We spent the following morning in Bagan as well before setting off on our river cruise. We visited Shwezigon Pagoda, which is about the only temple still in use in Bagan. It's one of the oldest, built around 1000 AD, and on the outskirts of the old city limits. It was built to house a copy of the Buddha's tooth, made from the original in Sri Lanka. It's quite an elaborate place for a knockoff relic.



It's probably the most elaborate temple outside of Yangon in terms of jewels, gold etc ornamentation. One odd feature is a small reflecting pool nearby, which was built to allow the kings to look at the reflection of the jewel encrusted tip of the stupa. This was done because he couldn't look directly up at the tip lest his crown fall off, which would be quite a calamity.