Let's start with this premise: craftsmanship in Mandalay is very important. There are sculptors, carpenters, carvers and weavers in every corner of the city, where you can touch the effort combined with the mastery;
the guide, however, will try to take you to one of the established commercial places, or the so-called "tourist trap": the most annoying thing that happened to us was seeing some "actors" pretend to work on our arrival, as soon as we crossed the threshold of the shop. 

So we went out instantly letting the driver understand not to take us to other similar places anymore, and in this way we unknowingly gained precious time to visit the male Buddhist monastery of Mahagandayon before the arrival of the chaotic mass of tourists, and subsequently the female one of Dha Kya Di Tar.

We arrived at the women's convent before lunchtime, where we attended a very suggestive and picturesque gathering in rows. We hope it will remain a peaceful corner where respect for the nuns and for the place prevails.

We then left for the river vault, where we stopped for lunch, and soon after we reached Inwa, a small rural village. Once in this place stood Ava, the ancient capital of the Burmese kingdom for a total of 300 years.

Here, riding a horse-drawn carriage through the dusty streets in the middle of the rice fields, it is possible to see the ancient walls and ruins, now used by children to play.

Maha Aung Mye Bonzan

The monastery was built in 1818 by Queen Me Nu, King Bagyidaw's favorite wife, as the residence of his religion teacher.Composed of mainly ocher-colored stuccoed bricks, it is an unusual monastery for what are the canons of the typical architecture of these buildings, usually built in teak wood.With a rectangular base, it rises to the sky with 3 decreasing roofs.

Like many religious places in the country, there are two Chinthes guarding the entrance, Burmese mythological animals resembling lions.Immediately nearby are the ruins of what was once the Htihlaingshin Pagoda, built by King Kyansittha (Kingdom of Bagan, 1084-1112).

Bagaya Kyaung

Splendid monastery, built entirely of teak wood in 1834 during the last period in which Ava was the capital of the Burmese kingdom.Supported by enormous poles, the suggestive structure appears as if suspended in space and time, in contrast with the dense and green surrounding vegetation. Still used by monks today, you can admire the ancient skill of the master carvers, who endowed the walls with splendid figures of animals and plants.

Nanmyint

It is Ava's "Tower of Pisa", the only survivor of the earthquakes of 1838-1839.It served as the clock tower of the palace built by King Bagyidaw in 1822, now completely in ruins.

Just before sunset we reached the spectacular U Bein Bridge, the longest teak bridge in the world. Supported by more than a thousand pillars clearly visible during the dry season, it crosses Taungthaman Lake. The scenography and the spectacularity it acquires during the last rays of the sun is like a postcard!