Days 1-2: Yangon
Day 1: Arrive Yangon. Afternoon Shwedagon Pagoda at sunset — unforgettable. Chinatown evening. Overnight Yangon.
Day 2: Chauk Htat Gyi reclining Buddha, Bogyoke Market, colonial downtown walk. Second Shwedagon visit at night. Overnight Yangon.
Days 3-4: Inle Lake
Day 3: Fly to Heho. Boat onto Inle Lake: leg-rowing fishermen, Phaung Daw Oo Pagoda, floating gardens. Sunset over the Shan Hills. Overnight Inle.
Day 4: Five-Day rotating market, Indein’s jungle-ruined stupas, lotus and silk weaving. Sunset boat ride. Overnight Inle.
Days 5-6: Bagan
Day 5: Fly to Bagan. Afternoon temples: Ananda, Thatbyinnyu, Dhammayangyi. Sunset temple viewing — the plain turns gold. Overnight Bagan.
Day 6: Pre-dawn sunrise. Morning: Sulamani frescoes, Dhammayazika. Afternoon: lacquerware workshop, horse-cart ride through temples. Overnight Bagan.
Days 7-9: Mandalay
Day 7: Fly to Mandalay. Mahamuni Pagoda. U Bein Bridge sunset — monks walking the 1.2km teak bridge in golden light. Overnight Mandalay.
Day 8: Mandalay Hill, Kuthodaw Pagoda (729 marble slabs). Shwenandaw teak monastery. Boat to Mingun. Overnight Mandalay.
Day 9: Sagaing Hills (600+ monasteries), nunnery visit. Inwa (Ava) by horse cart — 400-year royal capital ruins. Farewell dinner. Overnight Mandalay.
Day 10: Departure
Transfer to Mandalay Airport. Depart with a heart full of Myanmar’s golden light.
