Rudyard Kipling’s visit to Myanmar spanned just three days, but it resulted in a few lines that turned Burma into an Oriental fantasy: ‘By the old Moulmein Pagoda, lookin’ lazy at the sea…’ The 'Moulmein Pagoda' cited in his poem ‘Mandalay’ was most likely Kyaikthanlan Paya , the city’s tallest and most visible stupa.
It's a great spot for watching the sunset. To reach the temple complex, approach it via the long covered walkway that extends from Kyaik Than Lan Phayar St.
This walkway also had an impact on Kipling, who was later to comment of it: ‘I should better remember what the pagoda was like had I not fallen deeply and irrevocably in love with a Burmese girl at the foot of the first flight of steps. Only the fact of the steamer starting next noon prevented me from staying at Moulmein forever.’
Directly north and linked by a covered walkway is Mahamuni (Bahaman) Paya , the largest temple complex and easily the most beautiful in Mawlamyine. It’s built in the typical Mon style with covered brick walkways linking various shrines. The highlight is the Bahaman Paya itself, a jewel-box chamber shimmering with mirrors, rubies and diamonds and containing a century-old replica of its namesake in Mandalay.
Below Kyaikthanlan is the 100-year-old Seindon Mibaya Kyaung , a monastery where King Mindon Min’s queen, Seindon, sought refuge after Myanmar’s last monarch, King Thibaw Min, took power. On the next rise south stands the isolated silver-and-gold-plated Aung Theikdi Zedi .
U Khanti Paya was built to commemorate the hermit architect of Mandalay Hill fame; supposedly U Khanti spent some time on this hill as well. It’s a rustic, airy sort of place centred around a large buddha image.
U Zina Paya , on the southern spur of the ridge, was named after a former monk who dreamt of finding gems at this very spot, then dug them up and used the proceeds to build a temple on the same site. One of the shrine buildings contains a very curvy, sensual-looking reclining buddha; there are also statues depicting Gautama Buddha’s meeting with a sick man, an old man, a dead man and an ascetic – encounters that encouraged him to seek a meaning behind human suffering.
