Myanmar (or Burma as it was previously known) is predominantly Buddhist. Whilst there are other religions Buddhism has been around far longer as evidenced by the many amazing temples, stupas, pagodas and monks you see in the country.
Until recently (2010) it was ruled by the military and most the people were very poor. As a result not much as changed and traditional ways are still followed (although I think this will change now)
UPDATE: Guess I was wrong about things improving as the Military took control again and voilence erupted once more. 😞
An old temple at Bagan famous for its four huge standing buddha statues.
A series of internal corridors circle the four standing buddhas. The walls of the corridors are full of smaller statues.
A lady in local dress pays for her spring inions.
A large buddha statue in a temple is access through an archway covered in hundreds of smaller buddha images
A line of buddha statues in one of the temples
A large temple in Bagan contains an inner corridor with Buddha statues on each side.
Two young monks sit in the window of an old wooden style monastery
Similar to a cigar, cheroots are popular with locals on the lake. In this workshop they make the filling and roll with leaves to create the finished item.
A monk brushes away cobwebs in one of the monasteries on the lake
The silk is dyed several shades using various plant and mineral extracts.
A view across the plain at Bagan showing just a small fraction of the hundreds of temples and stupas in this area.
A fisherman with the typical local conical net used to trap fish against the lake bed.
A local woman heads back to her boat with her purchases.
A local girl in one of the temples stands looking out of the door. She’s wearing jasmine flowers in her hair and the sunscreen paste on her cheecks in in the shape of a leaf.
In one of the temples there are a collection of buddha statues that are so huge they barely fit within the spaces they were built in.
A local woman grazes her flock infront of a temple.
This bird is a symbol of the lake (more phoenix than duck). On special festivals is sails between the villages carrying buddhist items so locals can worship.
Two young monks grab a bite to eat at a local stall.