EXPLORINGANCIENTAKAKAN

Arakan was an independent kingdom up till the 18th century where an extraordinary mix of Indian and South-East Asian cultures merged. Mrauk U the capital is a temple city that rivals Pagan, Angkor or Borobadur in significance as a center of Buddhist culture. There is much else to explore in the Arakan river system of the Kaladan and Le Myo rivers not to mention the old colonial port city of Akyab now called Sittwe. Currently there are no deluxe hotels or comfortable means of exploring this fascinating region with its own culture, language and cuisine so different from Burma proper. This seven night expedition will depart weekly on a Friday enabling passengers to combine this expedition with our other weekly departures on the Chindwin (Saturdays), Bhamo (Sundays) and the Salween (Mondays). Please note that until the initial recce cruise has been completed this itinerary is entirely provisional and the expedition may not resemble this at all! However, as always with Pandaw there is far more to do and see than contained in a published itinerary.