More from Myanmar

We left Inle lake by the same route we arrived only in reverse.  (See previous blog.) This time it was back to the Heho Airport to fly to Manadalay. Originally, we were to board our river boat at Mandalay but the river level had dropped significantly. We had lunch and a quick tour of Mandalay before heading off to meet our boat a little further downriver.

Mandalay (along with the rest of Myanmar has a very sad, turbulent history). Many wars and invasions. I read a lot about Myanmar before I left.  (The "River of Lost Footsteps" is a fascinating book!) King Mindon was driven from his palace by the British in 1885.  The king's palace and surrounding compound which was very large was looted by the British. The city itself suffered heavy damage during WWII while it was occupied by the Japanese. The Japanese used the palace citadel as a supply depot which was bombed by the Allied forces. The bombing destroyed most of the city. A replica of the palace and the compound was built during the 1990's. For me, it's not the same thing.

I wandered around and tried to get some interesting pics.  These sweet girls were selling flowers for offerings outside the temple.

The girls have applied "Thanaka paste" to their faces in a decorative pattern. This paste is made by grinding the bark, wood or roots of the Thanaka tree and mixing it with water. It provides protection from the sun and is also believed to be a natural face cream. Most women apply it in circles or squares to their cheeks and often a streak down the centre of their nose. (No, I didn't buy any!) I did see a demonstation of the grinding on the boat and tried a little on my hand. It was slightly creamy and smells faintly of sandalwood.

So, while others were in the temple, I explored around and under it. I was beginning to get temple overload and knew there would be many more in the days ahead. And, I didn't feel like taking my shoes and socks off again. Yes, I said socks! Unlike, Thailand you have to take your socks off also. Yes, your feet get filthy but our tour guide always had tons of thick heavy duty "wipes".

For my friend "S aka k" - here's the proof!

More Shoes

This monk wasn't taking any chances. He was hanging on to his shoes. I've never had any problems. My shoes have always been there when I exited the temple. It looks as though he has a very tight grip on them.

For nervous tourists, there are "shoe minder's" who for a small amount will watch a pile of shoes.

As I said, I wandered around and under the temple.

Underneath, I found a cache of what looked like wooden doors. They were very interesting with intricate carved details.

Door

Detail

Do you think these were actually made in Burma?? I think China ...

Flowers for offerings

And, more.

Another girl blowing on a lotus to open the petals.

The VERY BEST GUIDE in all of Myanmar - "Kyaw Thu"!!

He wears traditional Bumese clothing - as do most of the population.

A longyi is a tubular piece which is folded and tucked at the waist. They wear coton longyi for everyday and silk ones for special occasions such as weddings. Women wear the same but fold and tuck it in a different way at the waist. It has its origins in India.

The shirt and jacket have a Chinese influence. Note the Mandarin collar on both and the "frog" closures on the jacket.

Kyaw was impeccably dressed! A different longyi everyday and a lovely fresh white shirt everyday. His jacket changed also. (I want to have the person who does his laundry do mine!!) In conversation, I discovered that he has all these clothes tailored to order!

Another pic of the two of us will be included in a later post that was taken at our "farewell lunch".

Local transport v.s. tourist transport!

Three "groupies" - via zoom lens. I was encouraged to include this by, well read on...

I have saved the best for last! 

AND, please note - this last part was vetted and approved in advance by "J".

As you all know, I hate being “grouped”!

However, I have a better one. How about “hating being grouped” and traveling with your mother who you really don’t like at all! In fact, never, ever liked!  Wait it gets better! And, having all this sprung on you, just a week in advance, when another relative backed out at the very last moment. It was the trip from hell!

Well, I met this person in the living flesh. She was actually part of the group. She is younger than me, lots of fun and we got along very well. And, I will see her again as she lives not that far from me in Cabbagetown.

She paid me the highest compliment when she said that I had actually “saved” her. I think I may have saved her mother also, as “J.” would have probably killed her before the end of the trip!

Needless to say, mother didn’t like me too much as we were always taking off with our computers to find a the nearest WiFi hot spot in our hotel to commune with the outside world and look at our latest photos. And, much to our delight that same spot was usually the bar or very near to it. Another reason why we got along so well!

Next blog will complete my visit to Myanmar. 

Myanmar Musings

"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!

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.

Dredging

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!

No pe-packaging here!

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?

Cheroot Break

Don't forget that you may need some new clothes!

And, if you bought too much - a new basket!

 Caught - napping on the job!

Hello from S/E Asia

Well, after much complaining and whining I have been able to finally import photos into my blog.

So, I must start from the beginning. Myanmar was a major concern since their currency is not available outside of the country. But, it gets weirder ...  They deal in cash only (with the exception of a few hotels in Yangon) who accept credit cards. Fortunately, I was part of a tour and most everything was pre-paid. But, you still need cash for tips, shopping and some meals/beverages that were not included. And, since I was staying on for a few days after the "organized tour" ended, I needed cash for tour guides, tips etc. Fortunately, I had researched thoroughly.

But, it doesn't end there. In Myanmar, they only accept pristine US bills - i.e. brand new. They don't even want bills that have been folded. I have a new use for those "Glad Snack" bags.(They are just the size of our Canadian and in this case US $'s.)

200 brand new ones

This will change very soon as the country is developing their tourism industry at a very rapid pace.  

So, TD was very accommodating and ordered stacks of bills in various denominations. They were freshly minted and even in order by serial number! As you all know I am a proud Canadian, but having a pile of one's (or singles for my American friends) makes it very easy for tips in any country in S/E Asia.

I flew overnight from Toronto to Heathrow on A/C in my little pod in business class.  But, the best was yet to come. When, I was arranging these flights with Aeroplan, the agent said for a few extra points, you can fly on Thai Airways in First Class. Count me in! London to Bangkok in "First" with only eight seats. And, only five of the seats were occupied.

NOW PLEASE REMEMBER - I WAS USING POINTS!! I could never, ever afford a First Class ticket!

When I boarded, I knew that my vacation had really begun! I was offered champagne before take off. Get this - Dom Perignon Vintage 2003! And, I was offered as much as I wanted.

There was more food than you can imagine. I tried to surreptitiously take a few pics with my i-phone. They aren't great but it will give you and idea. I had joked that I was going to eat my way from Heathrow to Bangkok and could have done so. I didn't eat it all but asked for tiny portions. Everything was served from a seat level trolley that was rolled down the aisle.  There were six courses in the "First Serving" as they called it. I slept through the "Second" and nibbled at some of the "Third". Can you imagine three meals in an eleven and a half hour flight?

OH YUM! - Champagne

Heaps of caviar

I tried to get the flight attendant to just give me a tiny portion of caviar but she kept heaping it on. And, it continued with two more appetizers. I thought it was a choice of one of the three. Oh no, they served all three. The two others were pre-plated - a smoked salmon appetizer and another - prosciutto with melon. The presentation could rival any 5 star restaurant and remember - this is all at 35,000 feet! And, that was the first course. There were five more to come!

I landed in Bangkok shortly after 6:00 a.m. local time. Thai Airways has amazing access beyond all security points. Suffice to say it was a "Smooth as Silk" - one of their "tag lines". I was even taken though the Diplomatic passport control. Go figure. OK - so that's the end of my commercial for Thai Airways - First Class.

As soon as I exited the highly air conditioned airport, I was hit with the wall of heat and humidity. And once again, was reminded that I was on vacation and back in S/E Asia. It almost felt like being back home. I now have been through the Bangkok airport six times. A warning - it is HUGE!  Don't stop and shop. Get to your gate!

As most of you know, I was in Bangkok last year and saw most of the important temples, sites, etc. So this time, I spent some time hanging out, shopping and seeing some things that I didn't last year. I didn't actually make friends with this guy. He was hanging out in the hotel gardens.  My pic doesn't really show the real colour of his bright blue forked tongue.

As usual, none of you will believe this, but the next morning I was up for a 7:00 a.m. pick up by my guide. I wanted to see a floating market that is 110 km west of Bangkok.  

It was a very interesting trip. We passed through an area where there are acres upon acres of "salt farms". They are large tracts  of land subdivided into manageable acreages where the water is brought via a canal to be spread in a thin layer which will
evaporate.


Once evaporated, it is literally raked up - well actually with a rake that has a flat blade. Then, they rake/shove it into heaps that look just like piles of snow. As we drove further on, there were many roadside stands selling the finished product in various grades - very coarse to very fine.  And, packages in all sizes and shapes.

Doesn't it look like ice and snow??

Damn, this is hard work!  Wish those tourists would pitch in & help!

Lots of salt!!

Then we continued on to Damnoen Saduak. First we got into a "long tail boat". (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.). It lots of fun. Our boatman drove us for nearly 45 minutes through a maze of canals. I can't imagine how they find their way - but they do. All along the canals there were houses. My guide told me that it was primarily Chinese people who lived in on these canals. Their houses were right on the bank and they had land behind where they farmed. The produce would be sold at the floating market. Others would have floating food stalls.

A monk paddling from to house to house along the canal to get his daily offerings.

Fruit for sale 

Soup ingredients and very cool pot with three sections

The tourists would point at the ingredients and the woman would add them to the part of the the pot where her spoon is. I kept thinking how sick they might be the next day.  Mind you, it did smell good! I wasn't interested in risking it! Look at the canal water. I wondered if it was a soup ingredient - adding just a little "je ne sais quoi"... ?!

We returned to Bangkok.  That evening, I dined in a wonderful Thai restaurant that is part of the hotel but a separate charming Thai styled building that you can see it in the top right corner of this pic.

I had a wonderful ten course Thai tasting menu with wine pairings. It was delicious! And, I didn't get sick! But, something bit me around my ankles. (The bites got nasty and by the time I got to the "M.V. Road to Mandalay", they were looking very bad despite the anti-biotic cream with cortisone and covered in bandaids. My ankles were quite swollen and painful. Fortunately, there was a resident doctor on board. He said he thought they were spider bites and prescribed antibiotics which worked like a charm.)

Enough! Back to Bankok.

The next day, it was Chinese New Year.  The hotel put on quite a display.  I have video clips of the Lion Dance but I cannot post them as this blog site will only allow 100MB (which is nothing!) and mine are a little more.  So you will have to be happy with a few pics.

Lions entering with their entourage

I'm not sure who/what these people represented but they seemed to be important!

Very sweet girl dressed in red for good luck for the New Year!

Another sweet one who just received some "red packet money".

At the end there were hundreds of fire crackers!! OUCH!!!

That's it for now. Next post will be about Myanmar (Burma).