Our second day in Inle Lake was all about the guided boat tour. Everyone ends up doing one and we’d highly recommend it. We booked ours through our accommodation (Teak Wood Hotel) getting a description of everything we’d see which included some things slightly off the standard tourist boat trail. Perfect! We paid $20 for a full day trip for two, including a visit to Indein, which I was keen to see. From previous research this was a good price so I was more than happy to pay (and happier still not to have to haggle!).
Around 7.30am, our guide came to meet us at our hotel and led us down to the busy canalside area where all the boats launched from. He introduced himself and his young son, who would be first mate on our boat for the day. He spoke a bit of English, not much but enough to get by for the day.
We launched off through the permanent traffic jam of longtail boats – standard practice seems to be to just ram your way through – and started down the river towards the lake. The morning air was almost frosty so we were glad to have the blankets our driver had lent us on our seats.
After about 10 minutes we entered the North edge of the lake. Straight away we were amidst many fishermen, balanced on one leg and holding their conical fish traps. However they seemed more interested in holding their poses for tourist cameras than actually fishing and the cynic in me found it a bit too convenient that they were here, waiting and perfectly posing. Didn’t stop me getting a picture though!
Our first stop for the day was to be the big local market which was at the southern end of the lake. On the long ride down though, we stopped a couple of times and our driver explained what some of the locals were up to; seaweed fishers who dig up weed from the lake bed and wash it out inside their boats with great skill; floating tomato gardens – thick sods of matted vegetation and soil which are pinned in place with bamboo, but have enough freedom to move up and down with the lake’s water level; fishermen who lay out nets then head away and smack the water with poles of bamboo in an effort to scare fish towards their net.
Just before the market we stopped off in the village at a small silverware workshop. It would become a pattern of the day to see things being made and then having the option to buy those goods. Unfortunately for the people of Inle we were on a pretty tight budget that couldn’t stretch to silverware and silks. Nevertheless it was pretty cool to see the craftsmen making such intricate jewellery.
When we finally reached the market it put the hustle and bustle of the Nyaungshwe canal to shame. Boats lined up almost to the horizon where the market stood; we had to cross three boats just to reach the bank!
The road down to the main market was lined with tourist stalls selling all kinds of souvenirs, trying to get our attention with the call of ‘hello sir, just looking’ which was a bit odd. The first few rows at the market were similarly set up but if you continue through to the back you will see the stalls the local people use. Pretty much anything was available, from power tools to clothes to all kinds of fruit and veg.
We stopped at one of the snack stalls for a bag of fried lentil snacks which I’ve had in England as ‘karkli’. I didn’t get the Burmese name as it was very much a point-and-pay purchase! After that we headed back to the boat. By now all of the frostiness of the morning was well and truly gone as the morning sun was toasting the landscape. We switched from blankets to sun-hats and moved off.
Our guide said our next stop was one of the floating villages that was seldom visited by the tour boats. We were happy about that as there had been hundreds of boats at the market, and it really delivered too. We sailed through the quiet canals of a local village and pulled up by a much smaller market with no other tourists around. From there we ascended a covered walkway up to the local temple which again was virtually deserted and so peaceful.
Our final stop before lunch was a local textile workshop. Inside were told about the lotus and silk weaving techniques and saw all the processes in action. There was a lot of skill involved in the weaving and it really showed in the price they were selling the fabrics for – waaay beyond our budget!
After the end of a very hectic morning we were ready for lunch, luckily our driver knew a nice restaurant…
More to come soon.