Syriam (Thanlyin)

Syriam (Thanlyin), originally uploaded by cgnetwork2006.

BEYONG YANGON

Syriam (Thanlyin)
Syriam (Thanlyin) was Lower Myanmar’s main trading port in the 18th century and an old Portuguese settlement.Today it is a dirty, ugly place which is reached either by ferry in about 40 to 50 minutes or by car in 30 minutes over the Yangon-Thanlyin Tada (bridge), built with the aid of the Chinese and completed in November 1992, Syriam is home to two splendid pagodas: the Kyaikkauk and Kyaikmawwin (also known as the Kyauktan Yah-leh-hpaya, ‘water middle pagoda’).
Guarded by two massive chinthe with black beards (the head of the left chinthe is tilted to the right), the Kyaikkauk is located at Payagon. According to tradition, it enshrines one of the two hairs of the Buddha which were given by the sage to 24 hermits on his visit to Syriam at the invitation of Gavampati, the second being enshrined in Yangon’s Kyaikkasan Pagoda. The pagoda, which is similar in size and design to the Shwedagon, has four pavilions with four seated Buddhas. In front of the pagoda lie the tombs of two celebrated Burmese writers, Natshinnaung and Padethayaza.
About two to three minutes’ drive away is Natsin-gone (‘hillocks where there are nat shrines’) and a
dilapidated stupa called Manawmayazeidaw. Alas, all of the nats have disappeared, but their names are written inside the shrines. There is a tomb of the abbot named Sayadaw U Dewataymiza who apparently lived until he was 109 and a marble footprint of the Buddha encircled by two dragons. There is also a monastery called Manawmaya.
Reached by boat, the Kyauktan Yay-leh-hpaya, meaning ‘Pagoda in the middle of the water’, is guarded by two colorful ogres. Legend relates that the water level never rises up to the pagoda precinct even if the surrounding area becomes flooded. To make the journey to Syriam by ferry, you have to get to the Thidar jetty. The ferry actually crosses the tributary of the Yangon River known as the Pazundaung-chaung. Be prepared for an unpleasant ride: you have to wait until the ferry is jam-packed before it moves off and if you want a wooden seat you will have to pay extra. The ferry stinks of urine and is full of hawkers selling everything imaginable: quail’s eggs, pomelos, bananas, lemons, guavas, coconuts, sugarcane, buns, ice-cream, peanuts, newspaper, cigarettes, toys, and results of the Burmese lottery. They even rent out Burmese comics for the trip. It’s a dull crossing with little of interest, though when you reach Syriam you can take a horse-cart and explore a part of Myanmar which has probably only seen a handful of tourists in the past decade.
Francis Lim.

Uploaded by cgnetwork2006 on 4 Jun 07, 3.11AM PDT.