Beautiful Kunming "City of Eternal Spring"!!!!!!!

Holiday in Kunming

Hi, everyone. It is me again, Tisha. Now, I am going to tell you about  an amazing city in China. It is called Kunming. I visited Kunming from March 24^th until March 29^th 2013.

 Kunming is a beautiful and an awesome city. It has a lot of mountains and beautiful landscapes. Kunming is also known as the “City of Eternal Spring”, for its pleasant climate which allows flowers to bloom all year long.

SHILIN - THE STONE FOREST

The first place I went to Kunming is the Shilin or the Stone Forest. It is in Lunan Yi Nationality Autonomous County, which is about 120 kilometres (75 miles) from Kunming and requires only a three-hour drive. 

We went inside the Stone Forest. In the Stone Forest, there are many tall and rocky stones. I wandered through the various paths and climbed up steep rocky steps and I saw many tall rocks that resemble petrified trees. All these tall rocky structures created an illusion of a stone forest. 

When I climbed up to the highest peak, I looked down and I saw thousands of tall rocky stones amidst beautiful green trees of Kunming.

Actually, there is also a story in the Stone Forest. This story is about a beautiful Sani girl named Ashima. According to legend, the beautiful Ashima was petrified until she was transformed into a permanent rock peak which stands in the Minor Stone Forest. Slim and graceful, she gazes afar to expect her sweetheart Ahei. When we reached the Stone Forest Lake, we saw the stone of Ashima. It looks indeed like a very beautiful lady like rock formation sculptured by mother nature.

 The Stone Forest is a unique place to visit. It is like heaven on earth.










JIUXIANG- THE NINE VILLAGES

The second place I visited in Kunming is Jiuxiang or ‘The Nine Villages’ if translated literally . 

It is located in Jiuxiang Yi and Hui Autonomous Township of Yiliang County in Southeast Kunming. It is 90 kilometres away from Kunming downtown and 30 kilometres from the Stone Forest. Formed in the Sinian Periodsome 600 million years ago, Jiuxiang Karst cave cluster consists of over 100 caves.

My parents, friends and I started our journey into the grand underground valley of Jiuxiang from the Gate of Diehong Bridge Zone. We walked into the mountain and into the deep deep karst caves. 

We walked along narrow rocky passageways carved along the side of the mountains. 

As we walked further, we came to a karst cave called the Lion Hall. Here, you can visit the museum about the cave man of this mountain. 

There is also a very unique fish which has no eyes that is found in the mountain. The Lion Hall is a very interesting place to visit.

  

Next, we crossed a bridge that is the Diehong Bridge. There is a river flowing gracefully below the bridge. 

Further into the cave, we come to the Twin Waterfalls. It is my first time to see a waterfall in an underground cave. The water gushes down like thunder. 

After that, we went to the Fairy Fields. It is very beautiful and fantastic. The Fairy Field contains interesting formations caused by vertical and horizontal corrosion. The Twin Waterfalls and Fairy Field are also not to be missed.

After  walking underground in this huge enormous mountain for more than three hours, we exited from the other end of the mountain. We took a tramp car from the mountain down to the entrance. We had an exciting ride as we zoom down while admiring the beautiful view of green trees and the natural landscape of the mountains.

CUIHU PARK- GREEN LAKE PARK

Another place that I visited in Kunming is the Green Lake Park or Cuihu Park. It is also known as "Kunming's Jade". It is located on the west side of Wuhua Mountain in Kunming, Green Lake Park was built in the 17th century. 

There are two long banks which divide Green Lake Park into four parts. In winter, the banks are covered with an abundance of green willow trees. The air here is fresh and clean. 

It is so nice to take a morning stroll or simply sit and relax by the lake and to admire her beauty. No wonder it is known as "Kunming's Jade". 






There were many local people dancing and exercising and enjoying themselves. Some of them even flew kites. There are also many stalls and shops selling souvenirs. I really had a good time in this park.

MYANMAR, THE GOLDEN LAND

                            TEN AMAZING DAYS IN MYANMAR 

Minglabar! Welcome to Myanmar. I spent 10 amazing days with my family and friends. Myanmar is known as “THE GOLDEN LAND”. It is certainly one of the most exotic countries in the world because it is a land of astounding beauty and charm that even moved Rudyard Kipling,  a famous author who wrote “The Jungle Book”, to pen these apt words: “quite unlike any land you will ever know”.  Myanmar is indeed a very different country compared to the other countries that I have visited.

I would encourage everyone to visit this fabulous and historical place because it is rich in archeological sites, glittering pagodas, a wealth of cultures, colourful festivals and arts. Myanmar is also blessed with beautiful natural sceneries for one to enjoy.

FIRST DAY

Upon our arrival at the Yangon International Airport, we were welcomed by our driver from Mother Land Inn 2. 

 

 

We had a good laugh when we saw an old rickety bus that would take us to the hotel. It was like going back to the future.

   

 

Yangon is a capital and it is also called “The Garden City Of The East” because there are lush tropical flowers, trees and beautiful lakes.

We stayed at Mother Land Inn 2 which is  a guest house in Yangon town. The rooms are small. However, the breakfast WAS VERY FANTASTICO!!!!!!  The bread and the omelet was SUPER DELICIOUS!!!!! But anyway, we stayed there for 1 night because the rooms and toilets were not very clean.

My mom and I standing in front of the 
Aung Sang market.

 

On the first day, we visited the Aung San market – a very big maket that sells jewelries like jade, rubies, and sapphires.

We walked around the city and we saw local people selling fruits such as mangoesteens, guavas, rambutans, and the SWEETEST HONEY MANGOES!!!!

We also visited the most awesome and largest stupa in Yangon – the Shwedagon Pagoda. It is well-known for its  towering gold-crusted  stupa. The golden dome rises 98 metres above its base and it is covered with over 60 ton of pure gold.   At night, Shwedagon Pagoda looked so magnificent  and spectacular.

There are many Buddha statutes and each of the statue is carefully sculptured and painted.

We even saw a group of monks walking and chanting sutras towards a hall in the temple grounds.

 

I even bathed Lord Buddha with  holy water. I feel so happy that I could do that.

Next we visited the King’s dragon boat palace  which is built in a beautiful lake in Yagon. The dragon boat palace is  now a restaurant – a tourist attraction.

What a beauty!!!

SECOND DAY

On the second day, we booked into Hotel 63. This hotel is many many times better than Motherland Inn.  The room is big and clean. The buffet breakfast is fantastic because there was an array of food to choose from.

We booked a taxi and visited Bago which is just an hour drive from Yangon. Bago is one of the richest archaeological sites in Myanmar. In Bago, lies one of the 4  largest Sitting Buddhas. They are really really huge!!!

 

Bago also  housed the largest  Sleeping Buddha – Shwe Tha Lyaung. This Sleeping Buddha is covered in a very huge temple.

There is also another Sleeping Buddha in Bago which is in the open. This Buddha looks so serene and at peace and it even makes you feel the same too.

The last place we visited in Bago was the King’s Palace – a very huge palace. It was rebuilt by the government. I was amazed by the size of the pillars.

The doors and the walls are all  beautifully carved and painted in gold.

  

The King’s throne was painted in gold. Everything in the palace was painted in gold – the doors and the walls too were carved with intricate designs.

THIRD DAY

On the third day, we took a bus from Yagon bus station to Mandalay. The Yagon bus station is like a town. The whole place housed all the bus companies that go to all the towns in Myanmar.

We left Mandalay at about 9.30 am and we reached Mandalay at about 5.50 pm. The journey took about 8 hours. Our bus was the only bus moving on the long straight highway  to Mandalay.

When we reached the Mandalay bus station, there were many local taxi drivers trying to get us to take their taxis. Finally we got one. We really had a surprise when we saw our taxi. It was a  van truck.

 

We  had to climb into it and we had a good laugh. My mother said that we all looked like refugees being transported into refugee camps. Ha ha ha!!! We stayed only 1 night at Treasure Hotel for it was very far from town. So the next day we booked into Silver Star hotel which was not too bad.

FOURTH  DAY

The next day that is the fouth day we checked out and the first place we visited was U Bein’s Bridge in Amarapura. It is a 1.2 km long wooden bridge built about 1000 years ago. The stilts are still  intact. The local people are still using this bridge to cross the Thaung Tha Man Lake.

The next place we visited was Mingun. At Mingun, we climbed up more than 100 steps to reach the White Pagoda, a very beautiful pagoda. On top of the pagoda is a Buddha Statute.

 

From the top of White Pagoda, we could see Photo Taw Gyi and the beautiful scenery.

 Next, we visited the largest copper bell. I think it is about 3 storey high.  The bell is placed inside this beautiful building.  

 

 I went inside the bell to feel what it is like to be in a big bell. Awesome feeling!

 

 

 

 After that we walked towards Photo Taw Gyi. It is a huge rock temple and one can climb up to the top of the peak. My parents and I just took some photos from a distance. .

 

 

 

  It was very hot that day and we did not feel like walking. Anyway, Mingun is a must place to visit when you are in Mandalay.

 

Our next stop was Sagaing which  is the capital of Sagaing Division in Myanmar. It is located on the Ayeyarwady River. 

 

We visited the Sagaing Hill  which is about 240m high and the Soon Oo Ponya Shin Pagoda. There are also many Buddha statutes. This is one of them.

  A cute liitle girl in a nun's attire with her head shaved bald attending Buddhist studies at the monastery.

 

I was also fortunate to see a few young monks who took a two-year leave from school to attend   Buddhist studies here.

There are many  pagodas, monasteries and meditation centres. To reach to the top of the hill where the temple is located, we had to walk up about more than  5oo steps. It was very tiring but the view was magnificient for you can see the Ayeyarwady River.

  The next  place that we visited was the  Inwa  Kingdom. We had to cross the river in a small boat.

We hired a horse carriage to take us around the place. 

 I am having lots of fun!!!
I really enjoyed the  horse ride. What an adventure!

There are many historical temples and ruins from this  Kingdom.  

FIFTH DAY

On the fifth day, we toured Mandalay city. The King’s palace is right in the middle of the city and it is surrounded by a moat.

To get to the shopping complex n Mandalay, we had to climb into a truck which is their kind of taxi.  

It was interesting sitting in this type of taxi. The city is big and there are many shops selling all kinds of things. My mummy and her friends bought many Sunshine brand leather bags because they were very cheap. 

That evening, we took  an internal flight  from Mandalay to Bagan. The flight was about half an hour. Bagan is situated on the eastern bank of the Ayeyawaddy river and is the main tourist destination in Myanmar. So, it is a MUST place to visit.

The Bagan Airport

  
Welcome to Bagan!!!

 

  


Now here is a bit of history about Bagan.  Bagan was the capital of the first Myanmar Empire that is the empire of King Anawrahta which was founded in 849 A.D. and it is one of the richest archaeological sites in South East Asia. There are about 2000 well-preserved  pagodas and temples of the 11^th to 13^th century.

We stayed at Aung Minglar Hotel for 4 days. This hotel has a good  location and the rooms and service is good.

We will definitely stay at this hotel again.

SIXTH DAY

On the sixth day, we visited Mount Popa, an extinct volcano  in the morning. It is 50 km away from Bagan. Pagodas and temples are located on the top of  this 736m high mountain.  We had to walk up more than 700steps to reach the top. 



 
There were stalls  along the steps selling souvenirs and T-shirts. 

  
 I was lucky to get some young monks to pose with  me. Don’t they look cute?

A curious monkey and some local children posing with my mummy!!

 
What else  did I see? I saw a lot monkeys on the steps going up to the temples. We had to stop many times to catch our breath.

 

 The view was awesome. There were lots of trees and the surrounding plains added beauty to the place.

In the temple on top of the hill, I saw many Buddha statues.

 Each small temple has a caretaker.



 




There is a bell too.

 I even saw  a pair of Buddha feet in one of the temples. The locals placed some money on it as offerings.

The next temple we visited which was near Mount Popa sits a really really huge gold- painted  Buddha Statue. I had to arch my head backward to look at it.

SEVENTH DAY

On the seventh day, we toured Bagan again. This time, we visited the Bagan Cultural Heritage Region.  We hired 3 horse carriages to take us around. It was a really enjoyable and fun riding in the horse carriage. The drivers were very friendly.

We visited almost all the big pagodas and temples. Inside every temples are erected huge Buddha statues and although they  all look similar,  though some are slightly different. The huge Buddha statues  in all the temples really amazed  me. 

Did the builders build the statues first or the temple first? I believe the craftsmen erected the Buddha statues first, then only after that the builders built  the temples. It was really an amazing feat! You should go there to see it for yourself!!

The first temple is the That Byin Nyu Temple. It is the highest temple in Bagan and was built by King Alaungsthu in the 12^th Century A.D.

At the entrance of this temple, we have to show our tickets to this pretty young girl.

Inside the temple, the locals pray to Lord Buddha. They are very religious people.

Again there are many statues in this temple.

Again there are stalls selling all kinds of local souvenirs.

The next temple is Ananda Phaya. 

This temple is enormous and houses many many standing Buddha Statues. They look so majestic in gold.

You will be amazed by what you see!!

This temple is very unique because this is the only temple that has Hindu influence- look like Angkor Wat in Cambodia!

The wooden door of many centuries old still exist and they are really solid.

The door and the lock  are also very ancient. The amazing thing is they are so well preserved.

 

While visiting this temple, a local woman liked me so much that she wanted to take a photo with me. On her face, she had applied thanaka, a yellow powder from the thanaka tree. All the local people use it as a sun block to protect their skin from the torching sun.

Next,  we visited  the Bupaya Pagoda which is located on the brink of the Ayeyarwady River. There are two lion statutes guarding the entrance of the pagoda.

Also, a big golden dome overlooking the river.

In this temple, there is a lovely white Buddha statute in the altar. The locals and monks come to pray to Lord Buddha.

Our next destination is the Sulamani Temple – one of the biggest temple in Bagan. It was built in 1183 A.D. by King Narapatisithu.

The golden  Buddha statute is so huge and I looked so small !  When you walked around the temple, you can see  many Buddha statues.

The horse ride was fun. I really enjoyed sitting in front with the driver. Going to the temples in the horse carriage is a wonderful and exciting experience that I will never forget. I had so much fun and I want to go to Bagan again!

The last temple that we visited is the massive Dhamma Yan Gyi Temple. It is the biggest temple in Bagan and it was built by King Narathu  between 1163-1165 A.D.

 

The Buddha statutes here are different from the others. In certain parts of the temple, are seated two Buddha statutes. The Buddha Statutes here have very long ears and their robes are painted brownish reddish in colour.

There is one huge  sitting Buddha which has a black cover over its head. From far, you would think that this Buddha is wearing a hat. You can only see this Buddha in this temple. Only one like this in the whole of Bagan.

I even saw  huge drawings of Buddha on many  walls in this temple.

 Most of the paintings  have been preserved and can still be marveled.

EIGHTH DAY

On our last day that is the eight day,  we had a free and easy day. After breakfast, two of my mummy’s friends hired 2 bicycles to go around Bagan town. I walked to town with my family and friends.

Bagan town is a  small township. However, there are many restaurants serving Myanmar and western food. We loved the food served at Novel Restaurant. We ordered a special dish cooked on a clay furnace.  Yummy and very delicious! Their mango yogurt drink is simply refreshing.

There are also many shops selling beautiful wood carvings.

We also saw two young boys carving a huge peacock from a tree trunk.

They are so skillful. They just kept on chipping off the wood and the peacock slowly took its form. Simply awesome!

Next, we visited the Bagan museum which was opposite the Novel Restaurant. There are a few buildings inside this museum. We visited the fossilized wood museum, the jade museum, the thanaka museum.

The thanaka museum is very unique and there is huge  thanaka tree. The tree behind me is the thanaka tree without its leaves.

Thanaka powder and wood are sold in the museum. Young and old people love to apply this yellow powder on their faces because it protects their skin.

 These are the paintings about the history on the use of thanaka.

At about 4 pm, we took a 45 minute flight to Yangon. Goodbye Bagan! I will visit you again!

We checked into Hotel 63 again because it was good. We had a good rest that night.

NINETH DAY

The next morning that is our ninth day, we visited the pier along the Ayeyarwady River. There are many boats and ferries  and of course people.

 
There is also a big golden pagoda here. As usual the local people here are very religious.

There are a few hawkers too. I saw a young girl selling green mangoes that were cut-up  like lotus flowers by the roadside. She looks beautiful  and has a smiling face. I think  by looking at her bald head, she must have become a nun and done her  monastery studies.

Next, I pose with a fruit seller selling guavas. We have this fruit in Malaysia too.

After lunch, we visited Aung Sung Su  Chi’s father’s house in Yagon. It is turned into a museum. 





The house is on a hilltop.I saw many photos of General Aung Sung, his statute, Aung Sung Su Chi and brothers’ bedroom and so many things.Unfortunately, we were not allowed to take photos inside the house.

We only took some photos of the house outside. There a winding road   leading to the house and we walked up some steps to reach the house. 

The view from the house  is superb. I even  saw the Shwedagon Pagoda from one of the windows in the house.

TENTH DAY

The 10^th day -  our last day and it was time to say goodbye to Yagon. 


 The Yagon International Airport - a very modern airport
 



We took the 7.25am Air Asia  flight back to Malaysia.  Yagon International Airport is big. I am sad to leave this beautiful place.

 

I will surely come again with my pink Teddy Bear. 

Bye-bye Myanmar

 See you again.

 I love you.