I have been blown away by the generosity and kindness exhibited by the Burmese people. It has definitely been the most third world of the countries so far but all of the dangerous things we were warned about in pre port certainly were not seen by me- or anyone else I have talked to on the ship. The people are very spiritual, love to wave and smile, and very helpful! I keep hearing from my friends and other people on the ship how this is their new favorite country- and I agree! Also I have a clarification of the Myanmar/ Burma question: the country contains over 100 ethnic groups and tribes and Burma is one of them constituting around 70% of the people. The British deemed the country Burma after this majority group. However Myanmar has been the name of the country since the 12th century and is inclusive of all tribes and people- not just the Burmese. Thus Myanmar is a more traditional and inclusive name for the country and what locals like their country to be called.
Yangon
Upon arrival in Yangon (Rangoon to westerners) I was very anxious to get off the ship and see my parents! At around 1:45 we were at the port and I could see my parents from the ship! I was very lucky and with the help of an email to the deans from my dad, we had asked to get my passport expedited through customs so I could get off early and it worked! Most people didn't get their passports till 6pm but I got mine at 2! As soon as the ship was "cleared" at around 2:15 I was the very first person off the ship! Gave my parents a big hug, met the tour guide, Eric, and we were off to the shwedegon pagoda. It was very interesting how strict the port is on security- we needed to get special documentation and go through another checkpoint to get through. Usually when you get to port you can just get right off the ship and be able to get in a taxi pretty quick but definitely not here- good thing I had my parents and Eric!
Driving through Yangon I could immediately tell it is a poor country- buildings have an old feel to them and there was lots of heat and dust. We passed many old run down colonial style buildings that were mostly uninhabited. Upon arrival at the pagoda we had to take off our shoes and I also had to change into clothing that covered my knees and shoulders. This pagoda is absolutely massive- I think Eric said it it 100 meters high and it is completely covered in gold sheets- not just gold leaf but literally thick pure gold sheets. Then at the very very top is an "umbrella" that has millions and millions of gems given by the Buddhist people of Myanmar. When they redid the top about 10 years ago people would give their precious family heirloom gems, gold, jewlery, diamonds, rubies etc so that they would have given to their good karma and reach nirvana faster- people were not asked or requested to give anything but they wanted to give everything they could to donate to the top- but it's not a donation to them it's like a willing devotion to their spirituality and future life and afterlife. The biggest diamond is 72 karats!
Surrounding the pagoda were many temples, Buddhas, shrines, buildings etc. all with intricate gold, precious stone, and glass work. One thing we did and that Buddhist do is know what day of the week we were born on and go to that little shrine at the base of the pagoda and pour water on that statue 3 times for good karma! There are 8 days (Wednesday is split in 2) and each day has an animal with different attributes associated with that day. I was born on Sunday so I think I am a chicken or some kind of weird bird which means I am frugal but our different guides had different interpretations of what the different days were so who knows, but I poured water 3 times on a bird like creature and thought good thoughts so hopefully it works! Another thing is that there were many large bells around the pagoda with big wooden mallets and you are supposed to ring it 3 times while saying the names out loud of loved ones you know and want to send good karma and love to. Eric, our guide is Buddhist and he did all of these things and encouraged us to do them too. I was shocked at how obviously there were tourists around but there were also practicing Buddhists who were praying and doing all of these things as well. I wasn't expecting when I went to pour water on my Sunday shrine and there were practicing Buddhists doing the same thing, they smiled and made room for me and seemed genuinely glad and appreciative that I was doing it too. We were at the pagoda around sunset and the sun shining off the gold was spectacular. It was really such a wonderful introduction to the importance of religion in this culture and also the welcoming and loving nature of the local people.
After this we went back to the hotel- The Strand- an awesome old colonial hotel that reminded me of a slightly less grand raffles. Throughout our time in Burma I have been so impressed with the service- people carrying bags, opening doors, and always offering small wet towels to clean our hands when arriving somewhere! Our room was beautiful and big and had a polished old fashioned feel to it. After dropping my stuff in the room we went down to the bar for drinks then to the restaurant for dinner. I got a big fillet mignon and molten chocolate cake- much needed first meal after the past few days of ship food! Slept like a baby till our alarms went off at 3:45am to get to the airport for our flight to bagan. Driving through the street this early we only saw a few groups of monks with large bowls who were walking to get rice- their only solid food they are allowed to eat all day! Exhausted we went to the airport, got on the hour long flight and passed out.
Bagan
Upon arrival in bagan we were met at the airport by our new guide, Kotet. We got in our car and he took us straight to the local morning market. It is a covered outdoor market with local people selling fruits, vegetables, beans, rice, a few material goods, meat, fish, and eggs. It was pretty big and we could have wandered around for a while. There would be one or two people sitting down on the floor with their produce usually eating breakfast out of a bowl. There were no price tags or signs with prices but our guide said a kilo of rice ranges from 80 cents to $1.50 depending on quality and beans are about 70 cents per kilo just to get a sense of how cheap things are- yet for the people it is quite expensive- I learned that Burmese spend about 60-70% of their income on food! I loved walking around the market where we saw barely any tourists so we really got to see the locals going about their daily activities. We also ran into my ship mom- Alicia- so my mom and dad got to meet her!
After the market we went to 4 different places: 1st a pagoda- similar to shwedegon but smaller, a monastery, another pagoda, then an area where you could walk around and see hundreds of small pagodas along the landscape. Again in these places you take your shoes off and must be covered and I really felt that I was seeing and witnessing the real culture and people living their normal lives. There were definitely people trying to sell us things and mom and dad bought 2 little canvas paintings and dad got a funky Burmese shirt! The monestary was cool because it was small and dark with very low ceilings with drawings on the wall that were over 800 years old- in America things like this would be in high tech cases but here they are just on the walls and people can look at them with flashlights.
After all of this it was only about 11:30am but I felt like it was the end of the day! We then went to our oasis of a hotel- the bagan lodge- took naps, swam in the gorgeous infinity pool, had lunch, and were ready for afternoon adventures by 2pm!
Like always we were driven by the driver and Kotet sat next to him and explained various things about Myanmar such as the education system, history, and culture. This afternoon we had horse adventures planned! My parents took a carriage ride and I got to ride. We got to the farm and I got to pick my horse and the guide tacked him up and we were off- literally galloping across fields, through palm leaf roofed lean-two towns, and around pagodas and shrines. Thank god I knew how to ride because my guide was wild! It was just me and him- he didn't speak a word of English and I had no idea where we were so I just had to put a lot of faith in him that he knew! We would usually walk or trot through the villages- It was fascinating to see them because if I had not gone on this ride with the local I would never have seen them. All skinny dirt roads with these houses that had palm leaf thatched roofs and were pretty open. There were a few that were more enclosed but still with gaps in the sides filled with chickens that would always fly up as we went past. I saw lots of locals and children who would always gather and stare as we passed. I would smile and wave and then they would share wide toothy grins and wave back. I loved seeing where the poor locals lived and can only imagine if I was there longer and able to interact with them more how cool that would be.
It was extremely hot and dusty but felt amazing as we were galloping across the fields and the wind was blowing. We ended the ride at a pagoda where we met up with my parents and Kotet and my horse guide tied up the stirrups on my horses saddle grabbed the reins and took off with both horses back to the farm. That ride was definitely a highlight of the trip!
After this we went to another pagoda or two and I was feeling really hot tired and dusty. The last one is jokingly called the foreigners meet up spot because it's the famous place for tourists to go watch the sunset and for good reason because it was gorgeous! You have to climb up extremely steep stairs but then there are a few levels where you can walk around for 365 degree views. It was absolutely stunning to see hundreds of pagodas all different shapes and sizes scattered across the landscape all reflecting the huge pink setting sun.
After this we went back to the hotel for much needed showers and happy hour drinks at the hotel bar! We sat here by the pool for a bit then got a taxi to dinner. We went to Moon, an authentic Burmese vegetarian restarant. They don't serve alcohol because there is no alcohol allowed in this part of town for religious reasons but if you ask for a beer- they will get you one "under the table". They bring it in a brown bag and literally make you keep it under the table! Especially my dad thought that was pretty awesome. We got a bunch of food to share which was really tasty then headed back to the hotel for bed.
The hotel rooms were so nice- each were separate bungalows with nice porches, big comfy beds and huge bathrooms. The next morning was another early one as we had to get up at 5am for our sunrise hot air balloon! We were picked up and driven to a big field where they were already filling the 3 balloons for us and a few other tourists. We were served coffee and then ready to go up! The pilots were all British guys and each balloon had a crew of 10 locals to do the ground work. It was just starting to get bright as we were getting in and lifting up. I have never been in a hot air balloon before and it was incredible! The views were stunning and I will try to post pictures because words don't do it justice. But seeing the Irrawaddy, thousands of pagodas and little towns beneath us all while the sun was rising was spectacular. Our guide made us a bit nervous as the winds were abnormal for the day and we were definitely drifting in the wrong direction over the river and landing there would have involved getting a boat to pick us up which wouldn't exactly have been a short journey. We got going in the right direction but when we were landing the winds were getting stronger and as we were about to land in front of a massive pagoda we had to pull up and land after it but we got to float right by which was the coolest thing to see. We landed in a random field and had champagne while the crew folded up the balloon. Then it was a quick drive back to the hotel, short nap, amazing buffet breakfast at the restarant by the pool then off for more adventures!
Ginger, Morgan, and Bridget met up with us for the day which was so much fun! They flew in that morning so missed the balloons but came right to our hotel after. Kotet and the driver picked us all up and we were off to Mount Popa, a massive table top mountain with a monastery at the top. On the way there we stopped at a palm plantation where they make sugar, oil, crafts, various candies, syrup and liquor all from the palm tree! The people were so nice, let us taste everything and even gave dad, morgan, and ginger foot massages with the oil! (Dad loved his foot massage so maybe he will let auntie give him one next thanksgiving!!)It was all in this outdoor, dirt floor, and palm leaf roofed place at the side of the road. I would say it was definitely set up for tourists but didn't look or feel touristy at all.
Back in the car we drove a bit further to mount Popa- we had to take our shoes off again because it was a monastery 777 steps to the top! It was hot and sweaty but worth it. The best part was that the whole way up there were little monkeys everywhere! They would sit on the steps in front of you, above you and on the railings- there were hundreds. At the top it was misty so you couldn't see too much but it was still cool. We headed back down and back into the car back to the hotel. We were offered to go to a lacquer wear factory or back to the hotel and so everyone but mom opted for swimming and food at the hotel! We relaxed, swam and ate then quickly showered to get ready for our sunset cruise on the Irrawaddy! Mom said the lacquer wear was cool but she's glad we skipped out! We got mojitos at the hotel bar- put them in water bottles (mom's genius idea) then drove 10 minutes to the river. We got in our little boat that was old and authentic but beautiful. We took tons of pictures and the sunset was absolutely stunning. The sun was huge and bright pink and reflected perfectly across the water. We had a very relaxing time talking and floating along.
We got back in the car and headed to Nooch for dinner. It was great authentic food: fresh fish, curry, fried rice etc. I was so happy for my friends to meet my parents and vise versa. After dinner we all headed back to the hotel for a bit and then my friends went back to their hotel and I went to bed! We got to sleep till 7:30 the next morning, breakfast at the hotel then off to the airport. We were delayed an hour and a half because the way the flights work they have a four stop circuit- Yangon, bagan, Mandalay, heho so if there are delays in Yangon it stops everyone up- (which is why we ended up changing our flights from heho to Yangon to a day earlier or else I probably would have missed the boat) we finally got to heho around noon to transfer to inle lake.
Inle Lake
We were picked up at the airport by our new guide, Nan. She was awesome and so kind and smiley. We drove about an hour to the town of inle then got in our boat to get to the lake then our hotel. The boats are all very long and skinny with these old motors at the back that are driven by the driver. They are all 4 or 5 seaters and it is almost like a big canoe with one person sitting in front of the next. Inle lake was stunning and I have never been anywhere like it in my whole life.
The lake is surrounded by a huge mountain range and around the water all the houses are on stilts and made out of wood with bamboo leaf roofs. The lake is 13 miles by 3 miles and has little streams, rivers, and villages all in and around it. Each village has it's own craft: silk or lotus weaving, blacksmith, fishermen, farmers etc. the farmers have floating gardens- rows and rows of strips of floating plants ( tomatoes, squash, cucumber, etc) with the water in between. So everyone everywhere is in the long skinny boats. But most of the people don't have motors but they paddle standing up with one leg- you don't believe it till you see it and I have no clue how they do it- I will have to try this summer in Canada on our paddle boards! The different communities have a race once a year with the one leg paddling and it is a huge event. The fishermen also have a very unique way of fishing where they place nets in the water then stand on their boats and smack the water with huge polls to scare the fish into the nets. It sounds wild but is extremely peaceful and humbling to watch. We also got to see the silk and lotus weavers which is extremely labor intensive. As we traveled among these "neighborhoods" in our boat we saw locals bathing, washing, cooking, playing, and just sitting. We even saw a floating soccer field (very small and surrounded by a net so the ball wouldn't go in the water!) I really loved seeing the people going about their daily activities in an environment that is just so foreign to me. We were probably boating around for almost 3 and a half hours but I was constantly fascinated just looking and watching.
We headed back to our hotel for showers, drinks and dinner. Our hotel was really nice and each " room" was a separate bungalow with huge living area, hanging beds, outdoor porch, enclosed but outdoor shower and massive bathtub. We met a group of friends who are retired and were traveling together and had fun talking to them over drinks and watching the sunset. Then mom dad and I had a great dinner and got to head to bed and get a full 9 hours of sleep before waking up for breakfast and more lake sight seeing!!
Nan and our boat driver picked us up at the hotel at 9am and we got our luggage in the boat and headed out! Just as we were pulling out I remembered my wallet with passport was still in the safe in the room- Thank god I remembered.
We boated for about 45 minutes down the lake watching fishermen and other tourists head off in their long boats and into a narrow river off the side of the lake. We passed children bathing, small villages with buildings on stilts, and water buffalo swimming. We arrived at this little town famous for having 1000 pagodas. They were all built around the 17th century but some were crumbled from years of earthquakes and damage but others have recently been renovated by gifts from donors. It was cool to walk around them and at the top was a small monastery that we again had to take our shoes off at to see. Leading up to the monastery was the longest souvenir shop in the region- basically it was tables on both sides with jewelry and silk goods but it was the least overwhelming of all the souvenir shops and really there were not many people.
After this we got back in our boat for a bit and stopped at another village along the water for lunch. I thought we were going to go into what looked like a more normal place to eat but we kept walking over little bridges and through the floating village to a little house. With Nan we went in and the family obviously knew we were coming and had a table on the ground set up for us and a wonderful lunch! I guess we were supposed to have a cooking class but since we had to change our flights and leave soon they just served us lunch. The girl who served us is also 20 and on summer vacation after her second year at university. She is also studying economics but crazy to think just how different our lives are.
After lunch we got back in our little boat and 45 minutes later we were back at the dock and getting in the van to the airport. I was sad to leave because inle lake was truly majestic. Being able to witness the contrast between tourist and local was striking. yet tourism does support the livelihood of the majority of the people but it really doesn't seem to negatively affect them like I have seen in some other countries. All of the people were so kind and loved to wave and smile and just observing them was so fascinating and peaceful.
Yangon again
Our plane flight to Yangon included 2 stops where we stayed on the plane the whole time- these flights are on a circuit and going this direction is kind of annoying. After landing we were greeted again by our driver and headed back to the hotel. I had some wifi to do (extremely slow and frustrating) we got drinks, hung out and went to bed!
Yangon
Upon arrival in Yangon (Rangoon to westerners) I was very anxious to get off the ship and see my parents! At around 1:45 we were at the port and I could see my parents from the ship! I was very lucky and with the help of an email to the deans from my dad, we had asked to get my passport expedited through customs so I could get off early and it worked! Most people didn't get their passports till 6pm but I got mine at 2! As soon as the ship was "cleared" at around 2:15 I was the very first person off the ship! Gave my parents a big hug, met the tour guide, Eric, and we were off to the shwedegon pagoda. It was very interesting how strict the port is on security- we needed to get special documentation and go through another checkpoint to get through. Usually when you get to port you can just get right off the ship and be able to get in a taxi pretty quick but definitely not here- good thing I had my parents and Eric!
Driving through Yangon I could immediately tell it is a poor country- buildings have an old feel to them and there was lots of heat and dust. We passed many old run down colonial style buildings that were mostly uninhabited. Upon arrival at the pagoda we had to take off our shoes and I also had to change into clothing that covered my knees and shoulders. This pagoda is absolutely massive- I think Eric said it it 100 meters high and it is completely covered in gold sheets- not just gold leaf but literally thick pure gold sheets. Then at the very very top is an "umbrella" that has millions and millions of gems given by the Buddhist people of Myanmar. When they redid the top about 10 years ago people would give their precious family heirloom gems, gold, jewlery, diamonds, rubies etc so that they would have given to their good karma and reach nirvana faster- people were not asked or requested to give anything but they wanted to give everything they could to donate to the top- but it's not a donation to them it's like a willing devotion to their spirituality and future life and afterlife. The biggest diamond is 72 karats!
Surrounding the pagoda were many temples, Buddhas, shrines, buildings etc. all with intricate gold, precious stone, and glass work. One thing we did and that Buddhist do is know what day of the week we were born on and go to that little shrine at the base of the pagoda and pour water on that statue 3 times for good karma! There are 8 days (Wednesday is split in 2) and each day has an animal with different attributes associated with that day. I was born on Sunday so I think I am a chicken or some kind of weird bird which means I am frugal but our different guides had different interpretations of what the different days were so who knows, but I poured water 3 times on a bird like creature and thought good thoughts so hopefully it works! Another thing is that there were many large bells around the pagoda with big wooden mallets and you are supposed to ring it 3 times while saying the names out loud of loved ones you know and want to send good karma and love to. Eric, our guide is Buddhist and he did all of these things and encouraged us to do them too. I was shocked at how obviously there were tourists around but there were also practicing Buddhists who were praying and doing all of these things as well. I wasn't expecting when I went to pour water on my Sunday shrine and there were practicing Buddhists doing the same thing, they smiled and made room for me and seemed genuinely glad and appreciative that I was doing it too. We were at the pagoda around sunset and the sun shining off the gold was spectacular. It was really such a wonderful introduction to the importance of religion in this culture and also the welcoming and loving nature of the local people.
After this we went back to the hotel- The Strand- an awesome old colonial hotel that reminded me of a slightly less grand raffles. Throughout our time in Burma I have been so impressed with the service- people carrying bags, opening doors, and always offering small wet towels to clean our hands when arriving somewhere! Our room was beautiful and big and had a polished old fashioned feel to it. After dropping my stuff in the room we went down to the bar for drinks then to the restaurant for dinner. I got a big fillet mignon and molten chocolate cake- much needed first meal after the past few days of ship food! Slept like a baby till our alarms went off at 3:45am to get to the airport for our flight to bagan. Driving through the street this early we only saw a few groups of monks with large bowls who were walking to get rice- their only solid food they are allowed to eat all day! Exhausted we went to the airport, got on the hour long flight and passed out.
Bagan
Upon arrival in bagan we were met at the airport by our new guide, Kotet. We got in our car and he took us straight to the local morning market. It is a covered outdoor market with local people selling fruits, vegetables, beans, rice, a few material goods, meat, fish, and eggs. It was pretty big and we could have wandered around for a while. There would be one or two people sitting down on the floor with their produce usually eating breakfast out of a bowl. There were no price tags or signs with prices but our guide said a kilo of rice ranges from 80 cents to $1.50 depending on quality and beans are about 70 cents per kilo just to get a sense of how cheap things are- yet for the people it is quite expensive- I learned that Burmese spend about 60-70% of their income on food! I loved walking around the market where we saw barely any tourists so we really got to see the locals going about their daily activities. We also ran into my ship mom- Alicia- so my mom and dad got to meet her!
After the market we went to 4 different places: 1st a pagoda- similar to shwedegon but smaller, a monastery, another pagoda, then an area where you could walk around and see hundreds of small pagodas along the landscape. Again in these places you take your shoes off and must be covered and I really felt that I was seeing and witnessing the real culture and people living their normal lives. There were definitely people trying to sell us things and mom and dad bought 2 little canvas paintings and dad got a funky Burmese shirt! The monestary was cool because it was small and dark with very low ceilings with drawings on the wall that were over 800 years old- in America things like this would be in high tech cases but here they are just on the walls and people can look at them with flashlights.
After all of this it was only about 11:30am but I felt like it was the end of the day! We then went to our oasis of a hotel- the bagan lodge- took naps, swam in the gorgeous infinity pool, had lunch, and were ready for afternoon adventures by 2pm!
Like always we were driven by the driver and Kotet sat next to him and explained various things about Myanmar such as the education system, history, and culture. This afternoon we had horse adventures planned! My parents took a carriage ride and I got to ride. We got to the farm and I got to pick my horse and the guide tacked him up and we were off- literally galloping across fields, through palm leaf roofed lean-two towns, and around pagodas and shrines. Thank god I knew how to ride because my guide was wild! It was just me and him- he didn't speak a word of English and I had no idea where we were so I just had to put a lot of faith in him that he knew! We would usually walk or trot through the villages- It was fascinating to see them because if I had not gone on this ride with the local I would never have seen them. All skinny dirt roads with these houses that had palm leaf thatched roofs and were pretty open. There were a few that were more enclosed but still with gaps in the sides filled with chickens that would always fly up as we went past. I saw lots of locals and children who would always gather and stare as we passed. I would smile and wave and then they would share wide toothy grins and wave back. I loved seeing where the poor locals lived and can only imagine if I was there longer and able to interact with them more how cool that would be.
It was extremely hot and dusty but felt amazing as we were galloping across the fields and the wind was blowing. We ended the ride at a pagoda where we met up with my parents and Kotet and my horse guide tied up the stirrups on my horses saddle grabbed the reins and took off with both horses back to the farm. That ride was definitely a highlight of the trip!
After this we went to another pagoda or two and I was feeling really hot tired and dusty. The last one is jokingly called the foreigners meet up spot because it's the famous place for tourists to go watch the sunset and for good reason because it was gorgeous! You have to climb up extremely steep stairs but then there are a few levels where you can walk around for 365 degree views. It was absolutely stunning to see hundreds of pagodas all different shapes and sizes scattered across the landscape all reflecting the huge pink setting sun.
After this we went back to the hotel for much needed showers and happy hour drinks at the hotel bar! We sat here by the pool for a bit then got a taxi to dinner. We went to Moon, an authentic Burmese vegetarian restarant. They don't serve alcohol because there is no alcohol allowed in this part of town for religious reasons but if you ask for a beer- they will get you one "under the table". They bring it in a brown bag and literally make you keep it under the table! Especially my dad thought that was pretty awesome. We got a bunch of food to share which was really tasty then headed back to the hotel for bed.
The hotel rooms were so nice- each were separate bungalows with nice porches, big comfy beds and huge bathrooms. The next morning was another early one as we had to get up at 5am for our sunrise hot air balloon! We were picked up and driven to a big field where they were already filling the 3 balloons for us and a few other tourists. We were served coffee and then ready to go up! The pilots were all British guys and each balloon had a crew of 10 locals to do the ground work. It was just starting to get bright as we were getting in and lifting up. I have never been in a hot air balloon before and it was incredible! The views were stunning and I will try to post pictures because words don't do it justice. But seeing the Irrawaddy, thousands of pagodas and little towns beneath us all while the sun was rising was spectacular. Our guide made us a bit nervous as the winds were abnormal for the day and we were definitely drifting in the wrong direction over the river and landing there would have involved getting a boat to pick us up which wouldn't exactly have been a short journey. We got going in the right direction but when we were landing the winds were getting stronger and as we were about to land in front of a massive pagoda we had to pull up and land after it but we got to float right by which was the coolest thing to see. We landed in a random field and had champagne while the crew folded up the balloon. Then it was a quick drive back to the hotel, short nap, amazing buffet breakfast at the restarant by the pool then off for more adventures!
Ginger, Morgan, and Bridget met up with us for the day which was so much fun! They flew in that morning so missed the balloons but came right to our hotel after. Kotet and the driver picked us all up and we were off to Mount Popa, a massive table top mountain with a monastery at the top. On the way there we stopped at a palm plantation where they make sugar, oil, crafts, various candies, syrup and liquor all from the palm tree! The people were so nice, let us taste everything and even gave dad, morgan, and ginger foot massages with the oil! (Dad loved his foot massage so maybe he will let auntie give him one next thanksgiving!!)It was all in this outdoor, dirt floor, and palm leaf roofed place at the side of the road. I would say it was definitely set up for tourists but didn't look or feel touristy at all.
Back in the car we drove a bit further to mount Popa- we had to take our shoes off again because it was a monastery 777 steps to the top! It was hot and sweaty but worth it. The best part was that the whole way up there were little monkeys everywhere! They would sit on the steps in front of you, above you and on the railings- there were hundreds. At the top it was misty so you couldn't see too much but it was still cool. We headed back down and back into the car back to the hotel. We were offered to go to a lacquer wear factory or back to the hotel and so everyone but mom opted for swimming and food at the hotel! We relaxed, swam and ate then quickly showered to get ready for our sunset cruise on the Irrawaddy! Mom said the lacquer wear was cool but she's glad we skipped out! We got mojitos at the hotel bar- put them in water bottles (mom's genius idea) then drove 10 minutes to the river. We got in our little boat that was old and authentic but beautiful. We took tons of pictures and the sunset was absolutely stunning. The sun was huge and bright pink and reflected perfectly across the water. We had a very relaxing time talking and floating along.
We got back in the car and headed to Nooch for dinner. It was great authentic food: fresh fish, curry, fried rice etc. I was so happy for my friends to meet my parents and vise versa. After dinner we all headed back to the hotel for a bit and then my friends went back to their hotel and I went to bed! We got to sleep till 7:30 the next morning, breakfast at the hotel then off to the airport. We were delayed an hour and a half because the way the flights work they have a four stop circuit- Yangon, bagan, Mandalay, heho so if there are delays in Yangon it stops everyone up- (which is why we ended up changing our flights from heho to Yangon to a day earlier or else I probably would have missed the boat) we finally got to heho around noon to transfer to inle lake.
Inle Lake
We were picked up at the airport by our new guide, Nan. She was awesome and so kind and smiley. We drove about an hour to the town of inle then got in our boat to get to the lake then our hotel. The boats are all very long and skinny with these old motors at the back that are driven by the driver. They are all 4 or 5 seaters and it is almost like a big canoe with one person sitting in front of the next. Inle lake was stunning and I have never been anywhere like it in my whole life.
The lake is surrounded by a huge mountain range and around the water all the houses are on stilts and made out of wood with bamboo leaf roofs. The lake is 13 miles by 3 miles and has little streams, rivers, and villages all in and around it. Each village has it's own craft: silk or lotus weaving, blacksmith, fishermen, farmers etc. the farmers have floating gardens- rows and rows of strips of floating plants ( tomatoes, squash, cucumber, etc) with the water in between. So everyone everywhere is in the long skinny boats. But most of the people don't have motors but they paddle standing up with one leg- you don't believe it till you see it and I have no clue how they do it- I will have to try this summer in Canada on our paddle boards! The different communities have a race once a year with the one leg paddling and it is a huge event. The fishermen also have a very unique way of fishing where they place nets in the water then stand on their boats and smack the water with huge polls to scare the fish into the nets. It sounds wild but is extremely peaceful and humbling to watch. We also got to see the silk and lotus weavers which is extremely labor intensive. As we traveled among these "neighborhoods" in our boat we saw locals bathing, washing, cooking, playing, and just sitting. We even saw a floating soccer field (very small and surrounded by a net so the ball wouldn't go in the water!) I really loved seeing the people going about their daily activities in an environment that is just so foreign to me. We were probably boating around for almost 3 and a half hours but I was constantly fascinated just looking and watching.
We headed back to our hotel for showers, drinks and dinner. Our hotel was really nice and each " room" was a separate bungalow with huge living area, hanging beds, outdoor porch, enclosed but outdoor shower and massive bathtub. We met a group of friends who are retired and were traveling together and had fun talking to them over drinks and watching the sunset. Then mom dad and I had a great dinner and got to head to bed and get a full 9 hours of sleep before waking up for breakfast and more lake sight seeing!!
Nan and our boat driver picked us up at the hotel at 9am and we got our luggage in the boat and headed out! Just as we were pulling out I remembered my wallet with passport was still in the safe in the room- Thank god I remembered.
We boated for about 45 minutes down the lake watching fishermen and other tourists head off in their long boats and into a narrow river off the side of the lake. We passed children bathing, small villages with buildings on stilts, and water buffalo swimming. We arrived at this little town famous for having 1000 pagodas. They were all built around the 17th century but some were crumbled from years of earthquakes and damage but others have recently been renovated by gifts from donors. It was cool to walk around them and at the top was a small monastery that we again had to take our shoes off at to see. Leading up to the monastery was the longest souvenir shop in the region- basically it was tables on both sides with jewelry and silk goods but it was the least overwhelming of all the souvenir shops and really there were not many people.
After this we got back in our boat for a bit and stopped at another village along the water for lunch. I thought we were going to go into what looked like a more normal place to eat but we kept walking over little bridges and through the floating village to a little house. With Nan we went in and the family obviously knew we were coming and had a table on the ground set up for us and a wonderful lunch! I guess we were supposed to have a cooking class but since we had to change our flights and leave soon they just served us lunch. The girl who served us is also 20 and on summer vacation after her second year at university. She is also studying economics but crazy to think just how different our lives are.
After lunch we got back in our little boat and 45 minutes later we were back at the dock and getting in the van to the airport. I was sad to leave because inle lake was truly majestic. Being able to witness the contrast between tourist and local was striking. yet tourism does support the livelihood of the majority of the people but it really doesn't seem to negatively affect them like I have seen in some other countries. All of the people were so kind and loved to wave and smile and just observing them was so fascinating and peaceful.
Yangon again
Our plane flight to Yangon included 2 stops where we stayed on the plane the whole time- these flights are on a circuit and going this direction is kind of annoying. After landing we were greeted again by our driver and headed back to the hotel. I had some wifi to do (extremely slow and frustrating) we got drinks, hung out and went to bed!
The next morning we had a long leisurely breakfast at the hotel, hung out at the pool then were back in the car to head to the port by 11am. I was sad to say bye to my parents and am so appreciative that they traveled half way around the world to see me. We had much a fun time and it was truly a few days I will never forget!!
Now it's 4 days on the ship then India!!
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What a post! Thanks. Now I can remember everything.
ReplyDeleteI am so jealous of this horseback ride! Sounds amazing!
ReplyDeletewow LONG post annie, good for you! can't wait to read it!
ReplyDelete