The Chindwin doesn't have the fame of the Irrawaddy, of which it is the main tributary. Boats sailing up it travel far from the busy circuits, between sandbanks and fishing villages, all the way to Monywa, a large trading city in central Myanmar. Boats dock right against the bank, as close as possible to a bustling town where scooters weave between carts; the contrast with the river's torpor strikes you from the very first steps.

Thanboddhay, Exuberance Made Pagoda

A few kilometres from the bank, Thanboddhay Pagoda is unlike anything you know. Built between 1939 and 1952, it stacks terraces painted in bold colours, bristling with hundreds of golden spires, and houses more than 500,000 images of the Buddha: they line the walls, the pillars, the niches, down to the smallest corner. You wander through this kaleidoscope searching in vain for a blank space; the worshippers, for their part, move about naturally between offerings and prayers, indifferent to the visitors' dizziness. Far from the restraint of ancient temples, the site bears witness to a joyful, almost naive popular devotion that leaves no one indifferent.

The Giant of Po Kaung Hill

Not far away, the Bodhi Tataung site — "a thousand Buddhas" — tiers its statues on hills planted with Bodhi trees. At the top stands one of the tallest statues in the world: a standing Buddha 132 metres high, visible for kilometres around, which towers over a reclining Buddha that is itself of gigantic proportions. From the foot of the colossus, the view extends over the entire Chindwin valley, a checkerboard of fields and palm trees that blazes at sunset. The scale of the place defies the usual reference points; you feel tiny, which is no doubt the intended effect. Burmese pilgrims come with their families, picnic basket in hand, and climb the stairs laughing.

The Painted Caves of Hpo Win Daung

On the west bank of the Chindwin, about 25 kilometres from town, the sandstone of a hill has been carved over the centuries into a maze of 947 cave shrines. The oldest murals at Hpo Win Daung date back to the 14th century: processions, jatakas and floral motifs retain pigments of astonishing freshness, watched over by Buddhas carved right into the rock. The visit feels like an exploration, flashlight in hand, from cavity to cavity; closed shoes make it easier to move across sandstone polished by the centuries. The monkeys that haunt the site add a note of the unexpected; it is best to hold on tight to glasses and snacks. The trip from the bank is made by vehicle with driver or on an organized excursion, river crossing included.

A Town of Trade and Markets

Between two shrines, Monywa itself deserves a stop: its markets rank among the busiest in the region, a hub for the valley's produce. Beans, sesame, thanaka sticks, lacquerware and cotton goods change hands amid a good-natured hubbub. Women wear the golden thanaka paste on their cheeks, both sunscreen and adornment, and the vendors gladly explain how it is prepared, stone grinder at the ready. Few foreigners linger in these aisles, which guarantees spontaneous exchanges and prices without any folklore.

Heading back down to the boat, the great golden Buddha catches the sun one last time above the plain. The Chindwin resumes its lazy course, and travellers take away images few people possess: a kaleidoscope pagoda, a giant on its hill, painted walls in the half-light. Secondary rivers sometimes make for the main memories.