ONE NIGHT STAY AT SKY VIEW HOTEL, BAGAN

We only spent one night in Bagan and we stayed at Sky View Hotel on 15th December 2019 before checking out the next morning.

The hotel was strategically located near to all the temples and pagodas in Old Bagan hence it was chosen, besides the positive reviews it received from people on Agoda's website.

We got a room in the basement level of the hotel. Everything was alright except there was this unpleasant smell in the bedroom, maybe coming from the bathroom.

There was a swimming pool too and you could rent a motorbike from the hotel to see Bagan on your own. As we only stayed for one night, there was not much time to explore.

The best feature of the hotel was that you could watch hot air balloon while having your breakfast on the rooftop [READ HERE].

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WATCHING RISING HOT AIR BALLOONS WHILE EATING BREAKFAST ON THE ROOFTOP

16th DECEMBER 2019 ~ The second session of watching hot air balloons rising into the sky happened while we were eating breakfast on the hotel rooftop. I read people's experience doing this at Sky View Hotel early in the morning in the reviews written by people who had stayed there before on the Internet; and they were all true after all.

We went up the rooftop at about 7:00 a.m. and we were the early birds. At one side, we could see the sky was red as the sun was about to rise above the horizon.

While on the other side, the hot air balloons were already inflated with air and ready to fly above Bagan. We could see the balloons much nearer but from a lower altitude.

Other hotel guests started to arrive for breakfast. However, I believe they were more excited to take photos of the hot air balloons rather than enjoying their food on the tables.

Maybe I should consider putting hot air balloon ride in my bucket list. Although that should be a bit expensive, it could be the experience that money could not buy.

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CHASING SUNSET IN BAGAN - THE CONCLUDING ACTIVITY OF THE TRIP

15th DECEMBER 2019 ~ We were chasing the sunrise in the morning, and then we went after the sunset in later in the evening in Bagan. Observing sunrise and sunset seems to be the activities done by tourists when they go on vacation, even for people like me who get sunshine all year round at home.

WARNING #1: You need to have a high quality camera or good editing skills to get the photos of the sunset that you are expecting for.

The photos would suggest a serene place with a panoramic view seen from a secluded place which was peaceful and quiet.

WARNING #2: There was a huge crowd on the hill to observe the sunset. We came early to secure a good spot for the best view. There was no way we could leave the place where we were standing or else other people were already eyeing that particular area.

Where did all these people come from? They suddenly appeared out of nowhere.

Oh no! The Chinese from the mainland were already there in Bagan, and they came in busloads.

We had to leave the hill when the sky drew darker. And it was actually the end of our one day trip to Bagan, before we moved on to another city, Mandalay.


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BAGAN PAGODA HOPPING TRIP - HSIN PHYU MONASTIC COMPLEX

15th DECEMBER 2019 ~ Finally, the last temple/pagoda visited of the visit to Bagan was Hsin Phyu Monastic Complex. There was a small temple but surrounding it were small buildings which were the ancient monastery for the monks.

There was this small temple which was quite dark inside. There were also original paintings of Buddha from the early years on its wall.

The monastic complex covered a huge area with small buildings which should be the places where the Buddhist monks stayed to mediate.

Unfortunately, I could not get any information on this place at all from the Internet.

the observation tower we went to in the
morning, from afar

The monastery was no longer in use though. I am quite sure the monks are now living in a more comfortable accommodation with better and modern facilities.

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