"Top 5 Places You Have To See In Myanmar | Travel Guide "

Right now we are in beautiful Bagan in Myanmar. These are our top five places you have to see while being in Myanmar. 5. Yangon Yangon, the capital of Myanmar, is not only the first entry on our list but most likely also the place where you're going to start your journey. It is no exaggeration to say that it definitely took some time to get used to this loud and confusing city. But Yangon has some incredible gems which are waiting to be explored by you. The Shwedagon Pagoda, which is probably the most famous landmark of Yangon, is a stupa that was built more than 2600 years ago and was rebuilt over the years and became higher and higher to its final height of 105 meters. The Shwedagon Pagoda is not only covered with gold leaves but actually has a thick layer of massive gold wrapping the building. And to top it off, the tip is literally made of thousands of rubies and diamonds. There are a lot of tourists but that doesn't make the experience any worse. When entering, make sure to wear clothes which cover your knees or you will have to borrow a traditional Burmese skirt. There are even some Christian churches which are rare since the majority of the Burmese population is Buddhist. You should probably ask your hotel for the usual fare to the different tourist attractions since the public transportation system of Yangon might be confusing. We needed the help of a friendly local when we took the train back to the city center of Yangon. So you should only take the train if you are up for a challenge. 4. Mandalay The U-Bahn bridge is with its 1.2 kilometer length the longest wooden bridge on earth and is partly made out of wood from the old king's palace. Beside the bridge, which you can reach by taking bikes or scooters, there are plenty of other breathtaking temples and pagodas to explore. Surely our bikes broke down a few times but we always got help from friendly locals. One temple was once covered in gold but time, wind and rain have made the wooden structure beneath visible which gives you an incredible appreciation for the craftsmanship. In our opinion, the beauty of some temples was degraded by using many colorful lights Since you always have to take off your shoes, you should be aware of the incredible heat of the ground which is why there are always small paths made out of white stone which reflect the light and are therefore much better to walk on. 3. Pa'an After arriving in Pa'an, we played a game with some locals where the goal is to keep the ball in the air as long as possible using all parts of your body except your arms. We were really amazed by all the friendly and welcoming people. We crossed Canglin river to climb up a small hill to oversee the city. We paid around 500 kyat to cross the river. On the mountain was a huge bamboo platform which we climbed. In general, the stairs were made out of bamboo as well and the whole structure looked kind of unsafe and was slightly terrifying. We took a tuk-tuk to bring us to the Zwigabin mountain. On the foot of this mountain are thousands of Buddha statues. The sheer amount of statues, which are partly hidden in the forest, was amazing. Especially as you climbed higher, you could see the massive amount of statues. Because it was over 41 degrees Celsius, we were exhausted very quickly. But the view and the feeling of success made up for the long and hard way up. The pagoda on top of Mount Zwigabin is 725 meters above sea level and you're able to stay in the monastery for only $5 per night. You can buy drinks and snacks on the first few stages of the ascent and then only on top at the monastery. So make sure you have enough water to stay hydrated and that the monkeys don't steal your food. After getting all the way down to Limpini garden, there were no taxis or tuk-tuks at the foot of the mountain. We had to hitchhike our way back to the city, which we don't recommend, even though we were extremely grateful that a friendly local dropped us off at the city. So make sure to organize transportation back to the city beforehand. The city in Yangshuo is really calm and peaceful. Most of the tourists decide to trek from Galao to Inner Lake, which we didn't do because we didn't have enough time since we just got a visa for a month. To explore Inner Lake, you need to hire a local guide for a boat and after a short negotiation about the attractions and the price, you will probably pay around 5000 yuan per person. After we bought gasoline with our guide, we took the boat down a river to Inner Lake. You can immediately see the famous fishermen the region is also known for. The way they steer their boat using only one leg is fascinating to watch and gives you the opportunity to take some incredible pictures. The boat tour also includes a few stops at local craftsmanship stores. We stopped by at a silver manufacturer forging their own silver jewelry, a cigar manufacturer and a shop where they produce textiles out of the lotus flower. They also bring you to see some people from the Longneck tribe who wear golden rings around their neck. The women of the Longneck tribe often say that their purpose for wearing the rings is cultural identity, one associated with beauty. The girls were lovely and we had a lot of fun asking them questions about their culture and they had a lot of fun guessing our age. The most famous place in Myanmar and also our personal highlight is Bagan, which is an ancient city in the Mandalay region. In the height of the kingdom, there were over 10,000 pagodas, temples and monasteries from which there is an astounding number of 2,217 pagodas and temples left, standing and waiting to be explored. The best way to do that is probably to rent an electric motorbike or if you feel fit enough a bicycle from the many hostels and hotels in the city. It amazed us that even though nowadays there are more and more tourists traveling the region, you still have the feeling from time to time that you are discovering all those pagodas all on your own. At night time, you will want to climb one of the many pagodas to see the breathtaking sunset. The most iconic pictures of Bagan always include hot air balloons in the sky. To see those or to fly them, you need to visit Bagan between mid-October and mid-March, which is the only time where those flights are possible. That said, the flights aren't cheap though. They cost between 300 and 500 US dollars. The locals are really friendly and offer many traditional food choices and refreshments near the most crowded tourist attractions. Have you ever been to Myanmar? Have you missed anything? Comment down below and subscribe to see our daily content, top 10s and travel guides.