote west of the country, Mrauk-U is an amazing lost city of ruined temples, palaces and shrines, set amid scrub-covered hills. Boats leave the coastal town of Sittwe daily to reach the site – an enjoyable three- to six-hour river trip. For more information, click here .
Bigstock


Top Attraction 8



Cruising the Ayeyarwady. Whether you travel by luxury cruiser or creaky government ferry, a journey along Myanmar’s mightiest river takes you deep into the country’s rural heart – a watery world of shifting sand banks, remote jetties and bamboo-built villages. For more information, click here or click here .
Shutterstock


Top Attraction 9



Mount Popa. Climb the steps leading to the top of this spectacular rock outcrop, its summit and sides covered in shrines dedicated to the country’s revered nat spirits, and commanding sweeping views over the Bagan plains. For more information, click here .
Corrie Wingate/Apa Publications


Top Attraction 10



Hill-tribe treks, Shan State. The hill-tribe trekking scene in Myanmar is nowhere near as commercialised as in neighbouring Thailand. Kalaw, a former British retreat near Inle Lake, and Hsipaw, further northeast, are the two main hubs. For more information, click here .
Corrie Wingate/Apa Publications


Editor’s Choice




The reclining buddha at Bodhi Tataung.
Corrie Wingate/Apa Publications


Best Buddhist monuments

Shwedagon Pagoda, Yangon. Thousands of pilgrims stream daily around the precincts of Myanmar’s most splendid religious monument – a structure of otherworldly beauty. For more information, click here .
Kyauk Htat Gyi Pagoda, Yangon. Gargantuan reclining Buddha not far from the Shwedagon Pagoda, combining superhuman size with lavish decoration. For more information, click here .
Shwemawdaw Pagoda, Bago. Bago’s most magnificent stupa, smothered in gold and precious stones, outstrips even the Shwedagon for size. For more information, click here .
Shwethalyaung Buddha, Bago. This colossal, greatly loved reclining Buddha is regarded as the one that best expresses the Master’s attainment of Nirvana. For more information, click here .
Mahamuni, Mandalay. Myanmar’s most revered Buddha, this serene-faced giant was brought to Mandalay from Mrauk U in Rakhine as war booty in the 18th century. For more information, click here .
Shwesandaw Pagoda, Pyay (Bago Region). Though a provincial backwater now, Pyay was once a wealthy river port – as the scale and splendour of the great gilded Shwesandaw Pagoda testifies. For more information, click here .
Bodhi Tataung, Monywa (Mandalay Region). Among the most surreal sights in Southeast Asia are the two vast Buddhas – one standing, one reclining – on this hilltop to the east of Monywa. For more information, click here .
Pho Win Taung Caves, Monywa (Mandalay Region). An ancient complex of hand-hewn caves containing rows of ancient sculptures and murals, buried deep in the countryside west of the Chindwin River. For more information, click here .
Shwezigon Pagoda, Bagan. The most revered of Bagan’s two-thousand-odd surviving shrines. Pilgrims pour through it year-round, but in particularly large numbers during the annual festival. For more information, click here .
Win Sein Taw Ya, nr Mawlamyine (Mon State). The country’s largest reclining Buddha rests on a ridgetop near the former colonial capital of Mawlamyine – a diorama inside recounts moral tales and stories from the Master’s life. For more information, click here .
Golden Rock Pagoda, Kyaiktiyo (Mon State). Balanced in an