Indiana Jones and the temples of Bagan
Trip Start
Feb 11, 2009
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8
11
Trip End
Feb 26, 2009
Bagan, Myanmar
Friday, February 20, 2009
Mi-niyan-gon pagoda. The driver entered the pitch black temple and we inched through tiny corridors lit only by his torch before scaling the outer staircase of the pagoda. Up I climbed on hands and knees with the theme tune of Indiana Jones pounding in my ears. We were then standing on a platform 4 foot wide 3 stories in the air as the sun rose. It was magnificent. Joined later by a few other intrepid photographers but if you visit Bagan you must do this.
Back for breakfast and a day by the pool before heading off again for the sunset at Shwe-san-daw-paya pagoda. Not as good as sunrise. It might be better to stay at street level and walk amongst the pagodas in the warn sunlight. By the way the Shwe-san-daw-paya pagoda involves a climb of 6 stories as steep as a Mayan temple (think Chichin Itza). I was carrying a large camera bag and tripod and was hanging onto the hand rail for dear life. At one point a young Burmese kid rushed past saying "very hot you want postcards". I was more focussed on not falling 200 feet to my doom.
Comments
I plan to go to Bagan for the same reason - photography. Which body and lenses did you use? Which focal lengths did you find most useful? 24mm? 85mm? 200mm? Did you also use polarizers and a tripod as well? Appreciate any tips you can give. Are these shots all from the two places you mention? Thanks.