Another early flight, again on Air Kanbawza, to Heho, where we were met by our guide, Aye, followed by an hour drive to Inle (pronounced and sometimes spelled “Inlay”) Lake, where the Intha people live primarily on the water.  This area is the southern part of the Shan States, which has a strong Chinese influence in both looks and dress.  The crowded pickup below is the Myanmar version of a local bus.  There are actual routes, and people just pile on until there is no more room.  We and our luggage were transported to our Sanctum hotel by a “long-tail” boat for about a half hour.  The hotel is on the shore, but the boat will be our primary transportation for the two days at Inle Lake.  The hotel is really a resort, and one of the nicest we’ve stayed in, and the staff couldn’t be more helpful.

After we left the hotel, we went to the Phaungdawoo Pagoda, where there are five revered Buddha images that the locals add gold leaf to.  They’ve added so much gold leaf that the statues are now unrecognizable.  The hats on the men and women are the traditional (and daily) wear for the Shan tribes in that area.  We then went to a lotus weaving area where the roots of a special lotus plant are used to make a silk-like material that can be dyed to make scarves and clothing.  All of the homes and work areas that we visited are on stilts, of course.  The last stop was at a teak monastery on the outskirts of a huge floating garden.

The next day I was feeling too bad to travel, so they called for a doctor for me.  None was available until the evening, so Tom went ahead to Indein, a small village on the western bank of Inle Lake.  He saw some small villages, silversmithing (yes, I got some new earrings!), more pagodas, and women who bound their necks and legs with rings.  Tom saw men in boats harvesting seaweed to mulch the tomato plants, and the photo of cuts into the bamboo below shows how they find the bamboo worms to eat. The doctor came in the evening in his leather jacket and helmet (on a motorcycle, with the nurse) and longhi (the typical skirt), speaking flawless English and diagnosed it as simple heat exhaustion.  I think I must have had it for the whole trip.  He gave me Cipro ($1.50 for a 5-day set), and electrolytes.  This must have been the problem, because it went away the day I landed in Shanghai, with it’s 60+ weather.

Cheryl

Arriving at our hotel…

The motor on long-tail boats just skim the water, so they can go through very shallow areas.

Phaungdawoo Pagoda

An old photo of women competing in a boating race…

Lotus weaving factory

  

This was a silversmith shop that Tom visited…

In this small village, the women all elongate their necks and legs by wearing rings from an early age.

If they see black spots on bamboo, it’s an indication of a special worm and they cut it out and eat the worm – a delicacy!