"This is Burma, and it will be quite unlike any land you know." Rudyard Kipling
And, it is so true! But, he said that in the 1890's. And a lot has changed since then. But, there still are reminders of Burma's colonial past. In Yangon, we stayed in a grand hotel which opened in 1901. (Yes, it has been refurbished and renovated, but it still retains most of its colonial charm.)
As most of you know, I hate being "grouped". But, for my first trip to Myanmar, which is still developing its tourism infrastructure, I decided that it would be a good idea. And, the ten day trip that I chose covered all that I thought, I should see on my first trip. It was exhausting! But, I did get up early when it was important. Yes, I was up at 5:00 a.m. for a magical ballon trip over the temples and stupas at Bagan. If you have ever seen the film "Samsara", it opens with a scene over same. It was magical and enchanting!
We (remember I am now "grouped" - only 16) flew from Bangkok to Yangon. Then, immediately on to Heho which is the nearest airport to to Inle Lake.
These are examples of boarding notices. So you will get and idea of what I mean when I say that the tourism infrastructure still needs to be more developed.
It was an hour and a half by by bus on winding roads uphill. Inle Lake is 2900 feet (880 metres) above sea level. Lovely - after the heat and pollution of Bangkok! After disembarking from our bus we were transferred to "long tail boats" in groups of four. It was about 45 minutes to our hotel. First we traveled through a canal then into Inle Lake itself. (A "long tail" boat is named that because it has the motor inside the stern of the boat and a long shaft with a propeller that sits just below the surface of the water.) And, why? The water isn't that deep and there are a lot of weeds and water hyacinths that will get tangled up in the propeller. By the way, the engines are large and the boats can travel very fast!
These are examples of boarding notices. So you will get and idea of what I mean when I say that the tourism infrastructure still needs to be more developed.
It was an hour and a half by by bus on winding roads uphill. Inle Lake is 2900 feet (880 metres) above sea level. Lovely - after the heat and pollution of Bangkok! After disembarking from our bus we were transferred to "long tail boats" in groups of four. It was about 45 minutes to our hotel. First we traveled through a canal then into Inle Lake itself. (A "long tail" boat is named that because it has the motor inside the stern of the boat and a long shaft with a propeller that sits just below the surface of the water.) And, why? The water isn't that deep and there are a lot of weeds and water hyacinths that will get tangled up in the propeller. By the way, the engines are large and the boats can travel very fast!
Water hyacinths are not related to or anything like the ones that we see in our spring gardens. They are a very weedy plant that spreads rapidly and can be either viewed as good or bad. Some people use them to farm on the lake. They "corral" them in patches close to the shore with bamboo stakes and cover them in weeds that are dredged up from the lake bottom. The weeds compost and make very good soil. And, voila - a floating garden. They grow all sorts of vegetables in these patches.I took this pic as we were speeding along a a canal towards Lake Inle and our ultimate destination-our hotel and a long hot shower!
The next day we boarded our boats and traveled for about 45 minutes down the lake to visit a "five day market" thus called because it is held every five days.
One of our boatmen waiting for us to board.
The boats are pretty basic - as you can see. The "tourist' boats have been modified by the placement of pretty basic rustic chairs. The local people just sit on the bottom of the boat. We also have the luxury of blankets. It was a little chilly on the lake in the early morning.
As we sped along, our boatman would slow down to allow us to take photos.
I mentioned the floating gardens above. Here are a few pics of men dredging up the weeds. They also spread them on the fields inland to create a natural mulch.
The next day we boarded our boats and traveled for about 45 minutes down the lake to visit a "five day market" thus called because it is held every five days.
One of our boatmen waiting for us to board.
The boats are pretty basic - as you can see. The "tourist' boats have been modified by the placement of pretty basic rustic chairs. The local people just sit on the bottom of the boat. We also have the luxury of blankets. It was a little chilly on the lake in the early morning.
As we sped along, our boatman would slow down to allow us to take photos.
I mentioned the floating gardens above. Here are a few pics of men dredging up the weeds. They also spread them on the fields inland to create a natural mulch.
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| Dredging |
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| Looks very yucky |
They fish on Inle Lake using two methods. One is by casting a net and the other is by using the net pictured above. The fisherman first uses his oar to stir up the water so that the fish rise to the surface. (Remember, the lake is quite shallow.) Then, he lowers the large opening of the net over the fish to trap them. Next, he takes the pointed end of his oar and stabs the fish and brings them out and into his boat. Now, he has dinner for his family and a few extra to sell!
We arrive at the market. As you can see the tourists have arrived! We have to wait to get a landing spot.
The market resembles organized chaos.
Here are just some of the snack vendors.
I saw a similar snack being prepared in the floating market west of Bangkok. It looked and smelled yummy - batter with green onions and other herbs fried in their own little ovals. But, I resisted!
There were also lots of battered deep fried snacks. But no, I don't want to be sick!
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| No pe-packaging here! |
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| Fruit anyone? |
These are women from the "Shan" tribe living in the hills that surround Inle Lake. They live in the hills that surround the lake. The come down from their villages by foot or ox cart and then take a boat to the market. And, that is with their produce also. Can you imagine such an arduous journey every five days?
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| Cheroot Break |
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| Don't forget that you may need some new clothes! |
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| And, if you bought too much - a new basket! |
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| Caught - napping on the job! |
All the deep fried food looked yummy! My grandma talked about taking days to walk to the nearest town to buy things from her rural village. We should not take our lives in N. America for granted!
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