Daily photo: sunset over the pagodas at Bagan, Myanmar.
You can never tire of sunsets at Bagan… Each time I am in Bagan, I keep a lookout for new places to see the sunset from. Each new place offers the same view and same sunset. And each one of them is invariably remarkable.
Last year, I spent two weeks travelling in Cambodia during the post-monsoon months. Starting from Siem Reap, I quickly moved on from the well-known temples of Angkor Wat, seeking to understand the everyday life in the country. The quest times took me through some remote places with endless stretch of lush green paddies, and also to floating settlements in Tonle Sap Lake.
This small village, just a short drive north-west of Phnom Penh, was a pleasure to be in. It was an expanse of paddy fields dotted with small hamlets, through which you could keep walking all through the day (or drive, if you so prefer). When the sun was about to set, I went in search of a calm waterbody that reflected cluster of palms. I did not have to go far to find water in these wet landscapes. And the sun smiled for me that evening, generously painting the sky with bright colours.
Todays’s photo – when weather gods smiled over the pagodas of Bagan…
For those who haven’t heard of it, Bagan in Central Myanmar was the original capital of Myanmar Kings. In the days of glory, which started nearly a millennium ago, a slew of pagods were built along the plains of Bagan overlooking the Ayeyar River. About 2000 pagodas have survived the march of time, forming what looks like a miniature mountain-range raising from the otherwise prostrate landscape.
Ever since Myanmar opened up for visitors, Bagan has been one of the prime attractions, something like a crown jewel. It’s possible to climb over a few of these Pagodas, and Shwesandaw is the among taller and popular ones.
This photograph was made on a glorious October evening as the sun splattered his orange blaze over the pagodas, even as the eastern sky danced to a tune of the clouds. As you can guess, Shwesandaw’s shadow is right in front, giving a hint of its elevation against its smaller counterparts.
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