As we reached the lake from the canal, we were so lucky to come across a fisherman using the traditional methods. They fish from their canoe, with a giant conical net that has a hole in the top. While paddling with their leg, they lower the net into the water. Once the net is submersed, they put a spear through the hole in the top to stab any fish that may be caught. This process was amazing to watch - I am especially impressed with how they paddle with their leg - it looks so hard!
We motored past part of the area we had seen yesterday, and then turned right to down another canal towards In Dein. We are here right at the beginning of the monsoon season, so the water level is currently very low. At one point the water was so low that one of our boats became grounded! Fortunately it only lasted for a few minutes and we were all on our way once again.
A difference betweeen our boat experience yesterday and today was that the canal that we were in had a sort of locks system. Every so often we would come across a lock built from bamboo that had a space in the middle just wide enough for the boat to pass through. Tom and I were discussing how this reminded us of shooting rapids - aim for the area and GO! That was really fun. When we arrived at In Dein, we walked along a path through a bamboo forest. It was so cool and shady in the forest (well, relatively... it was still probably nearly 90 degrees and super humid!). Joseph told us about the ruins we would be seeing while we walked. Shwe Inn Thein Paya, a collection of stupas, is most likely from the 17th century. Burma is not at the point yet where they have been able to bring in specialists to date ruins, so they might be older, they might be newer. Shwe Inn Thein Paya has the largest collection of stupa ruins and is situated on the top of a small hill. Below it is Nyaung Ohak, a smaller set of overgrown stupas. The big challenge that the ruins face right now are the people. People want to "restore" the ruis. Unfortunately, this basically means that they are tearing down the old ones and building new ones, or covering the old ones with new layers of bricks and then painting them horrible bright white or gold leaf. On the stupas that have been "restored," all of the old carvings have been destroyed. We began at Shwe Inn Thein Paya, and the contrast of old to new was actually very shocking. The old stupas are so beautiful - most are still standing fairly well, and many have trees and vines growing out of them. The old carvings are still in fairly good condition and are absolutely beautiful. However, the contrast between the new and the old is starkly depressing.
I actually felt this melancholy growing over me as we walked around the stupas. I feel that this problem is indicative of the struggles that Burma, as a country, is facing right now. They were such an advanced country, especially for the time and location, until the military regime took over, when time bascially regressed. No progress, no growth, nothing happening for the people. Now that they have some freedom, they want so badly to make up for the time they've lost that they are in danger of losing so much of their cultural heritage. Another example of this is Bagan - they applied for Bagan to be part of the UNESCO World Heritage protection program, but they were denied because some of the "restorations" that had been done to the temples actually damaged them. This is very disappointing, because they NEED the expertise and the funding that UNESCO would bring. I feel that UNESCO made a decision that will make things worse, not better. We as the developed world have a great responsibilty to assist developing countries, to help ensure that the rich heritage is preserved and used to move forward.
In Dein as we saw it will be gone in 5 years. All of the beautiful old overgrown stupas will be replaced with stupas that look exactly the same - sterile and identical. The soul of the place will be gone. We spent a long time wandering the ruins, taking photos and soaking it all in. I feel privileged to have been able to visit these ruins while they are still here.
As we walked back towards the town, you could tell that the group was a bit sad. We wandered the local market for a few minutes and then headed back towards Nyaung Shwe. It started to rain on us as we motored across the lake, and unlike the torrential rains of the day before, this was a nice gentle rain. We all remarked on how relaxing we found it, and when we reached the jetty everyone remarked that they had either dozed off or felt that they were entranced by the combination or rain and the beauty of the lake. We decided to go to a French Bakery for lunch as we were all craving some Western food! We had a delicious leisurely lunch - pasta, and ham sandwiches with delicious crusty bread, and croissants, followed by some delicious home made ice cream. After this everyone went their own way for a few hours - Mez, Barbara, Eleonore, Tom and I made our way to the market to browse some local shops. After this we headed back to the hotel to have a quick rest and shower before going wine tasting. While we were inside, the monsoon paid us another visit.
The amount of water that can fall from the sky is just baffling to me. Monsoon rain is unlike any rain I've ever seen - the sky will be mostly clear, then the coulds will roll in, the temperature will drop, and the heavens open. It's like there's an on/off faucet that has two settings - off and FULL POWER! The rain had mostly slowed by the time we would be going to the winery, we headed downstairs to find that Joseph had arranged a tuk tuk to take us to the winery! Hurray for another method of local transport!
The 7 of us piled into the back of the tuk tuk. This was basically a motorbike with a trailer attached. The trailer was covered with a roof on the top of two of the sides, and the front had a space where we could see the driver. Joseph sat up front on a jump seat next to the driver. The driver hit the gas and we were o--- never mind, we didn't move at all. Hahaha! Our combined weight was pretty heavy for the poor little tuk tuk. The driver tried again, and we moved out of the courtyard successfully! Joseph told us it would be about a 25 minute drive to the winery, Red Mountain. About 15 minutes into the drive, the monsoon decided to pay us another visit. Eleonore had to get creative with her umbrella to stop the rain from coming in and soaking her, and Joseph had opened his umbrella as a shield as well. By the time we got to the winery entrance, it was POURING! We had to drive up a fairly steep hill to reach the tasting room, and our poor little tuk tuk was having a tough time. We crawled up the slope, cheering for the Little Tuk Tuk that Could! When we made it to the top we all started clapping and cheering! Yay! As we sat there waiting, Joseph came around the back and, standing there in the pouring rain, gleefully said "Welcome to the winery!" We all burst out laughing and cheering - like I said, He's the happiest man in Burma!
The staff took our umbrellas as we entered the room, and we made our way to a big table. The views from the room were beautiful, even in the pouring rain. Everyone decided to get the sampler - 4 tastes for 2000 kyat. Once again, so afforable to eat and drink here! We had such a nice time laughing and talking. Out of the four wines we tried, 2 were good, 1 was ok, and 1 was frankly terrible! The Sauvignon Blanc that we had previously had at the pizza place was yummy, and the Late Harvest dessert style wine was fairly good as well. The Shiraz Tempranillo was pretty bad (tasted like dust and old leather) and the Rose was REALLY REALLY SWEET and had more of a dessert wine consistency. We 4 girls decided to get a bottle of the Sauv Blanc, and Sanjay ordered a bottle of a different red, the Shiraz. At this point Mother Nature decided to give us a BIG PRESENT! The sun came out.
The rain slowed and the sun came out, revealing the lake valley spread out below us, with a mountain range behind it. The sun turned all the clouds into glowing layers of gold and cream and the sun rays spread out across the valley. I ran outside to take photos - another traveler was out there, and he said "All we're missing is the rainbow!" and I turned around and BAM - there was a rainbow! I pointed it out to him and we laughed together. The scene was really indescribably beautiful. I took many photos and just soaked it up!
At this point it was time for us to head to our Shan banquet. We headed back to our little tuk tuk and the driver took us to the restaurant. When we arrived we found they had a private seating area for us (probably because Joseph had warned them how rowdy we were, haha!) decorated with lovely little lamps. Everyone ordered drinks (Myanmar beers all around!) and we sat talking and laughing while waiting for the food. Suddenly Joseph pulled out a bottle of local whiskey and said "whiskey time!" and we all started laughing! Even those of us that don't like whiskey (here I'm raising my hand) had to try some. WOW IT WAS STRONG! But surprisingly good. Our food arrived, and it just didn't stop coming! Soup, and barbeque similar to the bbq we had in Mandalay, and rice, and veggies, and it was so good but there was SO MUCH! At the end of the dinner we were all full and silly, and somehow someone suggested that we have a cat walk. Anyway, Tom clicked on hs video camera and out came the ridiculous "modeling" skills. Or lack thereof, hahaha.
When we finished we headed back to the hotel and spent another hour or two sitting outside, talking and laughing and just enjoying our time together. I have really grown to love this group of people - we have bonded so much. It will be so sad to say goodbye to everyone in two short days. This trip has flown by! I'll have one last post about the end of the trip. For now, please enjoy some of these photos of our amazing day on Inle Lake.
King Joseph!
Inside the tuk tuk!
Ask Tom to pose for a photo, and this is what you get - a rain jacket elephant! Haha!
If you look closely in the middle of the picture, right above the mountains, you'll see the rainbow!
Our Shan Banquet feasting hall!
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