Capitals of Myanmar
In every country, the capital is its figurehead and plays in an important role of the country such as transportation of cargos. With the time passing, capital of a country is changing but every city which has ever been a capital has its own story. So does Myanmar. In the first Myanmar Emperor, Bagan has been the capital of the country, occupying thousands of pagodas. In the last kingdom of Myanmar, Mandalay was founded as a capital and its remarkable arts and culture are still attractive to visitors. Likewise, Yangon became the capital of the country during the colonial era, supporting the trading of the country. In 2006, the government officially designated Nay Pyi Taw as the capital of Myanmar and has been the capital until now.
Bagan
Bagan is famous for its thousands of extremely ancient pagodas. The former Bagan is fully overwhelmed with millions of Pagods. Nowadays, it has over two thousands of them remained but they are still great and grand. They are very old and has been through thousands of years. In the 9 th century,King Anawyahtar founded Bagan as a great kingdom and he is the first one who tried to spread the Buddhist religion throughout the country. People of the Bagan kingdom are very free-handed for donation and deeply believe in Buddha, wistnessing the thousands of remained Buddhist monuments. Lacquered wares are the marks of Bagan. The architecture and wall painting of Bagan are really impressive. Now, it is the sacred place of Myanmar people, being the World’s Heritage Site by UNESCO.
Mandalay
It was the last royal capital of MyanmarKingdom founded by King Mindon in 1857 before the annexation by the British Empire. The city has been seriously affected by the extensive destruction by the Japanese occupation during Second World War. In 1948, the country gained independence from Britain and the city became the main cultural, commercial and educational hub of Upper Myanmar. The Palace surrounded by the moat remained at the foot of Mandalay hill is the thing that the people are proud of. The contemporary Mandalay is also the economic center of the upper Myanmar and center of Myanmar culture, sitting on the east bank of Ayeyarwaddy River.
Yangon
During the British colonial rule, the political and commercial importance shifted to Yangon and it became the government headquartered city. In the early 20 century, Yangon came to has the nice infrastructures and services that are the same standard with the ones in London. And, two-third of the people in Yangon areIndian and South Asian. After the country gained the independence from British Empire, it became the capital of Myanmar and the colonial names of the streets and public parks are renamed in Burmese. The Indians and Anglo-Burmese are also leaving the country so that local Burmese live in the city later. Under the General Nay Win government, lack of the maintainance and little effort for improvement causes some damages. Now, it is the largest deep sea port city of the country and transportation and trading hub as a door to the world. Moreover, in Southeast Asia, Yangon is the one which occupies the colonial buildings the most. Although the government officially announced Nay Pyi Taw as the capital of the country in 2006, Yangon which is the greatest and most populated city still remains as the major commercial and most important city of the country.
Nay Pyi Taw
Nay Pyi Taw is the modern capital of Myanmar, officially replacing Yangon in 2006. The name of the city means ‘ the abode of kings”. It is an entirely planned city founded by the military government in greenfield site near Pyinmana in 2002. It is filled with headquarters of government ministries and military, hotels and convention centers. To build the city, the military government hired 25 construction companies ( 2002-2012 ). MICE Tourism is also one of its project. It is organized into Residential Zone, Ministry Zone, Military Zone, Deplomatic Zone, Hotel Zone, etc.
