Kyaiktiyo Things to Do Tips by kenmerk

Into the Heart of Darkness...

Tho' I lacked the foresight to photograph these things, I did see a strange sight or two during the hike up the hill to Kyaiktiyo...

One guy waved me over and gestured into a large garbage back he was holding.... Inside was a large constrictor snake that I guess, he recently grabbed from the nearby woods...

More startling was a local barbeque that was taking place up the path a little further... I looked at what they were cooking and could not identify the main course: Large animal with huge eye teeth... When I inquired, the cook make a clawing gesture with his both of his hands, and said in the English that would make the Queen's mother proud: TIGER!!!

Guess they arent extinct yet in these necks of the woods....

Moonlight Sonata...

I have to say that sitting up on this mountain top on a cool, breazy, moon lit evening listening to the worshippers chanting in rhythm is about as close to magic as you will find anywhere in this world...

Balanced Boulder by Day....

At dawn, the worshippers are already out praying to the magical boulder and pasting small pieces of gold leaf onto it for good luck....

The Road to Kyaiktiyo...

After Bago, the roads are unsealed and the scenery is your standard Burmese rustic....

One important tip though, when you go over any bridge or the like, put the camera away and dont take any pictures....

I almost got the full body cavity search treatment from a friendly Burmese Army type for neglecting this important point...

Bago Pit Stop...

If you are heading to Kyiaktiyo, Bago (land of leaning Buddhas and tall payas...) makes a convenient stopping place for lunch and touring...

One of the Guys...

See... with a local back pack, just like one of the local guys... (I could hire on as a porter if my employment situation ever took a turn for the worse...)

The King of Siam

Four about 4 bucks , four pall bearers will carry to the top of the mountain like you are the King of Siam... (It is good to be King...)

Nawww... I didn't do that, (I hoofed up the hill with a big pack on my back...)

I just paid these guys a 100 kyak ($0.12 USD) for the photo op...

Hills Surrounding Kyiaktiyo...

There are Buddhist monuments all around Kyiaktiyo on the peaks of many of the surrounding hills... The whole area is considered sacred...

Balanced Boulder by Night...

See the guilded balanced boulder at night glistening under the flood lights... People making the pilgramage up here is a 24/7 affair...

Sunrise over Thailand

Get up early and watch this sunrise over Thailand... (Nice vantage point from the village near Kyiaktiyo...)