After eating boxed breakfasts at our hotel in Yangon at 5 a.m., we flew to Bagan on a 1-hour 20-minute flight. You go to Bagan to see the over 2,200 temples, stupas, and pavilions left from over 10,000 of them built between the 9th and 13th centuries AD by kings and wealthy people.

We started sightseeing as soon as we landed, first viewing the local color on the streets.

A colorful house.

Transportation.

Transporting bananas.

Probably to the Nyaung-U morning market that we visited.

The woman has yellowish-white thanaka paste on her face. It is used as both a cosmetic and a sunscreen in Myanmar.

The paste is made from grinding up thanaka wood, which is being sold here.

More of the market.

Seasoning is being sold in the tubs.

An old woman taking a rest.

Clothes and tourist items were also being sold in the market.

Pants.

Books. The vendors hawk these books at the tourist areas.

"Burmese Days" by George Orwell (in English) is popular. He was a member of the British Imperial Police Force in Burma and spent five years there in 1920s and then wrote this book about Burma.

Statues and ceramics for sale.

I didn't see the sign on the left until after I took the photo.

The market was very crowded and the vendors were relentless, so after I bought a few souvenirs, I escaped to sit outside and people-watched. Interesting to see how people carry items--above the head.

On the shoulder.

Lifting up the bundle to put on her head.

On her head.

On her head with support.

Also on her head with support.

Over the shoulder.

On a pole.

Visitors to the market.

Our tour guide Mojo.

Back on the street.

Trying not to get runover by a motorscooter.

Our next stop was at the Shwezigon Pagoda. It is a circular gold-leaf stupa completed in 1102 AD and believed to enshrine a bone and tooth of Buddha. It was constructed during the reign of King Kyansittha of the Pagan Dynasty, the dynasty that was the forerunner of modern Myanmar as it unified the region.

Many smaller temples and shrines surround the stupa.

We first went into a room that had "nats" in it. There are 37 great nats, which are spirits, and other lesser nats, most of the which were human beings who met violent deaths.

A nat.

Another one.

A nat on horseback.

From the front.

The Shwzigon Pagoda.

Closer-up view.

The staircase into the stupa.

On the side of the stupa.

A leogryph guarding the stupa.

Close-up of the gold-leaf on the stupa.

A pavilion at the complex.

More of the complex.

Another pavilion.

A shrine and a stupa

Novice monks, who can be as young as 7 years old. It is a very big and costly event for a boy to become a novice monk. Sometimes whole villages will collect the needed money and a big celebration is held when a boy is accepted. Some of the young boys stay with the monks a very short period of time and others stay longer to be educated.

On a pole at the complex.

A fancy snake.

Close-up.

On top of the pole.

Seen on the road. The Bagan Architectural Zone containing over 2,200 stupas, shrines, and temples covers 40 square miles (104 sq km). You see these structures everywhere. However, Bagan is not a UNESCO World Heritage Site, as when Myanmar, in the 1990s, started renovating the temples, etc., they paid little attention to architectural style, used modern materials, and put in a golf course, a paved highway, and a watchtower, all not acceptable by UNESCO.

Another shrine.

Our next stop was at the Ananda Temple. It is whitewashed and was built in 1105 AD during the reign of King Kyanzittha. The style is a fusion of Mon (people who lived in Bagan at the time and still do) and Indian.

Little children at the entrance to the temple.

They added a little boy to their group.

Inside the temple.

Monks at the temple.

A colorful display.

There are four large Buddha statues in the temple, one facing east, one west, one north, and one south.

Closer-up.

You walked through the temple through these narrow corridors.

Statues were in the noches in the corridors.

The second Buddha statue.

Another corridor.

An old door.

The third Buddha statue.

Statue in one of the noches.

Some of the statues were behind glass.

The fourth Buddha statue.

Closer-up.

Closer-up.

One of the guardians of the temple.

Back on the bus and passing more shrines. To take a tour of all the shrines, and there is one after another after another, it is recommended that you either rent a bicycle or hire a horse and cart.

Another shrine.

And another.

Still more.

And another.

And still another. I thought they were fascinating as there were so many of them and were of varying architectural details and styles.

We next checked into and ate lunch at our hotel, the Thiripyitsaya Sanctuary Resort located in the Bagan Architectural Zone.

The resort was on the banks of the Irrawaddy River.

Our rooms were in bungalows.

A shrine was across from the hotel.

After lunch, we went to the Manuha Temple. It was built by a Mon king while he was being held captive in Bagan by King Anawraha of the Pagan Empire. The temple was built in 1059 AD.

A reclining Buddha is in the temple squeezed in a very narrow enclosure, representing Manuha"s displeasure with his captivity and his lack of comfort.

Close-up.

Monks entering the temple.

I don't know the specific name for the bell being carried this way but you see two figures carrying a bell at many of the Myanamar temples.

Sometimes you see the bell carried this way.

Back on the bus to our next stop. We would be riding on these horse carts to the Shwe Dan Daw Pagoda to view the sunset.

Two people per cart. I got the back seat and really was afraid that I would slip out of the cart. The ride was bumpy.

The cart behind us. You needed to wear a mask over your face as there was so much dust.

A large shrine passed along the way.

More shrines.

Taking a photo of the shrines while my camera was facing the sun.

Nearing the Shwe San Daw Pagoda, built in 1057 AD by King Anawrahta at the center of his kingdom.

I took this photo later as people were coming down after viewing the sunset, but you can see what the stairway up to the five terraces looks like. It was a steep climb, especially in bare feet.

I made it up to the second terrace and took this photo of the sunset.

Also this one.

And this one.

The temple itself was still in the sunlight. Most people had already climbed down, doing it hand over hand on the railing on one side. I came down earlier and found using a hand on each side rail was the easy way to come down. However, a monk stood at the bottom of the steps and told me I was doing it wrong. Maybe the hand over hand has some religious significance. Anyway, for me not to listen to a monk, a man came up and took my hand and walked me down.

When you reached the bottom of the stairs, then you had to find your shoes.

Next stop, a a dinner/puppet show. It took about an hour to be served our dinner. Considering that we had breakfast at 5 a.m. this morning, add time to that to get ready, flew on a plane, and visited a market and a number of temples, we were very, very, very tired. A movie of the puppet show is in the Bagan album.