Page 120 - The Rough Guide to Myanmar (Burma)

118 The DelTa anD wesTern MyanMar Sittwe
DIreCTOry
Banks There are several ATM kiosks along the road beside Swimming pools Non-guests can use the lovely, serpentine
the beach and inside the lobbies of the bigger hotels, and pool at the Aureum Palace hotel for free if they take a meal in
there’s also a currency exchange desk at the airport. the hotel restaurant; alternatively, the big pool at the Bay View
Pharmacy Main Road, opposite the Sandoway Resort. Beach Resort costs $10/day for non-residents.

Thandwe
2
Around 10km inland from Ngapali, the town of THANDWE provides a low-key
but enjoyable reminder of Burmese life beyond the beach – and sees quite a few
visitors from the resorts looking for a slice of the “real” Myanmar. It has a long
history, as Minbin himself (see p.363) served as governor for a decade before
launching his bid for power, and the British (who called it Sandoway) also
established a garrison here. It’s now the largest town in southern Rakhine, although
there’s nowhere for foreigners to stay and food is limited to the usual noodle and
curry stalls around the market.
Thandwe’s intensely atmospheric market, housed (bizarrely) in the old colonial jail, is
worth a look, and there are also three temples, each said to enshrine a body part of the
Buddha. Just over 1.5km northwest of the market, the Nandaw Paya is said to have one
of the Enlightened One’s ribs, while to the east of the market the Sandaw Paya has a
hair and the Andaw Paya a tooth.

South to Gwa
The beautiful swathe of coastline south of Ngapali is open to foreigners, but remains
largely unexplored. A few adventurous travellers village-hop up and down the coast,
stopping off in Kanthaya and Gwa (which have basic accommodation) en route.
Gwa is the biggest town along the way and there are frequent buses to and from
Thandwe and Yangon. The main beach is very wide and could be beautiful, but
currently it’s a working fishing beach and so somewhat marred by rubbish. A better
option is to take a ferry (K1000) to the other side of the river, where a string of almost
untouched beaches stretches down along the peninsula. Ask around in Gwa and you
should be able to find a motorbike (K10,000 per day) that you can use to explore the
peninsula’s beaches beyond. Just remember to take food and water with you, as there
are no facilities of any sort on any of the beaches there.
A half-hour (20km) motorbike ride north of Gwa is the beach of Zak Hone, which
is close to the village of Nyaung Kyaung. It’s a long, wide bend of pure white sand,
backed by hundreds of palm trees and with one tiny fishing village next to it. A little
further north of Zak Hone is Kanthaya, which was once earmarked for tourist
development. A big hotel was built here to host the hordes of tourists the military
government of the time hoped would come, but they never arrived and now just a shell
remains. The beach itself is more developed than at Zak Hone, but you’ll still probably
be the only tourist here. There are a couple of beach shack restaurants and very simple
guesthouses – though not all are licensed to accept foreigners.

Sittwe

Capital of Rakhine State and gateway to Mrauk U, the remote town of SITTWE is one
of western Myanmar’s most absorbing – and disquieting – destinations. Landing here
(or arriving after the arduous bus journey), you’ll feel a long way from the rest of
Myanmar and that’s because, to all intents and purposes, you are. For decades Sittwe

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