StickyMangoRice

Anyone who visits Mandalay will surely notice the customised Jeeps driving everywhere. They’re quirky, they’re colourful, they’re customised, and they give the Mandalay a great sense of character.

But it seems a bit out of place! Usually cars in South-East Asian cities are Japanese brands, not American army vehicles. And what’s even more interesting is that Mandalay is the only city in the country with a Jeep culture.

So, what is the origin of these awesome Jeeps?

A quick look at the city of Mandalay

Mandalay is a smoggy, congested city. The city was thoroughly bombed during WW2, and as a result, it’s a relatively new city, rebuilt from the ground up. There are some wonderful sights; the Mandalay Palace with its gigantic moat, Mahamuni Paya, and stunning gold-leafed buddha statues, as well as a bustling and colourful jade market.

But for the most part, Mandalay is a city of broken up asphalt streets, choked highways, food vendors hawking bowls of rice on the side of the road, construction sites, weaving motorbikes and honking cars. There are lots of opportunities to park on the broken sidewalks, and that’s where we see most of our Jeeps.

The Jeeps are locally built, not American military surplus

The Jeeps are locally built, and are not actually the American brand of Jeep (it’s just easier to call them a Jeep!). Nor are they, as I initially suspected, a relic from the second world war or some ex-military sell-off.

They were, however, inspired by those rough-and-tumble vehicles that proved so robust during the war years.

The car manufacturer that produced these cars in Mandalay closed shop in 2011, after a mere 12 years in business. The reason for going out of business? The cars were just too expensive. A brand new Myanmar Jeep could cost K15 million, whilst an imported Jeep-brand was actually cheaper, costing K10 million. They were expensive, and nobody bought them.

But then, as time went on, the cars got older, and more people could afford second hand Mandalay Jeeps.

Thingyan water festival

Why have open-topped Jeeps remained so popular? Let’s look at the Thingyan water festival.

The Thingyan water festival is a Buddhist festival celebrated in April, over 4 to 5 days, with the final day culminating in New Year.

The main feature of the festival is water throwing. When the signal is given on day 2, a cannon is fired, and the water throwing begins. There are usually ceremonial sprinklings of water.

For most people, a giant water fight erupts; people use water pistols to soak friends, family, even monks. And powerful water pipes are aimed at drenching people in jeeps and trucks.

And so, the open-topped Mandalay jeep is perfect for enjoying the water games on a hot day!

But, why are they in Mandalay specifically?

Mandalay Jeeps

What it means is the ones left behind are becoming collector’s items. They come in all different colours, each one splattered with stickers and decals, making each one a unique find. A funny little facet of an already curious place.

In June/July 2012, I had the privilege to explore Myanmar, a country whose doors to tourism were just beginning to creak open, allowing visitors to take a peek at some of the treasures inside. Myanmar blew me away as one of the most special countries i’d ever visited – I wrote about the country’s culture and spirit here.