A crumbling, brick entryway stood as our farewell to Old Bagan. Our guide, Htut, had brought us to Tharaba Gate to show us its pair of nat shrines. Nat worship, which predates Buddhism in Myanmar, is still practiced in Bagan today, alongside Theravada Buddhism. After spending two days exploring ancient temples, this would be our last stop to learn about Bagan’s history. For me, it represented more than just our exit from Bagan though. After nearly a month of travel, Vince and I were finally headed back to Michigan, and Tharaba gate was the first step in what would be a nearly four day journey home.
I took in all of the sights around us as Htut taught us about nat worship. A tiny puppy scampered playfully around my ankles as a long line of horse-drawn carriages carried tourists down the road. Motorcycles and tuk-tuks puttered between the gates, and I waved hello to one of the monks we’d met the previous evening. As we followed Htut back to our van, I thought about how grateful I was to have had the opportunity to visit Bagan. It’s a very special place, and I was going to miss it. But I was also excited to be heading home after spending a long time away.
The first step in that journey was to tackle the five hour drive back to Mandalay. Between a roadside stop to learn about the process of making sweets from palm sugar (and try some delicious samples), and a tea break, the drive went by in a flash. We arrived in Mandalay by late afternoon, and the first thing we did was pop into a local tapestry-making and wood carving workshop. Rachel and I had requested a visit to the workshop after seeing beautifully-beaded pillowcases at the Bagan King Hotel a couple of days earlier.
There were men working on intricate carvings when we arrived, and there was also a group of women beading a massive tapestry. Their work was stunning, and it was amazing to see how such a large piece of art could be made out of such tiny components. I was so impressed that I bought a pair of pillowcases with elephants beaded on them to bring home – they would match perfectly with the elephant wall carving I bought in Phuket.
Our flight out of Myanmar wasn’t until the following morning, so after leaving the tapestry shop, Htut dropped us off at the Bagan King Hotel to rest for a couple of hours and eat lunch. Later that evening he returned to bring us out to a park just outside the old fortress walls of Mandalay Palace. Vince, Jared, and I followed Htut in a leisurely walk alongside the old walls (Rachel decided to sit this one out and get some extra sleep). It was nice to stretch our legs after a long day in the van, and the views of Mandalay hill in the waining day light were lovely. The park was alive with activity. There were people biking, kids playing, and people enjoying snacks from food trucks and street vendors.
We stayed inside of the park until sunset, when the walls of the palace were backlit by soft pink hues. It was the last spectacular, Burmese sunset we would get to witness, and we stayed long past dark to soak in the atmosphere.
We took our time retracing our steps through the park, and on the way out we, we stopped to grab some ice cream, and to try some local street food. A vendor just outside the park was selling Burmese samosas and fried chickpeas, and the three of us split a helping of each of the savory snacks while enjoying a view of the palace walls lit up in the darkness.
Then we returned to the hotel, and slept for a few hours before our early wake-up call to catch our flight to Bangkok. It was an hour’s drive to get to the airport, where we said goodbye to Htut and our driver. It was me and Vince’s sixth time at BKK, and I was almost starting to feel like we lived there. We parted ways with Rachel and Jared after we landed. They were heading on to Brunei and then Timor-Leste, but we’d see them back home in a couple of weeks. Then Vince and I were on our own for another nineteen hours in Bangkok.
This left us with plenty of time to see a few more sights, and get some rest at a cheap hotel we’d spontaneously decided to book for the night. That was the first place we went after collecting our bags. We couldn’t check in quite yet, but we could at least stow our luggage before taking a Grab into the city one last time.
Our Grab driver brought us to a section of Bangkok that we hadn’t gotten to explore yet during other two stops in the city. Jared and Rachel had recommended we check out Wat Paknam to see its sixty-nine meter tall Buddha statue that was just completed in 2021, so that’s where we decided to start the day.
Stepping out of the Grab, I was newly shocked at how hot Thailand was. Myanmar had been dry and mild, and I immediately felt like I was swimming in Bangkok’s humidity. We followed a narrow passage between buildings until we arrived at the ginormous Buddha statue, and by the time we got there, I was already sweaty. At least I’d have a chance to shower before our next flight though.
But my preoccupation with the heat evaporated when I saw the statue towering above us. The bronze image was so large that it blocked out the sun, casting a long shadow over the square below it.
Besides the statue, we also stopped inside of the temple, removing our shoes one last time to enter. After that, we wandered around the area, finding other viewpoints of the statue, and watching people drop fish food into an overly-stocked koi pond.
Wat Paknam is surrounded by a labyrinth of canals, and we decided to hop aboard a boat tour to get some different views of the Buddha image, and to see what the surrounding neighborhood was like. We wandered around until we found a small pier, and joined the next tour that departed. Out on the water, we got to see a new perspective of the statue. From this angle, it looked like the image was peacefully watching over the surrounding buildings and people.
The tour continued further along the canal, and it was a very pleasant ride, despite the intense heat. We got to see a few more temples along the way, and some interesting sculptures, and fun looking restaurants. By the time we arrived back at the pier, we’d both worked up an appetite, so we ordered another Grab to take us over to IconSiam. This luxury shopping mall has a can’t-miss dining experience on its first floor.
One thing that I really wished we had time for during our stay in Thailand was visiting a floating market. I couldn’t make it work with our itineray, but IconSiam had the next best thing, an indoor floating market with food from all of the different regions of Thailand. SookSiam was busy with diners and activities for Lunar New Year when we arrived, and we got lost for a few hours exploring all of the different food vendors, live music, and festive Chinese Lanterns on display for the holiday.
Once we’d filled up on different foods, we decided to call it a day, and returned to the hotel to take a swim in the pool (and a nap) before our evening flight to Seoul. Just like that, our month-long journey was coming to an end. Both of the countries we’d gotten to explore were incredibly beautiful, and so different from each other despite being neighbors. We’d had an amazing time, and like every time we’ve visited Southeast Asia, I found myself daydreaming about coming back. It’s one of my favorite regions to explore, and I can’t wait to plan another trip to the area!
You can find more details of this amazing destination on my YouTube channel!
