Mandalay - U Bein Bridge

Our final visit on our first day in Mandalay was, in my opinion the most picturesque visit, which was to the U Bein Bridge at Amapapura. At 1300 yards long, it is the world's longest teak footbridge.

Only a few of the 1060 original teak poles have been replaced, but in my opinion it could do with having a few more of the planks on the top changed.


It does feel a little bit rickety in places, and with the number of people on it at this time of day, it wouldn't be all that difficult to end up with someone in the water; thankfully no-one took an unexpected swim today.


In fact at the time of year we were here, the water was pretty low, but in the wet season the water can be literally only just below the walkway, so then a quick dip of the toes would be quite easy. For the sake of the view, I was glad we were here in the dry season.

The reason so many people were here now, was the approaching sunset. This bridge looks stunning against the backdrop of the setting sun. Sadly for me, this means another little boat. We walked halfway across the bridge, to a little island in the middle, and got into little boats to go out on to the lake and wait for the sun to go down.


On this occasion though, having to overcome my dislike of wobbly boats was well worth it. The boatmen here are well practised at this, and they know how to give you the best views.

I had already spotted a great tree that I knew would look good, and sure enough, he paddled straight there. He also made sure to take us under the bridge, going slowly through the teak uprights, before settling into a neat row of boats lined up to watch nature's show.


There isn't much else to say about this really; I didn't much worry about the history of the bridge, I just thought it looked stunning. The only reason it gets a separate posting is that I couldn't bear to only post one photo.