Kyaikhtiyo & It's Environs
Kyaikhtiyo
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The famous legendary Pagoda on the Golden Rock about 160 Km from Yangon
and 11 km of hiking from the base camp at Kyaikhtiyo. Visitors can also
go by car up to a point about a mile away from the Pagoda. This pagoda
is situated on a rocky mountain 3615 ft above sea level. The Kyaikhtiyo
pagoda is one of the most ancient and celebrated of all pagodas in
Myanmar. It is situated in the vicinity of Kyaikhtiyo Township, Thaton
district. The pagoda is said to have been built during the life-time of
the Buddha over 2400 years ago. |
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Mawlamyine, a charming town, is the capital of Mon State, situated at
the mouth of the Thanlwin River. Located 28 miles from the sea, it is
the second busiest seaport & third largest city in Myanmar. Rail and
motor road from Yangon via Bago ends at Moketama (Martaban Gulf) 169
miles and then ferry across by launch. The railroad continues south up
to Ye terminal (90 miles), but the motor road continues up to Myeik (Mergui).
Air flight from Yangon, sea-going vessels, coastal boats and
inland-river crafts ply up & down. Visitors to Mawlamyine are simply
enchanted at the scenic beauty and it's temperate climate. The
atmosphere of post-colonial decay is still palpable here. It's also an
attractive and tropical town with a ride of stupa-capped hills on one
side and the sea on the others. |
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Kyaikkami Yele Pagoda
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It is located 24 km northeast of Thanbyuzayat and was a small-coasted
area and missionary centre known as Amherst during the British
annexation. The focus of Kyaik Kami is Yele Pagoda. It is a metal roofed
Buddhist shrine complex perched over the sea and reached through a long
two-level causeway; the lower level is submerged during high tide. The
shrine chamber beneath Yele Pagoda contains sacred hairs of the Buddha. |
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Kyaikmaraw
Located 24km southeast of Mawlamyine. The famous of the town is
Kyaikmaraw Pagoda. The main Buddha image sits in the position of the
legs hanging down as if sitting on a chair.
Thanbyuzayat
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About 60 kilometres south of Mawlamyine, at Thanbyuzayat, there is a
large, well-maintained war cemetery. The war cemetery is meticulously
maintained by the Commonwealth War Graves Commission and contains the
graves of some 3771 Known and (154 unknown) victims of the construction
of the infamous World War II Burma-Thailand railway. |
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Gaungse Kyun (Head Wash Island)
This beautiful little islet off Mawlamyine's northwestern end is a good
picnic spot. The islet was named Head Wash Island because the yearly
royal hair washing ceremony during the Inwa (Ava) period, used the water
taken from a spring on the island. You can take a stroll around and
visit the Sandawshin pagoda, a whitewash and silver pagoda enshrining
hair relics of the Buddha, and a Buddhist meditation centre by the
pagoda.
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