After two days temple hopping in Bagan we went for a change on the third day and took a trip out to Mount Popa; a temple 90 mins away which is perched on the top of a very steep hill making it look quite impressive. To top it off it is also home to a large colony of mischevous monkeys and that really sealed the deal regarding a visit.
We were looking to book the trip the evening before but couldn’t find any open tourist agencies in New Bagan (very unusual for Asia). However a quick ask in the restaurant we were eating at led to one of the waiters knowing a guy who could organise it. One minute later I’m on the phone to his mate sorting the details and giving a deposit to the waiter – so helpful!
So the next morning we get picked up in a pretty nice new minibus. There were a couple of people already on board and a few more followed soon after. Our full bus then made the 90 minute trip to Mount Popa.
Mount Popa certainly looks the part!
We stopped just before arriving to get the iconic photo of the mountain and then moved onwards to the base of the stairs. We disembarked with 3 hours to kill before returning. Now for the 800 or so stairs to the top…
It was pretty busy on the stairway the whole way. We started ascending through the standard throng of gift shops but they soon fell away. Just above the shops we had our first glimpse of the monkeys – scurrying around on the roofs and rafters.
The novelty of the climb soon disappeared. About a quarter of the way up we had to store our shoes and socks and continue barefoot (with a few rests along the way).
Once near the top we were treated to some spectacular views of the surrounding area, and a few more daredevil monkeys!
The temple at the top wasn’t really much to write home (or here) about, especially after some of the previous temples we’d visited in Myanmar, but that wasn’t really the point.
The long journey down was improved by more monkey business, including some young monkeys chasing each other around and another who had managed to get hold of a big slice of watermelon.
Back on solid ground we still had the best part of an hour to kill. With little else to do we just relaxed in the shade with a drink before jumping in the same minibus back.
If you are thinking of a trip to Mount Popa I wouldn’t really recommend it as essential, in fact if it wasn’t for the monkeys I’d have been a bit disappointed. But if you have time to kill in Bagan then its worth an excursion – and you won’t miss out on a sunrise/sunset on the plains (key times for enjoying & photos).
