I thought this might happen at some point on this trip, but it’s happening sooner than I expected. I already have way more pictures that I’d like to share than I can possibly post from here. Trying to edit my images down to a few favorites is not easy. I’m averaging 400 or so shots per day – and that’s just because I’m lazy. This place is a photographer’s paradise. I could shoot ten times as many images if I had the energy, and that’s no exaggeration. The sights come at you rapid fire. There is something to see in every square inch of this amazing place.

We took a break during our four hour drive over some of the worst roads imaginable and stopped briefly in Bago to visit the bustling market. I wish we could have stayed longer. The sights and smells were equally overpowering.

Later, it looked like we were in for disappointment on the way up the extremely steep hill to the Golden Rock. (More about the climb in a later post.) The weather turned very foggy, and for a while it looked like we might not even be able to see the rock, much less produce a decent photo of it. However, our fortune changed and just before sunset, the skies opened up to reveal one of the most spectacular sites we have ever seen. (Respect to Mark Downey for setting the gold standard for this shot.)

Continuing our streak of good luck, sunrise the next morning from our room at the Mountain Top Motel was the most beautiful either of us had ever seen.