MYANMAR PART 4

INLE LAKE

As I am typing this last Myanmar episode of the blog we are currently being battered by our third Tropical Depression/Cyclone/Typhoon here in Cebu. The rain is torrential, the wind strong and the seas huge. Unfortunately, the storm is hitting the large, sea-facing windows of the house which are now secured with metal rods, screws and bolts, but the sheer force of the wind is blowing the rain through any small crevice. The corner of the roof started to lift earlier on but help was at hand and it has been hopefully secured - we do, however, keep hearing a few unnerving banging noises so maybe not. We will all be glad when this one blows through. Snorkelling was on the agenda today but I fear even the fish will be hunkered down in the coral.

Getting back to the more temperate climes of Myanmar and Inle Lake we set off early morning with Paulo for a day on the Lake in a small skiff. These colourful skiffs are driven by very noisy, modified, diesel car engines – at the end of its long driveshaft is the propeller – the boats vibrate like crazy and as you whizz down the gateway canal into Inle Lake great plumes of water spew from the back of each boat. Down the middle of the narrow boat sit 3 wooden chairs which are gradually vibrated backwards down the spine of the boat so eventually everyone is sitting on top of the other at one end!!!!!!  They also go very fast and are extremely manoeuvrable. We loved our day on the lake.

The ride is awesome, under low bamboo bridges, through narrow gaps which have been fashioned by driftwood causing small dams. Past Inle Lake fishermen with their conical nets who manoeuvre their boats from the back with a single oar with one leg and foot. The other leg is for balance and they need both hands for the nets. Their hips must be so flexible and this is demonstrated by a game they play similar to Volleyball but using only their feet, swinging their legs from the hip in huge arcs!!!!!!

As we entered into the Lake Proper we threw bread out to the seagulls which flocked around the boat enabling us to get some really cool pictures. Huge barges were heaping in weed from the Lake to be used to make their floating gardens and likewise fertilise them - believe it or not, fruit and vegetables grew all around us on this beautiful lake.

Hopping on and off the skiff we saw many family industries blossoming on this “Little Venice”. Skiffs are made by hand here in Nampan village as are cheroots; Beautiful steel knives are forged in Sae Khaung; silk from the stems of the Lotus flower is spun in Hawhon and in the midst of all this standing proud is Phaung Daw Oo Paya, the holiest religious site in Southern Shan State. Enshrined within the huge tiered pagoda are five ancient Buddha images that have been transformed into amorphous blobs by the sheer volume of gold leaf applied to them by devotees. During the annual Phaung Daw Oo Festival they parade the images around the Lake in an ornate barge shaped like a swan.

Another village on the Lake - In Phaw Khone village -  is made up of teak stilt houses containing weaving workshops. The buildings vibrate with the clatter of shuttles and the click-clack of the shifting loom frames as beautiful, colourful fabric is woven.

A short way from here live the Kayan Padaung Tribe – where the ladies wear rings around their necks from the tender age of 5 years which is deemed to be beautiful. They are heavy and cumbersome weighing 8 – 10 kgs by the age of 20 years representing 25 rings!!!!!!!! The ladies we saw seemed happy and healthy enough but have the strangest upper body shape where the weight has pressed down their collarbones and chest cavity. Definitely not a fashion for me.

Next stop a village Silversmith and then on to Ywama the floating market where we were inundated with peddlers in their boats trying to sell us cheap souvenirs and fruit. They are very adept in plying their trade but are not aggressive if refused…….they do strike a very hard bargain though.

From here we seemed to travel a long distance and at great speed along wending waterways flanked by paddy fields which run directly from the main Inle Lake.  Along this very narrow but marvellous stretch of canals, which has many unexpected twists and turns, the rice farmers dam the flow of water with bamboo barriers in order to irrigate the paddy fields making the narrow entry into a new canal quite hair-raising. Villagers sit on small platforms at the edge of the canal with soap and shampoo to take their bath and wash their clothes. In the adjacent paddy fields farmers were ploughing with their water buffalo in preparation for planting fresh rice.

Our final destination along this stretch of water was Indein Creek at the end of which is the mysterious Indein village one of the smallest villages of Lake Inle. In the centre of the village on the summit of a hill is a whitewashed Stupa enshrining another Buddha image while down below a thousand plus ancient, crumbling, overgrown pagodas stand in clusters like a forest around it. We both had an “Indiana Jones moment” here and it is very pleasant to walk through but sad to see it in such a bad state of repair as trees and bushes gain control. Amongst these ornate but derelict pagodas small village children would suddenly pop out now and then, trying to sell us a scarf or two. Above us little bells tinkled on the “umbrellas” of the stupa.

There was an area where new gold-clad stupas were being built and renovated but our main focus was to see the Buddha in the Temple on the hilltop. To do this one has to walk slowly uphill under beautiful, columned, covered walkways and through what seems like kilometres of stalls selling mainly clothes and tourist knick-knacks all very similar. The day was very hot and humid but through these cloisters it was beautifully cool and calm and we were unaware we were climbing as we strolled. A few disabled people were creating amazing paintings, lino cuttings and jewellery here but there seemed to be very few tourists around unfortunately to buy. Many of the stall holders and children were dressed in traditional hill tribe clothing.

Hopping back in our skiff we heading for the Floating gardens which are undeniably the way to go and unique to Inle Lake. On our way, we pass a skiff towing the longest piece of “turf” (his floating garden) you can possibly imagine. Most houses have a floating garden surrounding the house but beyond the houses great swathes support many fruits and vegetables which is the local income. These large gardens are formed by the lake weed and are secured to the bottom of the lake by long bamboo poles. They rise and fall with the level of the lake therefore never flood. Their nutrients and of course water also come from the lake making them very fertile. Standing on one it is important to move around otherwise you gradually sink – as Gary found out!!!!!

Around these floating gardens the farmers live in two-storied Teak houses built on stilts and we quietly wandered around one of these villages in our skiff whilst the sun started to go down and the light was incredible for great photography. Small children, even toddlers, play on platforms just above the water; the only transport is by small row boat which children happily use with their friends to go to the local shop – also on stilts in the water; dishes are washed in the lake as are bodies and clothes. The life is simple but I would imagine stress-free.

We headed home after this – the sun was setting, it was getting cooler and windy on the lake and we had had a long, hot, fun filled, joyous day. A meal and our hotel was calling and tomorrow was another day.

Inle Lake is a magical place.