As you might remember, after my visit to Bago, I took a bus to Thaton. I spent a while waiting at the bus station and I started to think I might had to spend the night there. My luck changed when a Burmese guy stopped a random truck which was passing in front of us. After speaking to the driver, I jumped on the back of his truck bound for Hpa-An… Or that’s what I thought. I couldn’t know whether to trust them or not, but it wasn’t like I had other options. The truck was full of sacks full of I didn’t know what and there was even a guy “chilling” there. I fell asleep and, when I woke up, I found myself in Hpa-An. Hell yeah! I didn’t know it just yet but I would spend 2 days in Hpa-An, enjoying unreal landscapes 🙂
Where to stay in Hpa-An?
Up till that moment, Hpa-An was the smallest city I had visited during my 3 weeks in Myanmar. Because of that, the prices of hostels were kind of higher and there were not as many options. After a while doing some research, I decided to try my luck at Thanlwin Pyar Guesthouse. I paid 23 K for 2 days in a 4-person room, with breakfast included. The hostel was pretty big and my room was alright. The people working there spoke a good English and they were very kind. And the atmosphere was also pretty good, specially for solo travellers.
Day 1 in Hpa-An
I woke up kind of tired. I guess I preferred sleeping over sacks than on a prober bed lol. Breakfast was included in the price of the room so I walked to the dining room and sat down. Within a couple of minutes the people working there brought to my table a delicious and huge breakfast. It looked like this:
Where to rent a motorbike in Hpa-An?
Once my stomach felt satisfied, I walked outside to the street. I wanted to rent a motorbike or scooter to visit some of the highlights of Hpa-An. Technically speaking, the places I wanted to visit were not in Hpa-An itself, but in small towns in the surroundings. Thus, I figured going there in two wheels could be an interesting experience. To that extend, I checked out a couple of places: “Lucky” and “Soe Brothers”.
The first one was a restaurant and the second one a guesthouse. At Lucky, renting a scooter for a day would cost me 8 K. At Soe Brothers, or, more precisely, in a shop below Soe Brothers, the price was the same. At the second place though the scooters looked nicer and the kid in charge of the rentals was pretty kind to me. Thus, I decided to rent it there: at the shop below Soe Brothers.
Zwe Lin Thaya
There are quite a lot of interesting places to see in the countryside of Hpa-An. My first one was going to be Yathaypyan or Yathet Pyan Cave. I was driving there when, on my left side, I saw something that resembled the snake from Dragon Ball. I stopped immediately, crossed the road and drove a few meters back. The snake had a length similar to the one our beloved character has to traverse before making it to King Kai’s house. I’m not even kidding:
I drove for a while until I made it to the entrance of a Buddhist temple. There was a stupa in the middle of the area as well as a building which I guessed it was the school. Apart from that, there were beautiful ponds, mountains with pretty peculiar and beautiful shapes and some sort of a palace. The whole mix was astonishing. It looked like this:
I spent a while walking around, just awing to what my (privileged) eyes were seeing. It was a pretty hot day. I still remember it as if it was yesterday. After a while soaking in so much beauty, I felt like going back to my scooter and driving back to the beginning of the snake. But, before that, someone came out of the “school”. That someone was a Buddhist monk. I asked him kind of afraid if he could speak English and, when he said yes, I almost started crying 🙂
Unfortunately (not sure why) I didn’t ask him his name. He was super kind and we spent a while talking. He was 31 but he looked way younger and he had become a monk 9 years ago. I explained to him I had been trying to do meditation for a while and I was also interested in Buddhism. An smile appeared on his face as I was telling him all that. He then invited me to take a look at the monastery and I entered the school, where there were plenty of monks studying, but not as many as in Kyakhatwine Monastery, the one in Bago.
He told me about their daily routine: wake up at around 04:00, meditate and pray, go out to beg for food and/or money to buy food and… repeat. Pretty similar to the one at Kyakhatwine Monastery and I guess that to the rest of the Buddhist temples. As we were talking, a bell started to ring: it was shower time. I saw plenty of kids running around, getting ready for their shower. I said good bye to my friend and got ready to hit the road (or the snake) once again.
From Zwe Lin Thaya to Yathet Pyan Cave
Some people call it Yathaypyan while others Yathet Pyan Cave. Regardless, after the great and unexpected stop at Zwe Lin Thaya, I headed for the second stop of the day: Yathet Pyan Cave. I believe I have already mentioned that Hpa-An was one of my favourite places during my 3 weeks in Myanmar. The reason? Its unreal landscapes and its beautiful pagodas and caves.
Within a few kilometres, which was the distance between Zwe Lin Thaya and Yathaypyan, my eyes witnessed some of the most astonishing views I had ever seen… and I had just been in Australia, Indonesia and the Philippines. Still, I felt like if I was in another world while driving my scooter through the countryside of Hpa-An. How else would you describe crossing the bridge over Salween River? I was so amazed that I couldn’t help but stopping in the middle of the bridge. Well, not literally in the middle, but on a “safe” side 😉
The mountains reminded me to the ones I saw during my time in Palawan. I also saw similar mountains during my time in Thailand, back in 2015. If you have ever seen them I’m sure you know what I mean, because they have an unmistakable shape and a beautiful green and black colour. They are nothing more and nothing less than limestone mountains and they look like this:
As you can see, the whole way to Yathaypyan was constantly changing. And, lucky for me and my eyes, it was changing in an incredibly beautiful way. It was a pretty hot day so I stopped at a random shop to buy water. The mom and the kid were pretty kind (like most of the Burmese people I had met so far) and I exchanged a few words with them. Eventually, I arrived to Yathaypyan and, after paying 500 MMK for the parking spot, I walked to the entrance of the cave. Before that though, I took this picture so, in case you want to visit it, you know you have arrived to the right place 🙂
Yathaypyan or Yathet Pyan Cave
The fee of the parking spot was the only one I had to pay to enter Yathet Pyan Cave. There were a few steps to reach the inside of the cave, but nothing to get alarmed about. As I was walking, I ran into some locals but no track of tourists. Or, at least, no track of Western tourists 🙂
The entrance of the cave as well as the way up was full of Buddha statues of different sizes and designs. The inside was decorated with clay wall carvings and you could also find little clay Buddha statues on the ground.
Unfortunately, I couldn’t find out much information about the cave. Like during my time in Bago, if there were some inscriptions, I couldn’t understand them. So, once again, depending on how much you want to get to know about the places you visit in Hpa-An, you might consider hiring a tour guide.
Even if I didn’t understand much about Yathaypyan, I had a great time walking around it. The Buddha statues were nice but the views from the cave were even better. The landscape was so beautiful and perfect that it just looked unreal. You might think I’m exaggerating but… am I?
As I was getting deeper inside the cave, I saw a pretty weird animal on the ground. It wasn’t huge but it looked like it had a lot of… legs. Yeah, it was a centipede and, as I was staring at it, a local approached me and said: “dangerous!” So, I just got away of it and kept walking inside the cave. The cave was kind of big, by the way. I didn’t imagine it like that from outside. I kept walking and walking until, eventually, I made it to some sort of a wooden stairs. After following them all the way up for a while, I arrived to a viewpoint on the top of the Yathet Pyan Cave. The views from there were not bad either 😉
After a while enjoying the priceless gift from Mother Nature, I decided to walk all the way back to the entrance of the cave. I spent a last little while there, trying to soak in all that beauty and, eventually, walked downstairs to get to my scooter. Next stop: Kawgun Cave.
Kawgun Cave
Kawgun Cave is pretty close from Yathet Pyan Cave so, this time, my ride was a short one. Unlike Yathet Pyan Cave, there is a 3 K entrance (tourist?) fee. Kawgun Cave dates back to the 7th century, where, depending on the version, it was commissioned either by a woman or by a man. One legend says it was commissioned by a Mon Queen and it is because of that that Kawgun Cave is a sacred place for the ethnic Mon and they come here to worship. The other legend says it wasn’t a Mon Queen but King Manuaha who, after being defeated, run away to Kawgun Cave where he took sanctuary.
What we can be sure about is that Kawgun Cave is famous for its thousands of Buddhas carvings on the tall walls that make up the cave. And when I say thousands I really mean it. Some people claim there are exactly 10000 and, while I didn’t spent the required time to confirm it, I can assure you that there were a lot of tiny Buddhas all around. It looked like this:
Despite its early ancient construction, most of the Buddha images carved in Kawgun Cave are still in excellent condition. They show different versions of Buddha with various ages, shapes, expressions, and poses. Other than the carvings, there were also plenty of Buddha statues. Ah, almost forgot, there were also quite a few monkeys all around, so, watch out and make sure you don’t have anything tempting on you.
You can appreciate in all the pictures the tiny carving Buddhas all the way from the ground to the ceiling of the cave. It was pretty impressive. But, Kawgun Cave wasn’t just about the Buddha statues and carvings. It also had a few beautiful stupas and, unlike Yathet Pyan Cave, hundreds of steps leading to a viewpoint on the top.
I decided to test my level of fitness (which wasn’t great) and, after sometime, I reached the summit. I was sweating and panting but, as I walked to the entrance of the viewpoint, I couldn’t be happier with my efforts. The views from up there were truly speechless. I can use other words to try to stress it more but, I guess a picture will speak louder 🙂
Thai food around Hpa-An
Due to its proximity to Thailand, it is not uncommon to find Thai restaurants around Hpa-An. I felt a craving for Thai food and, after leaving Kawgun Cave behind and driving my scooter for a while, I found one by the road. It was kind of empty but I decided to give it a try anyway. I ordered a small Singha for 900 MMK and a plate of fried vermicelli for 2 K. Not bad, huh?
As I was having lunch, I realised there was a guy eating alone, kind of next to where I was. We started talking and it turned out he was a tour guide. His English was good and he told me about moonshine and something called “sky beer”, which is is a drink they make from palm trees. Not sure why he brought that up but, after a while talking, when he and I left the restaurant and kept following our own paths, I ran into a booth where an elderly couple was selling that drink. They let me tried it and… it was alright 🙂
Kyauk Ka Lat Pagoda
The 4th stop of my 2 days in Hpa-An was one of the highlights of Hpa-An, Myanmar and… my world. I had never seen anything like that before in real life. I’ve been telling you about Hpa-An and its surreal beauty and I think Kyauk Ka Lat Pagoda is the perfect example. Kyauk Ka Lat Pagoda is a Buddhist temple built on the top of a limestone rock formation. The limestone rock is in the middle of an artificial lake, which, to be honest, looks anything but artificial.
Ever since I started to drive on the path which was leading to the Pagoda, I couldn’t help but awing to what my eyes were witnessing. It was too beautiful to be truth! While Kyauk Ka Lat and the lake are the centre of attention, there is also a big temple right in front of the lake. Behind the lake, there is the imposing and beautiful Mount Zwegabin (which I hiked next day). Next to the temple there were tea and souvenir shops as well as food and beverage stalls.
The temple was kind of empty and I decided to meditate for a while. When I felt ready, I walked outside, ready to soak in as much beauty as possible. I could use different adjectives to describe what my eyes were seing. I could use different words to try to make you feel what I was feeling but, let’s face the truth, I wouldn’t succeed. So, let’s just show you what the whole fuss was all about 🙂
Have you ever seen such a peculiar and drop-dead beautiful temple? If so, where? You feel is not such a big deal? What about now?
There was a wooden footbridge which I decided to cross. Well, to be honest, it was like if my body was moving on its own. It wanted to take a closer look at such a magnificence temple. The temple and pagoda host an active community of monks. Thus, it wasn’t hard to spot them as I was getting closer to Kyau Ka Lat’s entrance.
The entrance to Kyauk Ka Lat Pagoda was free so, as soon as I arrived there, I started walking upwards, step by step. I had made it halfway (you can see it in the picture above) when one of the people working there told me I couldn’t go any further. I guess the highest area was reserved exclusively for monks. From the place were they stopped me I wasn’t allowed to take any pictures either. The only thing you could do there was admire the views and pray. As I was standing there, one of the monks approached me, gave me an orange bracelet and said to me: “lucky” 🙂
I walked back down and, for the first time in my life, I saw Buddhist women monks (or nuns if you prefer). I distinguished them mostly because of the colour of their robes. They looked like this:
Right next to where the female monks where, there was an incredible view of Mount Zwegabin. I walked closer to the lake and it was then that the magic happened (again). The temple on top of the rock was amazing. But what do you say about such a perfect reflected image? Doesn’t it look surreal to you?
You see the highest peak of Mount Zwegabin? There is something which looks like an antenna or pagoda right? Well, that’s where I decided to hike to next day. Before that though, I spent a while looking at the reflection of Mother Nature’s gift 🙂
Kaw Ka Thaung Cave
It was around 16:00 when I started to drive yet to another cave. As you can see (and read), the countryside surrounding Hpa-An is full of (gorgeous) caves. Like many other places I visited during the first of my 2 days in Hpa-An, Kaw Ka Thaung Cave was also entrance-free.
I parked my scooter right before the entrance flanked by the pair of leogryphs. They were becoming a constant during my 3 weeks in Myanmar. Though Kaw Ka Thaung Cave is not as spectacular as other caves in the countryside of Hpa-An, it is a popular place for local tourists, so it can get crowded on a busy day. There were a few hundred meters from the pair of leogryphs to Kaw Ka Thaung Cave itself. The path there, guarded by a row of 145 monks, was pretty unique. And yes, in case you might be wondering, I counted the monks myself 😉
The cave was completely different from the others I had seen so far. It looked way newer and it was really colorful (maybe a little too much). There were some local tourists but it wasn’t super crowded so I could walk around it easily. There were some Buddha statues, small shrines, other smaller caves and even some small pools! It wasn’t the highlight of my day but I was happy I decided to come.
As I was staring at some Buddha statues, I felt like there was someone there I had already seen (and it wasn’t Buddha). I took a proper look and… I saw Clara and Lea! As you might remember, they were the first people I met during my 2 days in Yangon. I met them while visiting Sule Pagoda and then we met a couple of times by chance at Shwedagon Pagoda and at Yangon Circular Train. I couldn’t believe they were there!
We spoke for a while. Their hostel was arranging visits to the highlights of the countryside of Hpa-An and that’s why they were there. They had just been at Saddan Cave and said it was worth it. I was actually considering going there for the last stop of my first day in Hpa-An. Thus, I decided to trust them and go check the cave out. It would be closing soon so I had to hurry but, before leaving, we agreed upon meeting later on for dinner.
Saddan Cave
Saddan Cave was kind of far away from where I was and it was closing at 18:00, so, I needed to hurry up. Most of the way there was well paved and I didn’t have any problems. The last part though was a little bit trickier but, after having been driving in Indonesia and the Philippines, my skills were good enough. In fact, they were so good that I could even stop to admire and take a picture at the beautiful sunset 😉
There is an entrance fee of 1 K in order to enter Sabban Cave. The way from the parking lot to the entrance of the cave was full of souvenir and food and beverage stalls. I was really hungry by then so I bought a few samosas and a bottle of water for 1 K. Not bad, huh?
Some people say Saddan Cave is nicer since lights were installed. I completely disagree. On the one hand it is truth that, now, with the lights, you can take a look at stuff that otherwise would be impossible to see. On the other hand, I think they could have chosen other lights. They didn’t match at all and, at some points, they reminded me to the ones of the local fair of my village lol.
Saddan Cave is only open during the wet season (from November to April). And, like pretty much any “monument” you visit in Myanmar, you need to take off your shoes and cover your knees and shoulders. By the way, make sure to take the shoes with you (in your bag, backpack or hands) because you’ll be exiting the cave by a different route.
I kind of felt there were more tourists (not Western but locals) at Saddan Cave than in any of the other places I visited. And the cave was closing soon. So, if you want to visit it, I would say it is better to do it early in the morning or later before it closes. The cave is decorated with Buddha statues (what a surprise right?), stupas and carvings on the wall. Some of the Buddhas are pretty big, like a reclining one. Although still way smaller in comparison to the one of Bago 🙂
The cave is huge. It stretches for around half a kilometre and it can reach a height of 30 meters. Up till that day, I believe it was one of the largest and longest caves I had visited. As I was walking in the semi-darkness, I could hear the unmistakable sound of water dropping but also the one from the thousand of bats clung to the cave’s roof. The whole mix was pretty impressive.
I had been walking for around 20 minutes when… I saw the light. Literally. We had reached the end of the cave and the few beams of light still alive (the sun was almost set) were there to prove it. It looked like this:
From that moment on, there were just a few last steps that we needed to take in order to make it to… a beautiful “hidden” lake. The views of the lake, with the colorful boats, the vegetation of the place and the sunset made up a great postcard. What do you think?
The price of the boat was 6 K. I could either pay for it, swim or walk all the way back to the entrance of the cave. Those were my choices if I wanted to make it back to the place where I had left my scooter. During the visit to the cave I had been walking along a local family. Thus, I knew they would be also taking the boat. I spoke to them and the dad insisted in paying for the whole boat. I told him I wanted to give him my part but he insisted.
We jumped on the boat and, as we started to leave the cave behind, the woman rowing started to look at me while saying: “money!”, “money!”. I looked at her like… what are you talking about? I told her the family dad had already paid for the whole boat and she kept on screaming those 5 magical letters that have given so many good times to human beings. She pissed me off but, eventually, I gave her 2 K so she would shut up. Again, it wasn’t because of the money but because of the manners :/
She rowed for a while. The views of the sunset along with the vegetation and the mountains were nice. At some points the stream was really shallow but it seemed like she had the situation under control. When we finally arrived back to firm land I realised I was kind of far away from Saddan’s cave and that’s when my shoes came handy 🙂
Hpa-An Night Market
By the time I got back on my scooter it was completely dark. I had almost an hour driving before making it back to Thanlwin Pyar Guesthouse. The plastic cover of the helmet was kind of dirty, so, I decided to open it. But… I had to closed it again. In fact, I spent the whole ride back to the hostel switching modes from open to closed. Why? Because, if I left it open, millions of mosquitos were smashing against my face and I saw as little as with the helmet cover closed lol.
It wasn’t easy but I made it back to the hostel in one piece. After a shower and some rest, I met Clara and Lea, we took a tuk tuk and went to Hpa-An’s Night Market.
Hpa-An’s Night Market is in front of a famous lake in Hpa-An called “Kan Tha Yar”. I love night markets and I tried to visit as many as I could during my time in Southeast Asia. Hpa-An’s Night Market is open from 17:00 to 00:00. With almost a hundred food stalls, you can enjoy plenty of different Burmese dishes and even some Thai ones. Remember I told you about the proximity of Hpa-An to Thailand? 🙂
Needless to say, prices were ridiculously cheap. There were so many choices we didn’t even know where to start. So, we just walked around and tried as many different dishes as we could. With our stomachs full, we sat by the lake and talked about Myanmar, Hpa-An, fate (we had met quite a few times so far) and other interesting travellers’ stuff lol.
Eventually, we decided to walk back to our hostels. We couldn’t find a tuk tuk to drive us back so I just stopped and asked a random guy. He agreed upon giving us a ride on his motorbike but the girls didn’t feel very confident so we thanked him and kept walking. Five minutes later a car stopped by our side and… they tried to kidnapped us. Just kidding lol. It was the same guy who came back with his friend’s car and drove us to our hostel. Aren’t Burmese people nice? 🙂 And, just like that, the first of my 2 days in Hpa-An came to an end.
So, how did you like the first of my 2 days in Hpa-An? Have you ever been there? Do you agree with me about Hpa-An having some unreal landscapes? What did you think of Yathet Pyan Cave and Kyauk Ka Lat Pagoda? Did you like the lights at Saddan Cave? What about the food at Hpa-An’s Night Market? Let me know in the comments below!
