He was a monk the most of his life, before becoming a teacher and later starting a family. Today Thura is a mushroom farmer who supplements his family's income as a tour guide - something he started in his teaching years, when all proceeds were donated to the school.
Having grown up in and around Mandalay, he can see past the concrete buildings that would have stopped Esther and I short, aside from the few major "must see" tourist hot-spots.
So we followed him on a journey outside of the city center to see a few insider sights.
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| Local transport, oddly filled to the brim with females. Thura, standing in the background, being the only exception |
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| ceramic water jugs |
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| Most efficient number of containers to carry is 4, although they are able to carry up to 7 at once (in a stable stance) |
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| monks depositing their shoes at the entrance of the temple for lunch |
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| The line of monks goes from oldest to youngest |
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| Lunch, which is served at 10:30 (breakfast is at 4:30), is the final meal of the day, and eaten in silence |
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| Tin and silversmith |
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| View of the Taungthaman Lake |
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| The U Bein Bridge, a 1.2km (.75mi) teakwood bridge, built in 1850 is still used as a main thoroughfare for locals |
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| And, is quite possibly the most photographed site in and around Mandalay |
1 comment:
Nice water jug skill. I can't imagine balancing one, let alone two on my head. I just checked out Mandalay on Google Maps. You are in the heart of Myanmar. Pretty cool.
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