U Bein Bridge

U Bein crosses Taungthaman Lake on more than a thousand teak posts, running about 1.2 kilometres from Amarapura to the far shore, and it has been the local route to work and to market since the mid-nineteenth century. The timbers were reused from the old palace at Inwa when the capital moved. It is still a working bridge: monks, cyclists, traders and schoolchildren cross it all day, and the postcard silhouette at sunset is a genuine crowd rather than a staged one.

What you actually see

• The span - over a kilometre of teak decking on more than a thousand posts.
• The crossings - monks, traders and commuters using it as an ordinary route all day.
• The lake - shallow water that dries to farmland in the hot season and floods in the monsoon.
• The boats - rowing boats hired to sit under the bridge for the sunset silhouette.

When to go

November to February for the weather. Sunrise is far quieter than sunset and the light is as good. The lake is full from roughly August to December and largely dry by March, when you can walk under the bridge instead of boating.

Honest expectations

Sunset is genuinely crowded, with boats packed in below and a queue of photographers on the bank. Sections of the decking have been replaced in concrete, which disappoints purists. There are no handrails for much of the length and the drop is real.

Nearby

Inwa and Sagaing are both a short drive further south, and Mandalay is twenty minutes north.