Page 289 - The Rough Guide to Myanmar (Burma)

DOWNTOWN MANDALAY MANDALAY AND AROUND 287
On the south side of the complex, an eye-catching circular watchtower offers
fine palace and city views from the top of the spiral staircase wrapped around its
exterior.

The rest of the complex
A couple of curios dot the out-of-bounds area beyond the palace walls. Look out from
the northern wall, towards the west of the complex, and you’ll make out a ruined
plane; do likewise from the south, and you’ll see a rusting railway engine which once
pulled a toy train around the ground.
Exiting the palace, you’ll see a circle of nine statues of kings and other historical
figures to your left; it’s technically out of bounds to foreigners, although you’re unlikely
to be stopped. Slightly further east, next to the main approach road, is the palace’s
striking clocktower, an open-sided structure perched on a tall plinth, with wooden
steps leading up to a platform housing the “clock” itself – actually a large drum, which
was formerly beaten to mark the hours.
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Downtown Mandalay
Sprawling away to the west of the palace, Downtown Mandalay’s polluted sprawl of
concrete streets has few obvious attractions but provides an interesting – if sometimes
exhausting – place to take the pulse of urban life in modern Myanmar, with a few
pretty Buddhist and Hindu shrines tucked away here and there, along with dozens of
mosques, street cafés and stray dogs, and some interesting markets.
Sri Ganesh temple and around
27th St, at the corner of 81st St • Usually open daily around 8am–noon & 5–8pm • Free
Close to one another on 27th Street, a pair of Hindu temples serve Mandalay’s
sizeable Indian-descended community. The richly decorated gopuram (tower) of the
Sri Ganesh temple provides an unmissable landmark – and welcome splash of colour
– at the junction of 81st Street, while inside an eclectic collection of icons includes
a striking green Ganesh in the central shrine (often hidden behind its curtain)
surrounded by other deities ranging from a black-skinned, flute-playing Krishna
through to a typically seraphic Buddha. Close by, between 79th and 80th streets, is
the low-slung Sanatan Dharma (same hours), topped by five pretty little bright red,
gold-trimmed towers. Food hawkers can often be found outside both temples selling
sugary Indian sweets.
The fire lookout tower and fire station
Corner of 29th and 81st sts
Now hemmed in by high-rises, Mandalay’s fire lookout tower formerly provided
a handy vantage point from which conflagrations anywhere in the city could be
seen – a useful early-warning system in a metropolis whose buildings were mostly
made of wood. It’s no longer in use, although the city’s main fire station can still be
found alongside it on 29th Street, complete with a pair of vintage 1970s engines
(although they look at least two decades older), usually to be seen parked at the front
and still in occasional use.

Zegyo Market and around
• Between 24th & 25th sts and 84th and 86th sts • Daily 8am–5pm
On the west side of downtown, the Zegyo Market dates back to the days of King
Mindon and is the largest in Mandalay, a busy commercial hive with hundreds of
shops selling a huge range of everyday goods. Sadly, the old colonial market of
1903 was pulled down during the 1990s and replaced with the current Chinese-
style centre.