|
|
|
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
|---|
| Book your tour in advance |  |
|
|---|
"Dendrology Tour in 23rd November to Saturday 09 December 2006 was successfully finished '' |
||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
INTERNATIONAL DENDROLOGY SOCIETY |
DAVID SAYERS TRAVEL AND TOUR SST TOURISM CO., LTD |
|||||
 |
||||||
The forests of Myanmar ( formerly Burma ) are rich and ecologically diverse and if one includes degraded forest they cover about 50 % of the total land area. Burma is famous for its teak, and, uniquely, still proudly continues forest management practices introduced by the British 150 years ago. The most important forest types are mixed deciduous including dipterocarps, tropical evergreen, hill and temperate evergreen, and dry forest. Unfortunately genera such as Magnolis and Rhododendron , so desirable for temperate or warm temperate gardens, are found in limited high mountainous areas that are sensibly accessed by only a well organised expedition. The highest peak, Mt Khakobo-Razi at 5881 meters, is in the far north and was climbed for the first time only about 9 years ago by a joint Japanese/Burmese expedition. Given the size of the country ( Burma is the largest on the mainland of South-East Asia ) and the distances between places of interest and the often poor roads, any itinerary has to be a compromise. This itinerary offers a fascination insight into the varied deciduous forests of Burma and their sustainable management, together with the study of minor forest products that contribute to so many of Burma's beautiful handicrafts. Life in the villages attached to the forests is timeless, and watching forest elephants at work utterly enchanting. We shall also see some of Burma's famous cultural sites, not only world famous Bagan, but other places much less often seen by tourists. We shall travel mostly by road, which at times will be a bit bumpy and possibly dusty. Away from the main tourist centers accommodation will be simple, and just occasionally with shared bathrooms; this is well mixed , with nights of relative comfort in between! The southwest monsoon begins around June and last through until October, after which much of the country remains dry. November, December and January are the coolest months. The pre-monsoon months of April and May are very hot. The monsoon gives heavy precipitation to the coastal areas and the high mountains where some locations get more than 5,000mm. In contrast, the inland flat land known as the Central Dry Zones may receive in places less than 500mm. |
||||||
23 Thursday (November'2006 ) |
||||||
| Assemble for dinner at airport Hotel, Bangkok. Overnight airport Hotel. | ||||||
24 Friday
(November'2006 ) |
||||||
Arrive Yangon( Rangoon ). Transfer to Hotel. After his conquest of lower Burma in 1755 King Alaungpaya   renamed the small old town of Dagon as Yangon ( end of strife ) and founded a new city on the old site. Yangon soon became a sea port when Syriam was destroyed by the king in 1756, as it had become the center of European interests in the country. Now it is Myanmar's capital, population over 5.3 millions. PM: visit Kipling's golden mystery, the wonderful Shwedagon Paya, the great golden pagoda that is the most sacred of all Buddhists sites in Myanmar. |
||||||
25 Saturday(November'2006 ) |
||||||
 Early AM start for drive to TaungOo, 205 miles taking about 7 hours along doubtful road. The first 80 km to Bago is through flat country, but then the road runs north between the Bago Mountain range and the hills of Kayin state in the east. En route visit the WW II cemetery and its emotive monument to allied soldiers. Stop briefly in Bago to see but not enter the imposing Shwemawdaw Pagoda, taller then the Shwedagon Pagoda in Yangon. TaungOo has largely lost any traces of its former 15-16th century glory, and is now a long establishes center for timber, mostly teak. Overnight at TaungOo. |
||||||
26 Sunday (November'2006 ) |
||||||
Make the short drive to Thagara to see the forest and forestry elephants extracting teak logs. Elephants  inflict the least environmental damage to the forest ecosystem and are used extensively in Myanmar. On easy accessible terrain buffalo is also used. Logs to be extracted can be some distance apart and the topography can be very broken with ravines, steep hillsides, and other difficult obstacles which the elephant is uniquely able to overcome. Elephants are essential to Myanmar forestry and enable the government's policy of giving priority to natural forest management over plantation forestry. Return to the main road and continue to Pyinmana. Overnight at Pyinmana. |
||||||
| 27 Monday (November'2006 ) |
||||||
Visit nearby Yezin Forest Research Institute to meet staff; see experimental plantations, and hear about forest management in Myanmar. The systematic management of Myanmar's natural teak forest begin in 1856 based on the paratice known as the Brindis Selection System, later modified to the Burma( Myanmar ) Selection System and implemented since 1920. This system operates n a 30 years felling cycle. For teak, the exploitable diameter limit varies with the type of forest. In good ( moist ) teak forest, the diameter limit at breast height of 1.3 m is 73 cm and in poor ( dry) teak forest, 63cm. The fixed diameter limit for other hardwoods varies with the species. Trees to be cut include those of exploitable size, smaller but marketable trees that are unhealthy and unlikely to survive until the next felling cycle, thinning of congested trees, and removal of trees interfering with the growth of young and old teak. Should seed bearing trees be few, some high quality stems may be kept as seed trees. Trees not felled are normally |
||||||
Tuesday 28 (November'2006 ) |
||||||
Drive Pyinmana to Mt Popa. PM relax in the hotel's garden, or optional climb up the steep stairway to |
||||||
Wednesday29 (November'2006 ) |
||||||
Morning in Mt. Popa nature reserve, an extinct volcano with evergreen forest including sandalwood. PM drive to Bagan in time to see the sunset over the temples. Overnight at Bagan. |
||||||
| Thursday 30 (November'2006 ) | ||||||
All day in Bagan. First, a short drive to Lawkanadar Wildlife Sanctuary, a small reserve of just 188 acres  of dry forest and cultivated trees. Considerable efforts are being made to reintroduce forest into the vast dry zone, which has been overused for centuries. This new sanctuary, a planted forest park , is interesting to see as the creation of an artificial reserve, and perhaps as a glimpse into the future. Then sightseeing among the 2000 plus pagodas and other monuments at this World Heritage site. Overnight at Bagan. |
||||||
| Friday 01 (December'2006 ) | ||||||
 Embark RV Pandaw 1947 to cruise gently upriver towards Mandalay. Loard Mountbatten called the history of the Irrawaddy Flotilla Company " the greatest untold epic in British maritime history''. By 1920 the Scottish-owned company was the world's largest privately owned shipping fleet, and in the 1930's carried eight million passengers and 1.25 million tons of freight each year. More than 650 Clyde-built vessels were scuttled in 1942 upon the Japanese invasion of Burma, and the Company started up again for a short period after the war. The 46m-long Pandaw 1947 was built in Glasgow in 1947 , and sailed out to Burma and provided river transport of cargo and passengers for half a century. She was then rebuilt and with her teak and brass gleaming now offers 16 cabins with private bathrooms for river cruising. Overnight Pandaw 1947. |
||||||
| Saturday 02 (December'2006 ) | ||||||
| On board Pandaw 1947, sailing upriver, with stops for various shore excursions. Overnight Pandaw 1947. | ||||||
| Sunday 03 (December'2006 ) | ||||||
AM arrive Mandalay, and drive up to the old British hill station of Maymyo ( now Pyin Oo Lwin ). PM visit botanic garden, and see the town, including the bazaar. Local transport is by wild west style horse drawn cabs. Overnight at Maymyo. |
||||||
| Monday 04 (December'2006 ) | ||||||
 Morning and lunch in Maymyo. Return to Mandalay, founded by King Mindon in 1857 when he moved his capital from Amarapura. In spite of romance given it by Kipling's famous verse, it is not now a charming city. Second in population size to Yangon, it sprawls with new build on the edges and Chinese development in the city. But there still remains much of interest for the dedicated visitor. The old Royal Palace was destroyed in 1945  during fierce fighting between British and Indian troops and the Japanese who had occupied Mandalay in 1942. The outer walls and impressive moat remain, and the palace has been rebuilt. We will drive past on our way to the 236 m high Mandalay Hill, which gave the city its name. This was also the site of a savage battle in 1945. Now native trees have colonized the slopes, and there are terrific views from the summit of numerous pagodas scattered cross the countryside, and of the Irrawaddy river. If the clouds are kind, we will wait for the sunset. Overnight at Mandalay. |
||||||
| Tuesday 05 (December'2006 ) | ||||||
Drive via Ava Bridge and Sagaing to Monywa. The Ava bridge was British built in 1934.Close by is Inwa  (Ava ) , for 400 years from 1364 the capital of the Burmese kingdom. Sagaing was the previous capital, and the beautiful Sagaing hills shelter very many gleaming white stupas; it is now a religious center with numerous monasteries and nunneries. Monywa is located ont he eastern bank of the Chindwin river and 136 km northwest of Mandalay, it is a major trade center for agricultural produce, and for regional crafts such as blankets, baskets and farm tools. Overnight stay at Monywa. |
||||||
| Wednesday 06 (December'2006 ) | ||||||
Crossing the Chindwin river , drive to Alaungdaw Kathapa, first established as a wildlife sanctuary in 1941, and then a National Park in 1984; it extends to 620 square miles. The terrain is hilly, often with steep ravines and has a variety of forest cover. 1) moist upper mixed deciduous. 2) dry upper mixed deciduous. 3) lower mixed deciduous, 4) indaing forest 5) pine forest. PM exploring the forest. Overnight stay at Alaungdaw Kathapa. |
||||||
| Thursday 07 (December'2006 ) | ||||||
Early AM safari, various deer, leopard, elephant, boar, jungle cat and others are claimed to live in this forest and with luck one never knows what one might see; tiger ? Good for birds. Then drive back to Monywa. Overnight Monywa. |
||||||
| Friday 08 (December'2006 ) | ||||||
| Drive back to Mandalay. PM fly to Yangon. Overnight at Yangon. | ||||||
| Saturday 09 (December'2006 ) | ||||||
| Drive 30 minutes to the small Hlawga Wildlife Park for rain forest habitat. PM free for shopping , Scott market etc. Early evening flight to Bangkok. |
||||||
|
Yangon | Kandawgyi Palace ( International ) | ||||
| TaungGu | Amay Eain ( local owner ) | |||||
| Pyinmana | Shwetharaphu ( local Myanmar owner) | |||||
| Mt. Popa | Popa Mountain Resort ( International ) | |||||
| Bagan | Bagan Hotel ( International ) | |||||
| PyinOoLwin ( Maymyo ) | Royal Park View | |||||
| Mandalay | Mandalay Hill Resort ( International ) | |||||
| Monywa | Monywa Hotel ( simple ) | |||||
| Alaungdaw Kathapa | National Park Guest House ( basic ) | |||||
Nota Bene: Depending on size and mix of the party, there could be a shortage of single rooms on RV Pandaw 1947 and you may be asked to share. This situation may also arise in one or two of the remoter locations where, in any case, bathrooms will be communal. |
||||||
Extensions; Myanmar is a richly rewarding country to visit and, as any guidebook will reveal, our itinerary necessarily leaves a great deal more to explore. Should you wish to extend your visit, either form Mandalay, or from Yangon to explore the southern region, this can be arranged for you by our UK based travel agent for this tour. Also any excursions from Bangkok, in Thailand or to neighboring countries. |
||||||
If you wish to join this tour please contact at; SST Tourism Co., Ltd |
||||||
| Home | Services | Packages | Destinations | Travel News | Interests | About SST |
| sales@sstmyanmar.com | ||
| ©2002~2006 | sst@mptmail.net.mm | top of page |
| S.S.T Tourism Co., Ltd. | ||
| Room No.(S-6), North Wing of Aung San Stadium, Mingalar Taung Nyunt Township, Yangon , Myanmar |
||
| Tel/Fax:95-1-393086 |
the summit of an ancient volcanic plug rising tower-like above the surrounding plain. There are various religious buildings on the stop, but most visitors come to see the shrine of the Mahagiri Nats at about half way up the plug. Overnight Mt. Popa .
