Having blazed through all the top attractions in Myanmar’s largest commercial hub shouldn’t stop you from continuing to experience the city. Though Yangon is chocked full of age-old temples, stunning colonial architecture and friendly locals, there are other unique activities that one can actually do.
Visit the Golden Rock
One of the most significant Buddhist pilgrimage sites in all of Myanmar, the Golden Rock (Kyaiktiyo) Pagoda is – true to its name – a rock covered in gold leaf. Seemingly defying the laws of gravity, the large boulder teeters precariously off the edge of a cliff and is topped with a pagoda; It is said that the rock maintains its balance owing to a hair of the Buddha that is enshrined within the pagoda. To visit the Golden Rock is an arduous journey, but one that promises a rewarding experience. For ease of transport, book a tour from a reliable vendor. For the complete pilgrimage, your starting point is Aung Mingalar, Yangon’s main bus terminal. Be there early; The bus ride from Yangon to the village of Kinpun will span a duration of around 4 to 5 hours. Kinpun sits at the foot of the mountain, and is where you can catch a public truck to take you on a bumpy climb up to where Kyaiktiyo Pagoda rests, 1,100 metres above sea level.
Local legend spins a fascinating tale of how the Kyaiktiyo Pagoda came to be: On one of the Buddha’s many visits, he gave a strand of his hair to a hermit, who offered it to the king upon the condition that the hair would be enshrined in a boulder shaped like the hermit’s head. Having inherited supernatural powers from his parents, the king then found such a boulder at the bottom of the sea, and raised it to perch on the very cliff edge Kyaiktiyo Pagoda sits on today. The last bus from Kinpun to Yangon departs around 3:30pm, so if you’re not with a tour, make sure to keep tabs on the clock. Two hours would be enough to cover a leisurely stroll around the complex, take commemorative photos in front of the Golden Rock and even visit the Kyaukthanban (stone boat) Pagoda, which was believed to have been the boat used to transport the rock in the legend.
However, if you don’t want to miss witnessing the setting sun glinting off the glorious pagoda atop the Golden Rock, consider spending the night in one of the hotels or accommodations on the mountain, or in the quaint village of Kinpun – It’ll be a sunset you won’t forget.
Scavenge the Ruins of Nagar Glass Factory
Straying off the beaten path, take a 20-minute stroll from either Kamaryut or Thiri Myaing stations on Yangon's circular railway, and wander into a cut of forest that hides a magical world of glinting shards: Nagar Glass Factory was once Myanmar’s most successful glass-making factory.
First introduced to the country in 1948, Nagar Glass Factory was the first and only one in the business of glass-making. While it started as a factory producing medical bottles, the founder’s son, Myat Kywe, took it upon himself to learn how to blow different shapes of glass and studied new techniques from books. His efforts eventually garnered attention across the country and Myat Kywe was commissioned to create ornaments for some of the most important monuments in Yangon today: The glass shades adorning Sule Pagoda’s lamp posts and the glass eyes of Chauk Htat Gyi’s reclining Buddha. In 2008, disaster wrecked the country in the form of Cyclone Nargis and claimed some 138,000 lives. The Nagar Glass Factory was run into the ground — completely ravaged. All that’s left of the once flourishing entity is a deluge of colourful glassware and ornaments that were either in production or storage during the storm.
Stepping into the compound likens to crossing the boundaries to another world – colourful bottles, glasses and trinkets scatter plentifully all over the clearing and what remains of the factory compound. Visitors are allowed to peruse the ruins in search of treasure that have been blanketed all over the forest floor; Anything found can be purchased and brought back as a souvenir.
One last thing: it’s not a well-marked path into the factory, so be sure to bring with you a smartphone, a map app and some internet connection. Despite it being quite the unconventional detour on your itinerary, a visit to Nagar Glass Factory promises a bout of nostalgia and a tinge of sorrow – what once was, what was lost and what could have been.
Take a Hot Air Balloon Over Bagan
Bagan is an ancient city to the north of Yangon, draped along the banks of the Irrawaddy River. Well-known for its abundance of temples and archaic monuments, hot air ballooning over this stunning UNESCO World Heritage Site quickly picked up as a popular activity for visitors.
This is a trip that will set you on a longer jaunt. To make the journey to Bagan from Yangon, most travellers take an overnight bus from Yangon’s main bus terminal, Aung Mingalar. Tickets are available for purchase at the station itself, but it’s recommended to book your ticket online since overnight buses are a favoured mode of transport and sell fast. An alternative is the sleeper train operated by Myanmar Railways, but clocking an average travel time of 19 hours to Bagan, the 10-hour bus ride is still preferred.
Once arrived, pick a tour operator for your epic Hot Air Balloon experience. While it may set you back quite a bit at around USD $400, you will never encounter the same sights any other way. Your day starts early: A couple hours before sunrise, your tour operator should pick you up at your accommodation. Here begins a drive to the location at which you will board your hot air balloon, usually taking 8 to 12 people per ride.
On the cusp of dawn, the air is still and everything is quiet. The basket lifts off the ground and glides through clear skies: Below, history is sprawled out in all its glory. For the next 45 minutes to an hour, take in the mesmerizing slant of sunlight sloping off the tips of the city’s countless pagodas and the world stirring into motion; There’s something magical about gazing at everything from above. Pass over rustic towns and the quaint countryside; Feel the breeze caressing your face – It’s a flight like no other.
Depending on your tour package, you may be treated to a breakfast spread upon landing, and then dropped off at your accommodation. At this point, the day would have barely begun: With the Hot Air Balloon experience ending around 9am in the morning, you would still have an entire day to discover timeless secrets hidden all over the city of Bagan.
Best taken as day trips or half-day trips, pick one of the above options and venture off the beaten track for an unforgettable adventure. Yangon is much more than its downtown; It is a city that keeps on giving – there is a special something for everyone.
