Day trip to Sale (L)

At 7:00 a.m., you’ll travel to Sale (around 1½ hours away), a religious centre that has more active monasteries than Bagan. You’ll see the Yoke Sone monastery, which is around 150 years old and made of wood, featuring three-dimensional carved statues dating from the 19th century. Then take a stroll through the downtown area and market. The next stop is the nearly 150-year-old teak-wood monastery Sarsana Yaungchi built by Thipaw’s father, King Mindon. Here, you can view historical Buddha statues, large antique cabinets covered in floral motifs and Burmese silk paintings in gold and silver. The cabinets contain 18th century Buddhist scriptures, written on palm leaves. There is a convent school for the village children next to this beautiful monastery – if you’re lucky, you might catch a glimpse of the teachers and students. Lunch at a local restaurant. In the afternoon, you’ll visit the temple complex of Shin Bin Sar Kyo (around 7 km to the south of Sale). Construction on the complex is believed to have begun in 1191 under King Narapatisithu’s reign. Most of the – primarily wooden – structures that are visible today were built in the 19th century. The number and size of the buildings indicate that they were once part of a flourishing monastery. Today, only a few monks live here. Stucco statues and murals can be seen at the entrance to the main temple – some of these include zodiac symbols from Western astrology. Just a few hundred metres to the north, 51 more monuments are a testament to the region’s significance during the Bagan Era. At Jele, a path leads to Shin Bin Ngar Man Aung and its 13th century temples and colonial monastery complexes.