275RAKHAING STATESIGHTSWESTERN MYANMARSIGHTSWESTERN MYANMARSITTWE (AKYAB) 1 Sights
Housed in a former British jail in the centre
of town, the Thandwe market (h6am-4pm)
is where a handful of daytripping guests
from beach resorts go in search of a ‘real
deal’ market. Vendors sell medicinal herbs,
clothes, textiles, some souvenirs, hardware
and free-market consumer goods. Across the
street on the north side is the Suni Mosque,
Thandwe’s largest of fi ve.
Three golden stupas stand on hilltops at
four points around Thandwe. None are spec-
tacular in themselves (and all the names
rhyme with each other), but each off ers
excellent viewpoints of the town’s tin roofs,
peeking out of a sea of palms and hills.
The tallest, Nandaw Paya, a mile west of
the market, was supposedly erected in AD
761 by King Minbra to enshrine a piece of a
rib of the Buddha. The long shrine facing the
stupa to the south houses some nice wood-
carving reliefs of Buddha’s life.
Just east of town, right across a small
river about half a mile from the market, the
Sandaw Paya was supposedly built in AD
784 by Rakhaing King Minyokin to house
a Buddha hair, and was rebuilt by the Bur-
mese in 1876.
Across the river (north past the bus station
and east on a stone road about 1.3 miles from
the market), the Andaw Paya is the lowest
stupa but has revealing glimpses of the river’s
fork from the hills east. It claims to house a
Buddha molar relic and dates from AD 763.
8 Getting There & Away
Pick-up trucks from Ngapali run every 30 min-
utes (K500; one hour). Pick-ups to Taunggok
(K2500; four or fi ve hours) run several times
daily from a small station a couple of hundred
yards north of the bus station (across the river).
Sittwe (Akyab)
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Rakhaing’s capital Sittwe (pronounced ‘Sit-
TWAY’ by Burmese, ‘Sigh-TWAY’ by Ra-
khaing) may look scrappy but it sits in an
incredible spot – where the wide, tidal Ka-
ladan River kisses the big fat Bay of Bengal.
Most foreign travellers skedaddle to Mrauk
U as soon as possible. Those willing to linger
here will fi nd a lot to like.
There’s good sunset viewing at dusk, plus
a fi sh and fresh produce market that’s one
of Myanmar’s more fascinating. You’re also
likely to be swarmed by chatty monks at
one of the Buddhist museums in town. The
mix of locals – Rakhaing, Muslims, Indian
Hindus, Burmese – is also more pronounced
here than in other major Myanmar cities. History
Prior to the Burmese invasion of the Mrauk
U kingdom in 1784 there was little more
than a village here. Fifty years later, Sittwe’s
economy underwent a boom when British
forces took over during the fi rst Anglo–Bur-
mese War. The British moved the state capi-
tal here from Mrauk U and named the place
Akyab after the local pagoda, Ahkyaib-daw.
Incoming wealth from cargo trade with
Calcutta fuelled the construction of some
fi ne colonial mansions, but much of the
grace was lost under heavy WWII fi ghting
between the British and Japanese forces.
Today, the town’s economy is set to benefi t
from the construction of a new harbour – a
joint venture between Myanmar and India –
next to the municipal market and a rail link
to Ann-Minbu which will go via Mrauk U. 1 Sights
Most of Sittwe’s action runs along the Main
Rd, which parallels the Kaladan River. The
airport is about 1.5 miles southwest of the cen-
tre; the main boat jetty is about 2 miles north.Central Market MARKET
(Strand Rd; h6am-6pm) Focussed on the 1956
municipal market building, there’s lots go-
ing on here from dawn up to noon and
beyond – it’s well worth popping by before
your boat or plane leaves. Head straight past
longyi, fi shing net and vegetable stands to
the fi sh and meat area, where stingrays and
gutted eels and drying sharks make quite a
scene. In the bay, small boats jostle for space
to unload their catch.
A few blocks north is the Rice Market,
with tiny lanes between the water and
Strand Rd fi lled with simple wood homes,
where traders hawk brown and sticky rice –
some bound for Bangladesh.View Point BEACH
(Strand Rd) The riverside Strand Rd leads
about 1 mile south to a smashing location
called the View Point where you can sip on a
beer or fresh coconut as the sun sets over the
Bay of Bengal. Just west, in front of a closed
naval base, is a broad, grey-brown sand
beach that has a tricky undertow, where a
few swimmers lose their lives each year.