Operating since 1999 with British made Cameron Balloons.    They had two flights a day weather permitting during the season and we choose the dawn rather than the sunset flight as the evening flight would be back on the ground before the sun set for safety reasons

"Pagan in many respects is the most remarkable religious city in the world.  Jerusalem, Rome, Kiev, Benares, none of these can boast the multitude of temples, and the lavishness of design and ornament that make marvellous the deserted capital on the Irrawaddy"

Sir James Scott "The Burman: His Life and Notions

Up Up And Away. A trip with Balloons Over Bagan is a treat you will remember long after the cost is forgotten

The Bagan plain at dawn, cloaked in mist.  As the sun rises higher the lengthening shadows and lingering mist create an unforgettable panorama of monuments as far as the eye can see 

 People below were just beginning their day.  With the vast restoration project underway, working in a brick yard must be the ultimate in job security.   Fishermen were already pulling in their nets

I was surprised at the amount of attention we attracted.  Children came running, work stopped and everyone waved.  The occupants of the Betelnut Hotel came scrambling to the rooftop to watch our passing.   It is a short season and the route varies so we would  not have been the everyday occurrence as I had imagined

The extent of the vast plain can only really be appreciated from the air.  The lush green fields of early December would soon give way to the sandy conditions of the dry season.  At one time much of the ground between monuments would have been covered with wooden monasteries some quite magnificent.  The homes of the local people were relocated in 1990

Dhammayangyi Pahto 1167

Similar in style to Ananda but huge by comparison Dhammayangyi, the largest and best preserved of the Bagan monuments can be seen dominating the plain for miles in every direction.   Built by King Narathu who having murdered his father was understandably anxious to improved his karma for future lives.  He is said to have supervised the construction and insisted that the masons fit the bricks so tightly together that a needle would not pass between the bricks

Sleeping Buddha

Thatbyinnyu 1144, at 210' is the tallest  building on the plain  It's upper terraces now closed to all but a few military and VIP's.  Adjacent to the temple is a 'tally' zedi built with one brick for every 10,000 used in the main temple

Shwesandaw 1057,  was the first monument built after the conquest of the Mon King at Thaton and the first to feature the staircase rising through the terraces.  There is a reclining sleeping Buddha within the grounds.  We know he is sleeping as he faces South.  Only the dying Buddha faces North.  We returned at sunset

The children were very interested in the goings on, with the exception of the little guy who is not too sure he likes having his photo taken by a stranger