ASIA / PACIFIC
Page 20 n THE ASIAN REPORTER
May 1, 2017
Myanmar bird’s eye view: Bagan’s Buddhist temples by balloon
By Todd Pitman
The Associated Press
AGAN, Myanmar — The moment
of takeoff was silent, and
mesmerizing.
Within seconds, our hot air balloon was
floating above the treetops, gliding toward
what Marco Polo called “one of the finest
sights in the world” when he saw it 700
years ago: the ancient city of Bagan in
Myanmar (also known as Burma).
Below us, the baked brick spires of hun-
dreds of 11th- and 12th-century Buddhist
temples poked skyward through the
purple-red horizon of dawn, graceful and
serene. When I spotted the giant golden
dome of the Dhammayazika Pagoda,
glittering like a jewel in the first rays of
light, my heart skipped a beat.
I had just spent several days exploring
these iconic monuments and pagodas,
walking through their dark stone
corridors, climbing their steep exterior
steps. But peering at them from the edge of
a moving basket in the sky was an entirely
different experience, at once thrilling and
existential.
Our pilot, a Belgian named Bart D’hooge
who has flown here for nine years,
described Bagan as “stunning ... even if
you see it just from the ground.”
“But once you take off in a balloon, you
get a completely different perspective,” he
said. “It really gives you a bit of an idea of
the size of the ancient kingdom” that
flourished a thousand years ago.
The city is home to the largest concen-
tration of Buddhist temples, stupas, and
monuments in the world. More than 2,200
are spread across a plain adjacent to rice
fields and villages along the Irrawaddy
River. Only from above can this vastness
B
be fully appreciated.
The temples were built by a series of
Burmese kings who ruled the region for
roughly 250 years, until the city was
abruptly abandoned in the late 13th
century for reasons that are not entirely
clear. Although time and the elements
have eroded many of the structures’ once
ornate exteriors, the buildings themselves
are still largely intact.
On August 24, 2016, a magnitude-6.8
earthquake shook central Myanmar,
damaging at least 389 of them, according
to the country’s Department of Archaeol-
ogy. Some have been closed to the public
fully or partially. Others are in various
states of repair, covered in elaborate
arrays of bamboo and wood scaffolding.
Overall though, the most iconic temples
remain accessible to visitors. Local
residents still flock here to pray before the
colossal Buddha statues, many lit by
bright beams of sunlight inside. And
foreign tourists still arrive en masse, their
numbers having grown steadily since the
military, which ruled for half a century,
began opening the Southeast Asian nation
up to the rest of the world in 2011.
Despite the influx, authorities have
capped the number of balloons permitted
in the skies here at 21, for safety reasons.
With an average passenger capacity of
eight to 16 on each balloon, space is limited
and seats can sell out. For that reason, it’s
best to plan your trip well in advance.
Bagan’s balloon flight season runs only
from October to March, when winds are
calmer and the weather is cooler and more
predictable.
Cancelled flights are rare, but balloons
do get grounded several times a year. On
what was supposed to be a clear day in
March when I was scheduled to fly, a thick
blanket of white fog unexpectedly
enveloped the entire city, even shutting
down the airport. Fortunately, I was able
LOFTY PERSPECTIVE. Hot air balloons are
seen just after takeoff flying over the ancient city of
Bagan in Myanmar (also known as Burma). Balloon
flights are a popular tourist activity in the city, which
is home to the largest concentration of Buddhist
temples, stupas, and monuments in the world.
(AP Photo/Esther Htusan)
to get a spot the next day.
Flights are not cheap, averaging $320 to
$380 U.S. for a roughly 45-minute ride.
But for those willing to pay, it’s a once-in-a-
lifetime experience.
Asked if he ever gets tired of flying in
Bagan, D’hooge — who has flown every-
where from Kenya to New Zealand —
shook his head in the negative.
“With the sunrise, sometimes when you
get the light right, it’s just stunning,” said
the pilot, who works for Balloons Over
Bagan, which was the first company to
pioneer flights here 17 years ago. “I don’t
think there are many places in the world
that get to this point.”
q
UNICEF urges Malaysia to ban
corporal punishment in schools
KUALA LUMPUR, Malaysia (AP) —
The U.N. children’s agency is urging
Malaysia to ban corporal punishment in
schools after the death of an 11-year-old
boy allegedly abused at a religious school.
The boy died just days after both his legs
were amputated due to a bacterial infec-
tion after he was allegedly whipped with a
water hose at a private Islamic boarding
school. Police have detained the assistant
warden, who allegedly whipped the boy
and several others as punishment.
The UNICEF representative in Malay-
sia, Marianne Clark-Hattingh, said the
boy’s death was a “stark reminder of the
negative consequences of corporal punish-
ment and violence as a form of discipline.”
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