Leftovers

Eric,
Initially, I'd intended to include several of the photos below at the end of the Time Travel update posted earlier in the week, but Rossana rightly pointed out that post was already pretty long.  So here is a separate post of somewhat random, leftover photos from past weeks that for the most part don't have a story behind them, I just think they're interesting scenes from around town (or Bagan in a couple cases).

The reclining Buddha at Chauk Htat Gyi Pagoda.  This photo doesn't do it justice, this bad boy is HUGE!   65 meters (213 feet) from head to toe. 

 Interestingly, it's not even the largest reclining Buddha in Myanmar.   

Bare soles of the reclining Buddha's feet. According to my brother's Hardy Boys books, those toe prints are "whorl pattern".



Young boy contemplates the reclining Buddha in the company
of one of the many resident pagoda cats.

 Elsewhere...



Streetside boardgame winner raking in the chips.

Neighborhood "recyclers" pose in front of an alleyway
heaped chest deep with trash.

Effective way to prevent your bicycle from being stolen while you nap.

Going out in style.  A hearse belonging to the Free Funeral Service Society.
Organization founded by a prominent local film director provides free funeral services to the poor. 

Holders for prayer candles at Shwedagon Pagoda.
Light from the candles represents the light of Buddha's teachings.



Inscriptions on the trunk of a palm tree at Shwedagon Pagoda.



Artsy shot of Shwedagon Pagoda in twilight.

Workers shell and sort nuts on a downtown sidewalk.

Phone booth, Yangon style.  You pay the girl money
and she lets you use the phone.

An assortment of forceps for sale at a local open air market. 
I wonder if this is where Marcus Welby shops?

Not long after we moved here, Rossana and I spent a weekend in Bagan, an ancient city in northern Myanmar that is sometimes referred to as the religious capital of the country.  Between the 11th and 13th centuries, it's estimated that there were over 10,000 pagodas erected, of which approximately 2,200 remain today.  It's a pretty remarkable place and one that I suspect will be overrun by tourists in the very near future.  For now though, visitors are free to climb about the pagodas pretty much as they please.

Tourists line the steps and terraces of a pagoda to observe sunset.

Looking out from one pagoda towards its neighbor.

Bagan is also renown for producing exquisite laquerware.

Workers in a laquer workshop.

Sun setting against the face of a several pagodas.