Here’s a gallery of photos I took while cycling around the incredibly photogenic remains of the ancient Myanmar capital Bagan.
Bagan was the capital of the first kingdom to unite all the regions now known as Myanmar between the 11th and 13th centuries.
According to a guide I eavesdropped on, the Buddhist Kingdom of Pagan, as it was then known, was so successful at warcraft, agriculture and commerce that it was able to devote a huge amount of resources to the spiritual wellbeing of its people.
More than 10,000 Buddhist temples, pagodas and monasteries were built just on the Bagan plain alone.
About 2200 temples and pagodas are still standing, some relatively intact and others restored.
I think I must have I visited most of them on the bicycle I rented for the day.
Click on the thumbnails to open the gallery..
