Mandalay does not have a bay

Mandalay, inspiration for Mandalay Bay in Vegas, actually doesn’t have a bay, though it is located along a river. It was a capital of Burma at one time, and the massive palace complex in the center of the city attests to the former glory days.

The palace complex is several square meters, surrounded by a moat.

Given our limited cash (see previous post), we elected not to pay the admission fees for many of the attractions, and instead spent the day riding bikes around the city, observing everyday life.

Navigating our way between cars and scooters, we passed furniture workshops, where young men cut planks of wood with hand saws, then fitted the pieces together and sanded and polished the intricate bureaus and chairs. We also watched women working in markets, selling fruit and vegetables.

It's impressive how women balance so much on their heads. — It’s impressive how women balance so much on their heads.

Enchanted by the sonorous pling plong sounds emanating from buildings on 36th street, we ventured into a gold leaf workshop. There, we watched as the gold foil which decorates the pagodas and statues across the country, was created in an exhausting manner.

First, a small piece of gold ribbon is placed between bamboo papers and deer leather then beat with a sledgehammer for 30 min to flatten it into a thin circular piece of gold. Then, 1/6th of that circular piece is put between different bamboo papers, and the process is repeated to get an even thinner piece. Finally, that flattened bit is deposited between bigger pieces of bamboo paper, and beat for a further 5 hours to make a 5″ circle of gold foil.

Worker displaying flattened gold sandwiched between bamboo papers

Eventually, this foil is packaged by women, as their fingers are better suited to the delicate job. The work looked so tiresome, and we were sad knowing that these people likely earned only dollars a day. We were also in disbelief that this arduous process is performed by hand, and that machines haven’t taken over the job.

This cake with gold leaf is sold in the workshop. We were wondering how these guys felt, seeing someone eat something it had taken 6hr to make.

Heading toward the river at the edge of the city, we came across people bathing and washing clothes in the murky water. It is such a different way of life than what we are used to. Seeing how hard people have to work for little gain, really makes us conscious of the luxuries we have in our own countries.

Most people seemed to be enjoying themselves though, especially these young men playing cane ball. The game is like volleyball without the use of hands; heads and feet are only allowed to touch the ball, which is made out of cane.