Never Give Up for Golden Rock, Myanmar

5 am….Agga Youth Hotel staff whispers woke me up in dormitory …. He worried if 11 other tourists woke up … hihihi.

Prepared for 15 minutes without bathing finally I departed to Aung Mingalar bus terminal in the north by taxi. The excellence of Myanmar public transportation (i.e buses and taxis) are using gas fuel. So you will rarely find air pollution on their streets.

Taxi covered a trip about 24 km in 55 minutes. Because it was still early morning and the first bus would depart on 7:30 am, I finally decided to had a breakfast with omelet fried rice for 1,000 Kyat in terminal with monks, drivers and conductors …. “So I like Burmese now”.

Gbr 1

Bus, thanaka and cheap breakfast

Waiting for 30 minutes inside bus before departing, my attention was on bus conductor, his cheek with thanaka, pacing, chewed betel, occasionally spitting it into a covered small box above dashboard. Looks like he cares about hygiene than other.

Bus departed on time. Instantly left downtown and began to ride through countryside. Bus often passed to farmer’s tractor on street.

At 10:10 bus stopped for toilet break in a restaurant. Stopped for 15 minutes and then resumed the trip.

Gbr 2

Intercity bus and restaurant along with their local artists.

On the way, local passengers one by one began to descended, because I didn’t know where I was, finally I asked to bus conductor. To simplify communicated to him, I showed Golden Rock picture in my phone ….. yesss, he immediately gave me a thumb up as OK sign and he understood what I asked to dropped me there.

11:25 am I was awakened by the conductor …. “arrived,” she said in Myanmar language while pointing to trucks that were carrying people. He told me to rode it… ..I know that Golden Rock was on a hilltop.

Kinpun Station …. the name of the last bus terminal in this trip. Okay, I started to bought a truck ticket to truck conductor who was shouting eagerly to grabbed passengers.

“OK just relax”, I thought … Just got in the truck and I would reach the Golden Rock……

 

Gbr 3

Rode a truck and paid 3,000 Kyats 

After truck departed for 10 minutes, all was changed …. tense face, paused mouth, often breathe deeply …. and actually truck ran across through road without barrier on both sides …. I was surrender and many prayed. 

My panic grew as I knew that one of truck tires was almost bald. I saw it when truck stopped to rest in midway. “for reached hilltop was needed time to rest…so it was long way….Then, how long must I pass this tension?” …. And I must went back to Kinpun Station next afternoon on similar trip….very tense day for me

Honestly….When I climbed to hilltop, I said in my mind,  I shouldn’t need to went there if I knew that the trip was very horrible.

After 45 minutes tension, finally I arrived. Fresh air about 16 celsius degree made me relax and forgetting the tension.

After buying an entrance ticket for 6,000 Kyat and passing a metal detector at entrance gate, I still had to walked through stairs to reached Golden Rock.

Gbr 4

Some children who didn’t strongly walk could ride carrying services

Beautiful Golden Rock ….. a golden-yellow stone that had been in balance for 2,500 years and didn’t fall when it really lie on cliff rim. According the local tale, Buddha hair had blocked this stone so it didn’t fall.

Scientifically I don’t know the theory ….?

Gbr 5

Top Left: Entrance gate into Golden Rock courtyard
Top right: Golden Rock with Kyaiktiyo pagoda above it
Bottom right and bottom left: Golden Rock courtyard

Gbr 6

After looking around and capturing some pictures finally I decided to went back to downhill because I had to catched bus towards Yangon. The last bus was on 4:30 pm according information from a bus conductor last morning.

Holding my breath again while rode back a truck to downhill. In midway of trip, my eyes fixed on a project board that said that it was being built a cable car project to Golden Rock …. actually my trip to Myanmar was on 2015, and based on some information that cable car had been operated since December 2017.

So who wants to go there and ride the Cable Car?
Sharing for your experience if you have ridden it!

Jangan Menyerah menuju Golden Rock, Myanmar

Tepat jam 5 pagi staff Agga Youth Hotel bisik-bisik membangunkanku di dormitory….khawatir 11 turis lain ikut terbangun…hihihi.

Beberes 15 menit tanpa mandi akhirnya Saya bertolak menggunakan taxi menuju terminal Aung Mingalar di utara. Kehebatan transportasi umum (bus dan taxi) Myanmar adalah penggunaan bahan bakar gas. Sehingga jarang terlihat asap hitam di jalanan kota Yangon.

Taxi menempuh jarak 24 Km dalam 55 menit. Karena masih pagi sekali dan bus akan berangkat jam 07:30 akhirnya Saya putuskan untuk sarapan nasi goreng plus telur dadar seharga 1.000 Kyat (Rp. 10.000) di sekitaran terminal bersama para biksu, sopir dan para kondektur…..”mirip sudah Gw sama orang Myanmar”.

Gbr 1

Bus, Thanaka dan Sarapan murah

Menunggu 30 menit di dalam bus sebelum berangkat, perhatianku tertuju pada si kondektur, pipi ber-thanaka, mondar-mandir, mulut menyirih, sesekali meludahkan sirihnya ke sebuah kotak kecil tertutup di atas dashboard. Sepertinya doi peduli kebersihan daripada penyirih lain yang meludah sembarangan.

Bus berangkat tepat waktu. Dalam sekejap meninggalkan kota Yangon dan mulai memasuki jalanan pedesaan. Sering berpapasan dengan traktor mesin para petani di jalanan.

Jam 10:10 bus beristirahat di sebuah rumah makan untuk toilet break. Berhenti selama 15 menit dan kembali melanjutkan perjalanan .

Gbr 2

Intercity Bus dan rumah makan beserta artis lokalnya.

Di tengah perjalanan satu demi satu penumpang lokal mulai turun, karena Saya tidak tahu berada di daerah mana, akhirnya bertanyalah ke kondektur. Untuk memudahkan bahasa isyarat, kutunjukkan saja foto Golden Rock di HP ku….yessss, doi langsung mengacungkan jempol tanda OK dan mengerti Saya minta diturunkan disana.

Jam 11:25 Saya dibangunkan kondektur…..”udah sampai “, katanya berbahasa Myanmar sambil nunjuk-nunjuk ke sebuah truk yang mengangkut orang. Faham, aku disuruh naik truk itu…..yang kutahu memang Golden Rock itu diatas bukit.

Kinpun Station….nama terminal akhir bus yang kunaiki. Okay mulailah beli tiket truk ke kondektur yang teriak-teriak penuh semangat mencari penumpang.

“OK santai aja”, batinku….naik aja tar juga nyampai……..

Gbr 3

Menumpang truk dengan tarif 3.000 Kyat (Rp. 30.000)

10 menit truk berjalan , semua berubah….muka tegang, mulut terdiam, sering bernafas dalam-dalam….ternyata truk berlari membelah jurang diatas jalan beton tanpa pagar besi penghalang di kedua sisi….Pasrah dan banyak berdzikir (hanya saja aku tak berani berdzikir keras-keras karena saat itu sedang ada pertengkaran kaum muslim dengan kaum Buddhis di salah satu daerah Myanmar).

Kepanikan bertambah ketika Saya tahu salah satu ban truk terlihat hampir gundul. Saya melihatnya saat truk berhenti untuk beristirahat di pertengahan jalan. “Naik ke atas aja perlu istirahat, mau seberapa lama aku harus melewati ketegangan ini”….Belum lagi sore nanti saat turun….naik truk lagi…..Hadeuhhh.

Jujur saat naik ke atas, sempat ngebatin, harusnya ga perlu ke tempat ini andai tahu kondisi menuju sana mengerikan.

Setelah menempuh ketegangan selama 45 menit sampai juga diatas. Sejuk dan dingin seperti Puncak-Bogor. Sesaat terlupa ketegangan itu.

Membeli tiket masuk seharga 6.000 Kyat (Rp. 60.000) dan melewati metal detector di gerbang masuk, ternyata Saya masih harus berjalan lagi menelusuri beberapa anak tangga untuk mencapai pelataran Golden Rock.

Gbr 4Beberapa anak-anak yang tak kuat berjalan bisa naik jasa gendong anak

Ya bolehlah Golden Rock…..sebuah batu kuning emas yang telah mengalami keseimbangan selama 2.500 tahun dan tidak terjatuh ketika benar-benar terletak di bibir jurang. Konon ada rambut Buddha yang mengganjal batu ini sehingga tidak terjatuh.

Secara ilmiah Saya pun tak tahu teorinya bagaimana…..?
Gbr 5

Kiri atas: Gerbang masuk ke pelataran Golden Rock

Kanan atas : Golden Rock beserta Kyaiktiyo Pagoda diatasnya

Kanan bawah dan kiri bawah : Pelataran Utama Golden Rock

Gbr 6

Setelah melihat sekeliling dan mengambil beberapa foto akhirnya Saya putuskan untuk turun karena harus mengejar jadwal bus kembali ke Yangon. Bus terakhir jam 16:30 kata kondektur bus pagi tadi.

Menahan nafas kembali menggunakan truk menuju ke bawah bukit. Ditengah perjalanan mataku tertuju pada sebuah papan proyek yang mengatakan bahwa sedang dibangun proyek cable car menuju ke Golden Rock….Ya, perjalanan Saya kesana adalah tahun 2015, dan berdasar informasi cable car itu sudah beroperasi pada Desember 2017.

Jadi siapa yang mau kesana dan naik si Cable Car?

Bagi-bagi pengalaman ya gaes kalau sudah naik !