Myanmar (Burma) - The Rough Guide to Southeast Asia on a Budget - page 568

GOLD LEAF WORKSHOPS
Pretty much all of the gold leaf applied to Buddha images by devotees in Myanmar comes
from a small area of Mandalay. There are about fifty gold leaf workshops , many of them based
in homes, in the blocks around 36th Street, just east of the railway line.
Among these, Gold Rose (36th St 78/79; daily 6am-6pm; T 02 30218) and King Galon (36th St
77/78; daily 7am-7pm; T 09 47143078) are larger businesses which are used to visits from
tourists. At both, it's possible to watch the hammerers at work while a member of staff explains
the process of turning a 12g piece of gold into 1200 sheets, each just 0.0003mm thick. The
shops sell gold leaf and other souvenirs, but there's no pressure to buy.

around sunset, but the wide terrace of
Sutaungpyi Paya (“wish-granting
pagoda”) at the top accommodates
the mixture of pilgrims, tourists and
novice monks, who are there to practise
their English.
It's also possible to take a pick-up
(K500), motorbike (K4500 return)
or taxi (K12,000 return) to the top of
the hill.

of the Kyauktawgyi Paya (daily 24hr) just
to the west is a huge Buddha carved from
a single piece of marble. It's the site of the
city's biggest festival every October.

7

Jade Market
he stalls in the large Jade Market (daily
8-11am & 2-4pm; $1), located in an
appealing canal-side district southwest of
downtown, sell mostly to dealers. It
probably isn't a good idea to make a
purchase unless you know what you're
looking for, but it's a fascinating place to
visit. he main trading in the market
takes place in the morning, but it's
possible to see jade being cut, shaped and
polished at any time. You can also see the
same being done outside the market
itself, on the east side.
While in the area, take a look at Shwe
In Bin Kyaung , a peaceful, late nineteenth-
century teak monastery (junction of 89th
& 38th sts; free).

Around Mandalay Hill
here are several other temples and
monasteries at the base of Mandalay Hill.
he most impressive is probably
Shwenandaw Kyaung (daily 8am-5pm;
K10,000 Mandalay ticket), a teak
structure built within the palace walls as a
residence for King Mindon. he building
was converted to a monastery and moved
to its current site east of the palace after
Mindon died in it, as it was considered
bad luck by his son, hibaw; this later
saved it from burning alongside the
palace's other buildings.
Close by is Atumashi Kyaung (daily
8am-5pm; K10,000 Mandalay ticket),
originally built in the 1850s to house
a Buddha statue that went missing
- complete with the diamond in its
forehead - when the British took
the city. he current building is a
1990s reconstruction.
Kuthodaw Paya (daily 24hr), just north
of Atumashi Kyaung, is home to a set of
729 marble slabs inscribed with the
Tipitaka (the canon of heravada
Buddhist scriptures), each kept in its own
small stupa. Together they have been
described as the world's largest book. he
nearby Sandamuni Paya (daily 6am-9pm)
has marble slabs with commentaries on
the same scriptures, while the centrepiece

Mahamuni Paya
he most important Buddhist site in the
city, Mahamuni Paya is a large complex
south of the centre. At the heart of the
pagoda is a 3.8m-tall Buddha figure,
taken in 1784 from Mrauk U by
King Bodawpaya's army. Male devotees
visit to apply gold leaf to the figure, while
women are not allowed within the inner
area and instead hand their gold leaf to a
male assistant. he figure itself is said to
weigh six tonnes, and the gold leaf
covering it adds another two tonnes. At
4am each day crowds gather while the
face, pretty much the only part not
covered in gold leaf, is washed.
Northwest of the main shrine is a
cream concrete building containing
Hindu figures taken originally from