The Chindwin Explorer

Board the majestic Anawrahta, berthed at the quay of Mandalay’s riverside and enjoy a warm welcome by our staff with some refreshments and a short safety briefing as you move into your “home” for following days. Take a swim in the 360-degree view pool on the sundeck or try out the fine treatments of our Thazin Spa while sailing towards Sagaing.

Our lecture today will be on “Myanmar’s ways of life” followed by a cultural demonstration on “Traditional Longyi and Thana- kha”, Myanmar’s traditional costumes and a natural paste applied on the face and body. Kindly join afternoon tea served in the Kipling’s Bar while gazing over the Ayeyarwady river. Tonight, a longyi Cocktail Party will break the ice with your fellow guests.

Enjoy an early morning yoga session on the sundeck to strengthen your muscles and ease your mind before Anawrahta enters the Chindwin river. Our morning excursion will take us to the historical village of A Myint. Explore the village life and their ancient pagodas. Back on board, we will sail a short distance to Monywa. After lunch, we go by bus to Monywa, where you will see Thanboddhay Pagoda (Thambuddhei Paya) with over 500,000 Buddha images and hundreds of golden spires can be found. Farther down the road is the second tallest Buddha statue in the world, measuring 116 meters. It’s located behind a vast religious site with Bodhi trees and gardens with hundreds of sitting Buddhas. The interior features depictions of Buddhist teachings on several floors. Back on board, we continue sailing up the river. Enjoy a barbecue dinner tonight and a “Yamayana” dance performance on the sundeck.

We disembark for a morning visit of Moktaw, a typical riverside village, to see the local’s way of life. If we are lucky, we may witness a special ceremony at the local monastery. In the afternoon you will have the chance to join a ship tour with our cruise general manager exploring the fascinating Anawrahta. As the evening approaches and the Burmese sun immerses everything in a golden light, a special event will take place at the Kipling’s Bar. Dress up in style as we send “A toast to the past” during a British Club gathering where gents may whiff cigars and ladies sip on tasty gins with homemade tonic while listening to music and poems of a bygone era.

Start your day with a morning walk through the small village of Maukkadaw, which once was a busy teak port. We will show you the remaining teak businesses before visiting the local school and walking through the old village. Back on board, we continue cruising upstream passing small villages amid rolling hills at the riverbanks. In the afternoon a “Burmese Speaking Lesson” will be held in the Mandalay Lounge to be prepared for our market rally the next day. Tonight, we arrive at the river- side port of Kalaywa. Passing by its bridge that connects the main land with the Indian border.

This morning we will take a tour around Kalaywa by local tuk tuk. Visit the Pagoda on a hill top to have a panoramic view over the Kalaywa Town and Chindwin River. We continue to the Kalaywa Market. Do some shopping at the bustling, colourful local market of Kalaywa, where you can practice your Burmese language skills during a market tour.

Join a lecture by our guide this morning or lounge around watching the passing sceneries of dense jungle. In the afternoon we arrive in the small Sittaung village, with its 28 houses and only 200 inhabitants. Today’s tour takes us to the ships of Irrawaddy Flotilla Company (the greatest river fleet that was ever assembled worldwide). Back on board, we keep sailing upstream and afternoon tea will be served at the Kipling’s Bar.

Time for an early morning yoga session on the sundeck while the ship sails towards the most beautiful part of the upper Chind- win river. After breakfast, you can join a demonstration about the ancient habit of betel-chewing as well as smoking cheroots cigars. Tasting is optional! On our afternoon excursion, we will visit the town of Homalin. Here, we will take a tour of the stunning views from the high vantage point of the Buddha Lotus Garden before starting our downstream voyage. Our guide will explain the significance of the various statues depicting scenes from the life of Buddha. On the way back from this view point, you have a wonderful chance to visit the village of the Naga tribe; one of Myanmar’s minorities that still have their own culture and customs. Join their traditional tribal dance and to enjoy their traditional cuisine and drinks.

Today you have another opportunity to simply relax, enjoy the passing scenery and enjoy the facilities on board our beautiful ship. We will sail around 142.25 miles. In the late morning, there will be a cooking demonstration by our Executive Chef who will show you the preparation of a local dishes. The recipes will be provided for you to try them at home! In the afternoon a presentation about “Buddhism in Myanmar” will be lectured by our onboard guide. Tonight, a barbecue dinner will be served together with an entertaining performance by our crew.

Mawlaik was used as the administrative capital of the British and many of the colonial-era house built by the Bombay-Burma Trading Company still remain nowadays. Our colonial heritage tour will take you to the post office, former British administrative buildings, the house of a former British commissioner, and the Mawlaik Golf Course which was built during the colonial times. The tour ends with a mini golf match on the greens of the Mawlaik Golf Course. Afterwards, we return to the ship and enjoy lunch on board. If today’s sailing goes well, we will have the time to visit the small village of Kyi Taung Oo where we can discover the only surviving (and still-working) wooden monastery that pre-dates the Konbaung Dynasty’s Foundation in 1752. “Kyi Taung Oo” means “Great Sacred Hill.” As you might expect, there will be some astonishing views over the river and its surrounding area.

This morning you can simply relax and enjoy the passing scenery as well as our facilities on board. Our afternoon excursion will take you on a 45-minute bus ride to Pho Win Taung to discover the cave-temple complexes outside of the city and the Shwe Ba Taung mountains. The caves are believed to be around 500-years-old containing many sandstone carvings of Buddha images, animals, plants and demons. In the evening, a group will perform a “Puppet Show” on board in the lounge.

This morning you can simply relax and enjoy the last sailing hours on board and observe the passing scenery. In the afternoon we will arrive at our final destination – Bagan, the ancient city of King Anawrahta. On an orientation tour, we explore the magnificent Ananda and Shwe San Daw Temple. Our evening ends at one of the “sunset pagodas” or a high plain ground to watch the breathtaking vista of the sun setting over the temple strewn plain.

Bid farewell to the crew as you check out after breakfast.