Announcer: Welcome to "Joseph Rosendo's Travelscope," where you join us as we accept the world's invitation to visit.

Ha ha ha!

Rosendo: Today on "Travelscope," I cruise through Myanmar, the land of pagodas, from mythical Mandalay to temple-rich Bagan and modern Yangon.

I set off on a Irrawaddy River adventure.

Announcer: "Joseph Rosendo's Travelscope" is made possible by EVA Air.

Premium economy class in its own separate cabin serves both business and leisure travel.

EVA Air--a Star Alliance member.

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Rosendo: Myanmar or Burma, by either name, and both are acceptable, exudes an aura of the exotic, the mysterious, and the alluring.

Even its former capitals, Mandalay and Rangoon, evoke a lyrical glow.

Yet it's the magnetism of its ancient temple architecture that draws visitors to the valley of the Irrawaddy River, which embodies the historical, cultural, and economic soul of the country.

I'll be traveling the river highway on my Burmese journey through Myanmar.

The Irrawaddy River bisects Myanmar from north to south, passing through the 9-armed Irrawaddy Delta before it empties into the Indian Ocean.

Evidenced by the massive barges and bamboo rafts negotiating its sandbar-laden waters, the elephant river is Myanmar's most important commercial waterway.

On its 1,300-mile journey to the sea, the river witnesses the full range of Myanmar life, from its hectic cities to its rural river towns, where fishermen and farmers and families squeeze joy from their daily labors.

Life flows on as sure and steady as the river itself.

It has been the lifeblood of its people since Stone Age man first arrived here 13,000 years ago.

"On the road to Mandalay, where the flyin'-fishes play, "an' the dawn comes up like thunder outer China, 'crost the Bay!"

English poet Rudyard Kipling made it famous, yet it's the hill that rises above the haze that gave it its name.

Crowning Mandalay Hill is Sutaungpyei Pagoda, and those who follow in the footsteps of centuries of Buddhist pilgrims to the top gain merit in a peaceful way to start the day.

Legend holds Buddha prophesized a great city and religious center at the foot of Mandalay Hill.

In response, throughout the ages, Burma's kings erected countless shrines and pagodas.

The Kuthodaw Pagoda has been called the largest book in the world, and its 729 pages consist of 5-by-4-foot slabs of carved marble.

So, I will read it for you.

[Speaking native language] It's really quite difficult.

That's why we need a man to teach us.

Rosendo: Built in 1860 by King Mindon, the pages make up the 3 books of Buddhism.

The first pertains to the moral discipline of monks, nuns, and laypeople; the second recounts the stories of Buddha's reincarnations; and the third is the Dharma, Buddha's teachings.

[Clanging] We call it the lucky gong.

This is Buddha, dhamma, sangha.

[Clanging] Perfect.

The main pagoda here at the Kuthodaw Pagoda complex is shrouded in bamboo matting because they're redoing the gold plating.

Replacing them and making them is a full-time industry here in Mandalay.

Gold.

It's one of the reasons that the colonialists came here.

Over the centuries, to the greater glory of Buddha, the Burma kings have created Buddhas that were gold-leafed.

In the 19th century, there was actually a gold pounders district here, with many families devoted to the craft.

It starts with two ounces of bullion that is then pounded into a 20-foot ribbon.

That's then cut into 5-foot pieces that then is cut into even smaller pieces and then pounded out for a half an hour, and then that is cut and then pounded for 5 hours to make them thinner.

After two sessions of 5 hours, they get the really, really thin gold leaf that you get to see on the Mahamuni Pagoda, and you and me and all devotees of Buddha are able to add to the gold that was already there, that now there is 10 tons of gold that have been added in the last couple of hundred years.

This is a art.

There's not very many gold pounders left.

Like that?

Man: Yeah.

Hey!

I'm pounding gold.

It's great to be doing something that has centuries of tradition.

Ha ha ha!

Ha.

Ah!

Only 5 hours.

I only do this for 5 hours.

Once--once you start, they don't let you stop.

Ah!

[Speaking native language] [Speaking native language] Rosendo: Besides gold, teak was a coveted national treasure.

Seizing Myanmar's teak forests was an incentive behind the Anglo-Burmese Wars.

Monasteries, temples, Buddhas, and bridges were built from the wood.

Constructed around 1850, U Bein Bridge, believed to be the world's oldest, and at near 4,000 feet, longest teak wood foot bridge, lures visitors and locals to Taungthaman Lake for sunset.

This reminds me of being at Angkor Wat in Cambodia, because it's all these people, this man-made attraction, and the sun.

If it wasn't so crazy, it might even be spiritual, but I think you bring to an experience yourself and what it means to you.

In the river town of Mingun, sunrise over the Hsinbyume Pagoda is breathtaking.

Built in 1816, the pagoda's 7 terraces represent the mountain ranges and seas surrounding the mythical Mount Meru, the center of the Buddhist cosmos.

Frequented by monks from the nearby monastery and local pilgrims, it marks an auspicious start to any Mingun visit.

All Myanmar pagodas have a story.

The Mingun pagoda is a tale of people fooling a king to save their country.

In order to stop King Bodawpaya's extravagant spending on his near-500-foot pagoda, his ministers had an astrologer predict that when the pagoda was finished, the king and country would also be.

So, the king slowed construction and took 29 years to not finish.

[Clanging] Hmm!

Now, that's a big bell.

In fact, the Mingun Bell is considered the second-largest bell in the world and the largest functioning bell.

It weighs 90 tons.

It was built by the king in 1808 in order to accompany what was to be the largest pagoda in the world-- The Mingun pagoda.

[Clanging] Just 6 miles on the road from Mandalay, Mingun represents the nation of rural villages where 70% of the Burmese live.

It's in small towns like this that you can get a taste of Burmese life.

Arkar, how many people live here in Mingun?

It's a small village.

Only 500 population here.

So, that's the size of most of the villages here?

Yeah, exactly.

Mingun is not just the pagodas and attractions.

It's also a very nice little village.

It's very nice village, yes.

I see they have a lot of the arts and crafts from Myanmar.

What are these?

It's a cigar.

Ah.

Cigars.

Yeah.

OK?

Ah, not bad.

It's really good.

Ha!

Certainly worth 25 cents.

Yeah.

It's certainly worth.

[Speaking native language] [Woman speaking native language] Now, what is this?

It's called thanaka.

We use a bark of a tree.

Rosendo: I've seen the women have it on their face.

Is it just for women?

Oh, for everybody in Myanmar.

Not only for the woman, but also for the man and children.

I could put some on?

Yeah, you can put on this.

Maybe she could get some for me.

Oh, wow.

And what are the uses again?

Ah, we use not only for the beauty, but also to protect the sunburn, wind burn.

It's also perfume?

Yep.

It also is product for the [indistinct].

Now, did you do this when you were a little kid?

Yeah, my mother applied the whole body.

Your whole body?

Why did you need to have your whole body painted?

We wanted to be white.

You wanted to be white.

Yes.

Exactly.

Who told you that that was a good idea?

The golden color and the white color we thought the best in our country.

Rosendo: Sounds like a British propaganda to me.

[Speaking native language] [Speaking native language] Rosendo: While Myanmar is home to more than 130 recognized ethnic groups, the close to 34 million Bamar make up 2/3 of the population.

They first came to the Irrawaddy River valley more than 1,000 years ago, and through their language and traditions have come to represent the Myanmar nation itself.

One of their most identifiable customs is the wearing of the longyi.

In small, family-owned workshops, the silk longyi cloth is produced on looms in a time-honored fashion which takes 3 years to master.

In a separate part of the factory, the cotton fabric used for everyday wear is rolled out on machines.

Throughout Myanmar, whether you visit a stupa, a pagoda, or a temple, you're gonna have to take off your shoes and socks and cover your shoulders and legs, and that's when the national dress, the longyi, or paso, as it's called for men, comes in handy.

Now, this is best described as a sarong-like, many-colored, hand-designed piece of fabric that arms a body against Myanmar's considerable warm weather and high humidity.

The pattern's the thing that denotes gender, and color may or may not be of significance.

Green is associated with scholars, blue for service professionals, and since I really don't know what a television travel host should wear, I'm going for something colorful.

Dive into this.

Yes.

Whoo.

So, this is called a paso, right?

Yeah.

Because it's for men.

Wait, oh, the quick move.

Yeah.

Ah.

That-- Then fluff it up.

That's it?

That's it.

Oh, that simple.

Yeah, very simple.

Do you normally wear pants under here?

Yes.

Underwear.

Can you wear it without underwear?

Yes, of course you can wear as Scottish.

Ha ha!

Now I'm really cool.

Now properly attired, back on board, I join my fellow travelers for an evening of traditional Myanmar singing and dancing.

[Traditional music playing, people singing in native language] Rosendo: Across the Irrawaddy River from each other, Sagaing and Inwa were Burma's capital 5 times.

They both contain remnants of their royal past.

Just a horse cart ride away is the Leaning Tower of Inwa, the only brick structure left from King Bagyidaw's 19th-century palace.

Inwa's ancient stone walls and a field of stately stupas stand in silent testimony to the region's former glory.

Today, Sagaing and Inwa's claim to fame is more spiritual than political.

With more than 700 monasteries and meditation centers, Sagaing has become a place of pilgrimage where Myanmar Buddhists come to pray and meditate, as well as a home to thousands of monks and nuns.

There are estimated to be between 300,000 to 500,000 monks and 50,000 nuns.

After age 7, men are expected to experience monk life at least once, for as little as a week.

At 20, they can take monk vows, yet they can return to the world at any time.

Nuns are considered pious laywomen who adhere to holy vows, yet many feel that since both monks and nuns live in harmony with Lord Buddha's teachings, they deserve equal respect.

[Speaking native language] [Woman speaking native language] [Speaking native language] Most tours and cruises include an almsgiving visit to nunneries or monasteries in order to introduce travelers to the country's Buddhist faith.

In order to literally dig deeper into Myanmar's Buddhist heritage, I take the 3-hour trek from Sagaing to the Phowintaung Cave Temples.

Phowintaung is a sandstone cave complex containing 492 caves decorated with Buddha statues and mural paintings of geometric patterns and stories of the life of Buddha.

We aren't really sure who did them, but they date to between the 14th and 18th centuries.

Buddhism came to the region in the third century B.C., but it wasn't until the 11th century that Theravada Buddhism became the state religion.

It teaches that we are responsible for our own spiritual welfare and we must follow Buddha's path by giving up worldly concerns and attaining enlightenment through meditation and sacrifice.

In Myanmar, Buddhism is one thread in their colorful tapestry of spiritual life, which includes a belief in astrology, folk deities, and their own special version of Hindu gods.

Nevertheless, 90% of the country is Buddhist, and it is said to be the world's most devout Buddhist nation, based on a monk-to-population ratio.

Buddhism is not all heaven.

In fact, gaining enlightenment in this life comes before one can attain nirvana.

Buddhist teachings are guideposts for living without suffering, because while pain is inevitable, suffering is optional.

3 of the tenets of Buddha's Eightfold Path are right action, right effort, and right livelihood.

I found all 3 downriver in the pottery village of Yandabo.

The people of Myanmar are very resourceful.

They've had to be, because of all the wars and other man-made and natural disasters that they've survived.

The 300 families of the village of Yandabo are using literally the soil beneath their feet, a gift from the Irrawaddy River, to create pottery known throughout Myanmar.

And all of the process takes place right here in the village.

We've seen the ladies sorting out the pieces of the mud from the Irrawaddy River.

He now has worked it with his feet, and now he's breaking it into the right amounts for it to be shaped into different-sized balls.

They'll be pounded into shape and a design put on them.

From the breaking of the large pieces of mud into smaller pieces to the firing in the ash and straw oven, through this ancient and seemingly rudimentary and unsophisticated process, they create more than a million pieces of pottery a year.

Talk about making the most out of what you've been given.

Bagan is the jewel of Myanmar, and in celebration of our dawn arrival, special Burmese foods are created... and traditional entertainers come aboard.

What can be said about Bagan?

To begin with, it is one of Myanmar's many ancient capitals.

From the 11th to the 13th century, it was the first Burmese empire's political, economic, and cultural center.

It is also Myanmar's answer to Cambodia's temple-rich Angkor.

In a frenzy of activity, close to 10,000 temples, pagodas, stupas, and monasteries were constructed on the Bagan plain.

In the Bagan archaeological zone, an area of 40 square miles, more than 2,000 remain.

And finally, it is breathtaking to see, and difficult to comprehend, and an affirmation of the Buddhist concept of the transitory nature of all things, especially man's power and glory.

While Bagan's number of pagodas is overwhelming, each architectural monument has its own special allure.

At Shwesandaw, people gather for sunrise, while Ananda boasts 4 golden Buddhas, including one which smiled on the peasants in the back rows and frowned on the royalty at ringside.

Every site has a tale to tell.

One held a fatal attraction.

Myanmar has had many kings.

From the 11th through the 13th century, they had 55, and one that stands out is King Narathu, who, in order to achieve his crown, smothered his father, murdered his brother, and killed his wife.

He built the beautiful Dhammayangyi temple in order to ease his guilt, but his remorse didn't last very long.

During the construction, he found he could put a pin between two bricks.

That mason lost his arms.

What goes around comes around.

Shortly after the temple was completed, he was assassinated.

Myanmar is known as the land of pagodas.

How many are there?

No one knows.

Some say 4,000, others 40,000, and it seems every Buddhist structure is called a pagoda.

Here's my shot at unraveling the differences.

Burmese pagodas housed relics and sacred writings associated with Buddha.

They were created by missionaries, pilgrims, rulers, and other devotees engaged in discovering, distributing, and exalting Buddhist relics.

Now they may also include the remains of high-ranking Buddhist monks and be a place of prayer and meditation.

The stupa is the oldest Buddhist religious monument.

Once simply a burial mound of earth and stones, about 2,500 years ago, after the death of Buddha, it evolved into a place of honor where the bones and relics of kings were buried, and eventually into an architectural representation of the Buddha Path.

They were placed at crossroads to remind people of Buddha's awakened state of mind.

Temples, which are often referred to as pagodas, represent the pure Buddha environment and are a focus of religious and social life.

They are designed for spiritual rituals and ceremonies, to inspire inner and outer peace.

Finally, there are the monasteries, often a part of a pagoda complex, where monks, nuns, and novices sleep, eat, and pray.

While Bagan's religious shrines service the spiritual needs of the Burmese, markets like Nyaung U supply their worldly necessities.

Boy, the market's busy today.

Man: Yes, yesterday is our full moon day.

Full moon.

So, Saturday, the markets was closed.

They have corn and tomatoes.

Cauliflower over here.

What is this?

Look at this.

It's very good for diabetes.

Rosendo: And you eat it as a side dish or-- Yeah, side dish with the rice.

Ah, OK. Look at the flowers.

For the Buddha, to pray.

Oh, you give it to the Buddha?

So many monuments and shrines and temples here in Bagan that you need your flowers.

There's so many interesting things, and it's so colorful here.

The people are great.

[Speaking native language] Apart from its pagodas, Bagan is also noted for its lacquerware.

It has been produced here since the 11th century.

It's a very intricate process that begins with the resin from the so-called lacquer tree.

That is then put on a bamboo form and then taken down to a room to where it is dried, and that takes a week.

This process happens 18 times.

Next, a man will do the basic design, which he then hands off to a team of women who create the new carvings for different colors.

And here at the workshop, they can use up to 5 different colors.

That process is repeated until you finally end up with a piece of Myanmar history and culture created only here in Bagan.

I'm in the river town of Salay, and even though this Buddha is golden, his soul is black, because he's the largest lacquer Buddha in Myanmar.

Legend holds that he floated down the Irrawaddy River during the monsoon of 1888.

The village made him their own, and he's been here ever since.

Just goes to show you what those lacquerware artisans are capable of.

There are many ways to get around Myanmar, and I think I've taken them all.

I've been on a river cruise ship, on a truck, a horse and carriage, and now I'm on a trishaw.

If you're in the city, grab a cab, or hop on the back of somebody's motorcycle to get where you want to go.

From Magway's golden pagoda, my vessel follows the river villages of the Irrawaddy.

I disembark in the market town of Thayetmyo and travel on the road to Yangon.

Dagon, Rangoon, Yangon-- by any name, this former capital of Burma, British Burma, and Myanmar is still its largest and most important city.

Ironically, although "Yangon" means "end of strife," it has seen much turmoil, including 3 Anglo-Burmese Wars, the second World War, and numerous conflicts during its long struggle for independence and freedom.

While Yangon's attractions range from relics of its British past, including Kandawgyi Lake, a former British-era reservoir, to the 213-foot Chaukhtatgyi Paya Reclining Buddha, head and shoulders above them all is the Shwedagon Pagoda.

Said to have existed during the life of Buddha, the Shwedagon Pagoda is perhaps the most revered religious monument in Myanmar.

It is certainly the most magnificent.

90% of the people of Myanmar are Buddhists, but they also believe in astrology, and here at the pagoda, they have your birthday corner.

I was born on Friday.

My animal is the guinea pig.

A very interesting thing about people born on Friday-- they're very talkative, which I think is a positive attribute for a television travel host.

Built to house Buddha's relics, the Shwedagon Pagoda's centerpiece is its 324-foot stupa, which is plated with 60 tons of gold and topped off with a hti with 5,000 diamonds, 2,000 rubies, 1,000 golden bells, an array of gems, and crowned with a 76-carat diamond.

And yet for all its grandeur, what's most important is it's a place of personal prayer, contemplation, and spiritual meditation.

Thank you for joining me on my Myanmar adventure.

Sunrise in Myanmar is a surprise.

At first, it seems the sun can't possibly penetrate the mist and haze, and then, unexpectedly, a crack appears, widens, and an awe-inspiring triumphant glow breaks through.

It's kind of like my travels along the Irrawaddy River.

At every stop, from golden pagodas to colorful markets, from working villages to frenzied cities, new sights, sounds, smells, and emotions captured my attention.

With a long history of conflict and conquest, Myanmar--Burma-- has been isolated, shrouded in secrecy, and hid its brilliance.

Now it has opened its doors in displaying its glories for all to see, and the people of Myanmar and a world of travelers are better for it.

[Speaking native language] Until next time, this is Joseph Rosendo, reminding you of the words of Mark Twain-- "Travel is fatal to prejudice, bigotry, and narrow-mindedness."

Happy traveling.

Announcer: "Joseph Rosendo's Travelscope" is made possible by EVA Air.

Premium economy class in its own separate cabin serves both business and leisure travel.

EVA Air--a Star Alliance member.

And No-Jet-Lag jet lag prevention.

For a DVD of today's show, or any of Joseph's "Travelscope" adventures, call 888-876-3399 or order online at Travelscope.net.

You can also e-mail us at TV@Travelscope.net.

Rosendo: Now that we've explored Myanmar, learn more at Travelscope.net, where you can follow my worldwide adventures through my magazine, blog, podcast, and on social media.

Stay in touch--888-876-3399 or TV@travelscope.net.

This is very nice.

[Clanging] [Speaking native language] OK. [Laughs] [Speaking native language] Woman: This is thanaka, and it's what you'll see men, women, and children covered in.

I had some put on.

It was remarkable, the response, because I was taking on their custom.

Myanmar is like India.

In 3 blocks, you'll have 33 things happen to you that have never happened to you anywhere else in the world.

[Speaking native language]