The remote mysteries og Mrauk U

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16

Air Mandalay

By Douglas Long

I

t is nearly impossible to think about the ancientruins o Mrauk U without comparing them to

Bagan. Bagan is bigger, grander and more amous, but Mrauk U is

more mysterious and remote, and thereore less crowded. WhileBagan is a location as well as an experience, Mrauk U is both o these plus a journey, a destination book-ended by 65-kilometre

boat trips away rom Sittwe on the coast o Rakhine State andback again. Getting there is part o the adventure.

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Founded around 1430, Mrauk U is quite a bit

younger than Bagan, which entered its golden

era around the 11th century AD. Mrauk U was the

last capital o the Rakhine kingdom, precededby royal cities such as Dhanyawaddy, Vesali andLaunggret. The latter was ounded in 1251 and

served as the capital until 1406, when it wasinvaded by the king o Inwa. For the next 24years, armies rom central Myanmar, Inwa and

Bago battled nearly constantly or control o the

city, and it traded hands a number o times.

Following the 1406 invasion, the Rakhine KingMinsawmon had been orced to ee to Bengal.In 1429 he attacked Launggret and won it back

once and or all. According to legend, a serieso bad omens prompted him to seek another

site or the capital with the help o astrologers.Historians say the king was simply dissatisfed

with the geographical vulnerability o Launggret,

which sat in the middle o a plain. He is said tohave chosen Mrauk U because o its location in

a valley surrounded by deensible mountains.

Mrauk U was the Rakhine capital rom 1430 to

1785, during which time it gained great wealth asa duty-ree port that attracted large numbers o

merchants rom near and ar, including western

countries such as the Netherlands, Portugal and

According to legend, a series o badomens prompted King Minsawmon

to seek another site or the capitalwith the help o astrologers.

Kothaung Pagoda

Spain. King Minbin (1531-1553) built a large

naval eet with modern cannon to patrol 1600kilometres o coastal territory. Chronicles romthe period claim the number o ships reached10,000. In addition to deensive walls that were

built to join higher natural points, a network o moats was dug to supply resh water, andor transportation and deence. In 1623 the

Rakhine became even more ormidable when

Japanese samurai came to Mrauk U to serveas royal guards.

Much o this history and more can be digestedat the Rakhine State Cultural Museum in Sittwe.

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Air Mandalay

While it is possible leave or Mrauk U by boat

shortly ater arriving at the airport, the museum

and other sights around town make it worthstaying or at least one night.My travel companion and I opted to linger,checking out the Jama Mosque, LokanandaPaya and the markets flled with products

imported rom neighbouring Bangladesh. In late

aternoon we hired a trishaw to take us to the

Point, an arrow o land where the Kaladan Riverows into the Bay o Bengal. Along the way, we

passed groups o locals strumming guitars bythe road, playing ootball and repairing boats

The remote mysteries o Mrauk U

Rakhine State Cultural Museum in Sittwe

The winding hallways are lined with Buddha

fgures and lead to the cave-like centralchamber with the main Buddha image.

on the tidal ats, and pulling fshing nets in

rom the shallows. We reached the Point just in

time to enjoy a drink while watching the sunset.

Waves crashed on the rocks where black crabs

scuttled. When darkness ell, red lights came

on in the fshing boats o the coast. When the

beauty o the sea became too much to bear,we walked back down the road to GisspanadiRestaurant, deservedly amous or its reshseaood dishes.Our boat or Mrauk U let at 7:15am the next

morning. Like the locals, we huddled in our sling

chairs against the chilly December morning as

the erry pulled away rom the dock and intothe wide river. Relative warmth came pretty

quickly though, and ater a couple hours I wasable to snap photos without my hands shaking

too badly rom the cold. The river narrowed and

twisted as we passed a series o picturesque

towns – Po Knarr Kyaun (overlooked by a hilltop

pagoda), Set Tharr (a small town with a longpier) and Pya Te (a big town with a short pier)– on our way to Mrauk U.We reached our destination just past 1:00pm,

giving us time to explore a bit beore dark. The

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