Eye-catching journey crossing Myanmar's lands and Irrawaddy river

Welcome to Yangon - the biggest and most bustling city in Myanmar, a unique city in Southeast Asia with all nostalgic colors of time and culture reserved over centuries. If you are interested in colonial era architecture, a stroll down Yangon's colonial buildings will definitely blow you away by well-reserved images from the 20th century, with decaying facades filled with old paint and small trees squeezing through those little cracks. Moreover, proud of rich cultural tradition, Yangon will amaze you with plenty of spiritual relics where you can experience the importance of Buddhism to the Burmese’s lives: tranquil Chaukhtatgyi Temple containing an over-200-feet-long reclining Buddha, the octagonal-shaped 2500 year old pagoda Sule Pagoda located in the heart of the city, and especially the legendary Shwedagon Pagoda - the massive 99 meter high gold plated pagoda with the diamond studded spire on top of a small hill in downtown Yangon. And don’t miss chance to meditate in pagoda’s mystical atmosphere beautifully lit up after dark.

Bagan - among the most significant archaeological South East Asia sites is one of the densest concentrations of temples and pagodas with about 2,000 monuments remain in various states of repair. Once arriving in Bagan, grasp a terrific chance to see how local life is going through in Nyaung U Market: the atmosphere in a Burmese market, regional products, fresh veggies, fine rice, unique local suncreen, etc. Continue the visit to important Buddhist constructions of Bagan: Shwezigon Pagoda - the huge gold plated pagoda which is believed to enshrine a bone and tooth of Gautama Buddha, Ananda Temple - a gorgeous white temple with coppery golden top - the finest and most beautiful temple in Bagan. Moreover, the further exploration in the legendary Gubyaukgyi, Htilominlo and Sulamani Temples will truly be a step back in time between historical architecture, old murals, plaster carvings and glazed sandstone decorations. After a long day, soothe your soul in peace and enjoy the sunset along the Ayarwaddy River. 

Minanthu village, to the east of Bagan, is the place which gives you an excellent insight into the traditional daily life of local people. Taking a walk in the village and you will see people in their daily work: collecting water from well, harvesting sesame seeds, weaving cloth, spinning cotton, making cheroot & silver jewelry, etc.  Don't hesitate to say "Mingalabar" (which means "Hello" in Burmese) and the friendly villagers will always be very happy to share you their ways of living through inside stories. It is also nice to visit the nearby temple Lay Myat Hnar monastic complex. The shining white exterior with old paintings coverring interior walls will surely leave you a great lasting impression.

Irrawaddy river – proud as one of symbolic feature shaping the serene beauty of Myanmar. A journey up and down the mighty river will offer you wonderful experience to capture all precious moving images of maybe white oxen herd resting under palm trees’ shade somewhere in an isolated sleepy village, local people finding their life meaning in pagodas, or the big red sun falling down into the water while someone is catching fish under. Pandaw cruise is gingerly picked out to gather all travel enthusiasts for the meaningful journey by heart and soul from the best to least known beauty of Myanmar along Irrawaddy river. With dedicated crew, creative itinerary and knowledgeable guides, we hope everyday is a new amazing experience of you getting to know more local cuisines, different cultural nuances, unusual tourist tracks and cheerful residents.   

Take a glimpse of the wonders and unique culture of ancient Bagan upon the very first day sightseeing. Joining the crew sightseeing with knowledgable guide, you will be lead to witnessing the dedicated process of making the Myanmar’s most qualified and beautiful lacquer handicrafts in a selected local workshop. In the follow up by a visit to series of outstandingly quaint ruined temples including Payathonezu, Dhamayangyi before cherishing peaceful sunset moment from the upper terrace of the remote but stunning Taung Guni temple.          

On the river way along the mighty Irrawaddy river, you are lead towards exploring a wonder like no other named Yoke-Sone Kyaung, an amazingly carved monastery located in Sale village. The whole place is like a unusual museum in which ancient people wrote many interesting historical and cultural stories in fabulous wood carvings.          

One of the most interesting experiences one could expect in any Irrawaddy river cruise is tuk tuk shore excursion, A lovely ride around the sleepy town of Pakkoku will get you to experience real Burmese working towns and villages. Witnessing how local necessities like tobacco, peanuts, Thanatkha and tradditional cheroot are made is wonderful chance to mingle with locals and see how they enjoy their daily working life. 

On the water route passing countless landscapes and typical Ayeyarwady villages, one that cannot be missed would say Yandabo village – best known as Burma's qualified pottery-making centre. As up to now, the village is hardly accessed by car, only cruise guests have chance to visit this endearing place. When visiting the village you will be able to see a lot of unglazed pottery made out of the river bank clay. Taking  a pleasant and interesting walk on dirty soil roads, you are to come across many cottages and welcoming villagers who are willing to share you their ups and downs in life and how they get on well with pottery making for so long. 

Surrounded by dozens of monasteries and pagodas, Mandalay is described for a long time as the city of arts, architecture and significant charms  in Myanmar. The further you go, the more likely you are to fall in love with this land. Passing the 40km-long way by car and boat to Pahtodawgyi Pagoda, your mind will soon be filled with all surprise and excitement when visiting Mingun Temple with the giganic Mingun Bell (you can gong it for some luck). On the way back from the charming pagoda, it is time for a peaceful walk exploring Mandalay Palace where the last King lived in and the nearby finely carved teak wooden Shwenandaw Monastery, followed by a visit the local workshop and learn how fine and thin gold leaves are made then plastered on to temples and Buddha statues. Let’s save the best for last by getting lost in the white field of 729 shrines lining up straightly before enjoying tranquil sunset from the top of Mandalay Hills and looking back all the places you passed along the busy but wonderful day.     

Upward the western of Shan state is the picturesque Inle Lake –  the Venice of Myanmar. Stepping off Nyaung Shwe marina, you will take a motorized boat to navigate through stilt villages and floating garderns, and meet locals who spend their entire lives on the water. Passing Ywa Ma village and Kay Lar Village where Intha people built their unique houses with long straight wooden poles stretching into the lake bed, it is your tranquil time in relaxed atmostphere of thelocally significant Phaung Daw Oo Pagoda and get to unfold the interesting story of the five Buddhas inside. As the dawn is coming and the warm light turns the still surface of the lake a golden colour, just pause for a while and cherish true value of unforgetable moment.

Indein is a small village West of Inle Lake which is renowned for the floating market and impressive ancient stupas with Banyan trees growing out of them. From Inle Lake, by just a scenic 8-kilometer boat ride through a long narrow canal, you soon reach the lively floating ‘5-day market’ rotated every five days around five different villages in Inle. This is a beautiful opportunity to experience the diversity of Inle ethnic, witness their day-to-day life and make their unique fair on the water trading all local products. A drop-in visit to local workshops will excite your curiosity about lotus weaving, cheroot cigarettes making in various size and flavours and diligent hand crafted silver work. Lastly, don’t forget to discover old ruined pagodas dated back to the 13th century and admire their incredible beauty even in bad condition. The impressive image of stupas after stupas decaying due to constant exposure to humidity still pose irresistible charm will leave you with nothing but thrills.