Mandalay Hill and Sutaungpyei Pagoda With Merit Ceremony - Myanmar 2023

Mandalay Hill မန္တလေးတောင် is a 240 metres (790 ft) hill that is located to the northeast of the city centre of Mandalay in Myanmar. The city took its name from the hill. Mandalay Hill is known for its abundance of pagodas and monasteries, and has been a major pilgrimage site for Burmese Buddhists for nearly two centuries. At the top of the hill is the Sutaungpyei (literally wish-fulfilling) Pagoda. A panoramic view of Mandalay from the top of Mandalay Hill alone makes it worthwhile to attempt a climb up its stairways.

A switchback mountain road leads jeeps half way up, after which an escalator completes the journey to the top. Alternatively, visitors can climb a stairway (bare feet required) all the way from the base or you can ride in the back of a truck to the elevator for a small fee. It’s a very popular place for people to come and see the sunset.

Atop Mandalay Hill, the Sutaungpyei Pagoda shines and provides a lofty platform for looking around the area. The platform is neatly finished in ceramic tiles, and the walls are clad in geometric patterns of ceramics and jewels that dazzle the eyes.

March 1945, the British Fourteenth Army's Indian 19th Infantry Division, was closing in on the Japanese in Mandalay where resistance was based mainly at Mandalay Hill with its pagodas and temples honeycombed for machine guns, well supplied and heavily garrisoned. A Gurkha battalion stormed up the hill engaging in fierce hand to hand fighting all day and night on the 9th of March, and they were joined the next day by two companies of a British battalion.

The Japanese stood firm and the last defenders had to be blown out from the cellars by rolling down petrol drums and igniting them with tracer bullets. It was not until the 11th of March that the hill fell into British hands.

The hill and Pagoda are well worth a visit if you are in Mandalay. The merit ceremony is something that Buddhists will take part in when they make the pilgrimage to the hilltop pagoda.

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