Hello Flexers, On day 5 we hired a boat to cross the Irrawaddy River from Mandalay to Mingun. Mingun was to be the site of the world's largest pagoda - but work was stopped in 1819 when King Bodawpaya died and in 1838 an earthquake split the base of the monument and turned it into partial rubble. Taken from the pagoda was the Mingun Bell - now suspended in its own shrine and reputed to be the largest uncracked bell in the world still hanging. Quite a few qualifiers there to get to largest! Here we are on the deck of our boat for the day: <http://gallery.leica-users.org/v/Howard+Cummer/Burma2013/HEBoatw.jpg.html> http://tinyurl.com/ch9f86s And here I am doing my Indiana Jones impersonation: <http://gallery.leica-users.org/v/Howard+Cummer/Burma2013/HCBoatw.jpg.html> http://tinyurl.com/cuuo7ny We noticed the Burmese do a lot of boat steering and paddling with their feet: <http://gallery.leica-users.org/v/Howard+Cummer/Burma2013/Footsteerw.jpg.html> http://tinyurl.com/cysmy3s Mingun was even more rustic than Mandalay - an oxen powered taxi: <http://gallery.leica-users.org/v/Howard+Cummer/Burma2013/BrahmaTaxi9w.jpg.html> http://tinyurl.com/ctppdym We walked from the River past the ruins to view the Mingun Bell - not trusting to the Brahma taxi: <http://gallery.leica-users.org/v/Howard+Cummer/Burma2013/OxenTaxiw_001.jpg.html> http://tinyurl.com/cqrkel7 Along the way we encountered various sellers to the tourists: Karen ladies from one of the minority tribes of Northern Burma <http://gallery.leica-users.org/v/Howard+Cummer/Burma2013/KarenLadiesw.jpg.html> http://tinyurl.com/cyvsqzb Roadside cooking stall: Hot work in a hot climate. <http://gallery.leica-users.org/v/Howard+Cummer/Burma2013/Cooking9w_001.jpg.html> http://tinyurl.com/d6u7vcs Everywhere selling is a family affair: <http://gallery.leica-users.org/v/Howard+Cummer/Burma2013/SaleMomBabe9w.jpg.html> http://tinyurl.com/cfmnjdn and the products are made locally - here a weaver producing cloth: <http://gallery.leica-users.org/v/Howard+Cummer/Burma2013/WeaverMandalayw.jpg.html> http://tinyurl.com/d4zakka And a carver working in clay: <http://gallery.leica-users.org/v/Howard+Cummer/Burma2013/ClayCarver9w.jpg.html> http://tinyurl.com/corwsu6 Sellers can be desperately persistent. This lady stuck to me until I tipped her and took her picture: <http://gallery.leica-users.org/v/Howard+Cummer/Burma2013/HCFansellerw.jpg.html> http://tinyurl.com/cvpk8gf This lady was very happy to have her picture taken. She was all dolled up for the day and later I saw her with two gay tourists. Esther and I concluded that likely she was a "he she" (transvestite) - common in Thailand but not so common in Burma. <http://gallery.leica-users.org/v/Howard+Cummer/Burma2013/Heshe9w.jpg.html> http://tinyurl.com/c9qmqgg Finally - the noon day sun was hot "Only mad dogs and Englishmen go out in the noonday sun" and this monk was protecting himself: <http://gallery.leica-users.org/v/Howard+Cummer/Burma2013/MnkUmbrella9w.jpg.html> http://tinyurl.com/bufoz3q Please look large. C&C always welcome. Only two galleries to go - Inle Lake and Rangoon. Cheers Howard------ Unsubscribe or change to/from Digest Mode at: http://www.lrflex.furnfeather.net/ Archives are at: //www.freelists.org/archives/leicareflex/
