Ko Aung sits at a tea shop in Nyaung-U, drinking laphet yay (sweet milk tea) from a cup that's been refilled three times. He's been guiding visitors through Bagan's temples for fifteen years — before the UNESCO listing, before the balloons became famous, before Instagram turned certain temples into photo spots.
He has things to say.
Ko Aung: The speed. Tourists used to come for four, five days. Now they come for one night, maybe two. They do the balloon, three temples, and leave. You can't understand Bagan in one day. There are over 2,000 temples. They were built over three centuries by different kings with different motivations. Ananda was devotion. Dhammayangyi was guilt — the king murdered his father and brother, then built the largest temple in Bagan as penance. The brickwork is the finest in Bagan because he executed masons whose bricks allowed a needle between them.
You need to hear these stories. You need to sit inside a temple when the light comes through the window at a specific angle and illuminates a Buddha face that was designed exactly for that moment. That takes time.
What's the most common mistake tourists make?
Ko Aung: They try to see everything. They get on the e-bike and drive from temple to temple, ten minutes each, photo and go. They see twenty temples and remember none of them.
I tell my clients: see five. Spend an hour at each. Sit on the floor. Look at the walls. Look at the ceiling. Most temples have frescoes — paintings from the 11th, 12th, 13th centuries. Tourists walk past them because they're looking at their phone, checking which temple is next.
Also — the shoes. Tourists complain about removing shoes. But this is not a rule for tourists. This is our religious practice. Every Burmese person removes shoes at every pagoda. We've done this for a thousand years. When tourists sigh about it, it feels disrespectful.
Which temples should someone visit if they only have two days?
Ko Aung: Ananda for beauty — four standing Buddhas, the best-preserved temple, built in 1105. The optical illusion where the Buddha's face changes expression as you walk closer is real. I've shown a thousand tourists and every single one stops walking and says "wait."
Dhammayangyi for history — the largest temple, the murder story, the brickwork.
Sulamani for frescoes — less visited, often empty. The interior paintings are stunning and the light in the afternoon is beautiful.
And one small temple. I won't say which one — every guide has their favorite. Mine is off the main road, no sign, no other tourists. I sit inside with my clients and we don't talk for ten minutes. They always say it was their favorite part of the trip.
Let's talk about the balloon. Worth it?
Ko Aung: (pausing) It's beautiful from up there. No question. But $400 is a lot of money. In Myanmar, $400 is two months' salary for a teacher. I tell tourists: if you can afford it without thinking, do it. If $400 is significant for your budget, spend it on three extra days in Bagan instead. The sunrise from the ground — from the viewing mounds near Shwesandaw — is also beautiful. Different, but beautiful.
The balloons are a wonderful experience. But Bagan existed for 900 years without them.
The climbing ban on temples — was that the right decision?
Ko Aung: Yes. Absolutely. Tourists were climbing Shwesandaw, North Guni, and others — hundreds of people daily on structures from the 12th century. The brickwork was crumbling. Every footstep was destroying history.
The viewing mounds they built as alternatives work fine. The view is the same. The temples are safer. Some tourists are angry about it — they saw photos from 2018 and wanted the same shot. But those photos were taken while standing on a 900-year-old building. We have 2,000 temples. We'd like to keep them.
What about the political situation? Should tourists come?
Ko Aung: (long pause) This is difficult. Since 2021, Myanmar has been in crisis. The military took power. There is fighting in some regions. Bagan is relatively calm — we're in the central dry zone, far from border areas. Tourist infrastructure is working. The archaeological zone is safe.
But should you come? I need tourists. My family needs tourists. The guesthouse owners, the e-bike rental shops, the tea shops — we all need tourists. When tourists stopped coming after the coup, people lost everything.
I also understand why some people don't want to come. Tourism money moves through a system controlled by the military. It's complicated.
I tell people: check your government's travel advisory. If it says don't come, don't come. If it says exercise caution, then come — and spend your money at locally owned guesthouses, eat at local restaurants, hire local guides. The money matters to us.
What food should tourists eat in Bagan?
Ko Aung: Mohinga. Myanmar's national dish — rice noodle soup with fish broth, lemongrass, turmeric, and crispy fritters. Every tea shop in Nyaung-U serves it for breakfast. MMK 1,500-2,500 (~$0.75-1.25). Tourists eat pancakes at hotel restaurants and miss the best food in the country.
Shan noodles — from the Shan State where Inle Lake is. Rice noodles with meat sauce. Simple. Perfect. MMK 2,000 (~$1).
Tea leaf salad (lahpet thoke) — fermented tea leaves mixed with sesame, peanuts, garlic, and lime. It sounds strange. It's addictive. Every restaurant has it.
And Myanmar beer. The original one, not the brands owned by the military. Ask your guesthouse which brands are ethical. It matters.
What do tourists get right about Bagan?
Ko Aung: The awe. When they first see the plain — usually from the e-bike on the main road, with temples in every direction to the horizon — the reaction is always the same. They stop. They stand still. Sometimes they don't say anything for a full minute.
That reaction is correct. Bagan should stop you. Nine hundred years of devotion, guilt, power, and art — all in brick, all still standing, all asking you to take your shoes off and step inside.
That's what tourists get right. The stopping.
Ko Aung is available for private guided tours of Bagan. Full-day tours: $30-40 including e-bike rental. Contact through guesthouses in Nyaung-U or at the Ananda Temple entrance, where he's usually drinking tea by 7AM.
