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In 1403, almost 800 years ago, a building in front of your screen and the one I take was built and stands tall to this day. Can you imagine what it would be like to be in such a historic place?
In fact, long before World Wars I and II (and even almost World War III), the building still existed. A temple that embodied the legitimacy of a king in Old Bagan, Sagaing, Burma. King Mohnyin, from Innwa, created a spectacular masterpiece.
This temple is quite large and has many main buildings, almost all of which are identical in shape, but what I do know are the different Buddha statues in each hall. The buildings are not too far apart from each other, like neighboring houses.
Of course, I love the thorough details, which make it seem more handcrafted. I even found something interesting on the roof, carved with a beautiful pattern, drawn with a sharp object.
We'll learn that the temples in almost all of Old Bagan actually have different Buddhas, depending on who they depict. For example, at Sin Myar Shin, the Buddha statues have slightly oval faces and different attire. There's also one statue with a very unique eye shape, resembling the eyes of a sleepy person, but with just a wavy line right through them.
I was taking photos between the gaps between the buildings, about 2 meters apart, but you can still walk between them. I could truly see the very clear details of the structure and the intricate design. Without advanced technology, they were able to construct and assemble such large and tall buildings with such interesting designs. So that, the temples don't look alike, even though they seem similar because they use almost the same materials.
There's a funny story from my time there. We were very careful about wearing shoes or footwear when we went to the temple. This is very different from temples in Thailand, Cambodia, and other places where socks are allowed. I was scold for taking off my socks to walk on the building grounds, even though I hadn't even entered the temple. It seems like you should pay attention to that and prepare your feet to walk barefoot.