Inle Lake

We had an early start to get on the lake before it got too hot. Getting up early wasn’t really a problem since the rooster outside our window started crowing about 4:30 am - before the sunrise. We got a page from Mom about the potential bombings in Kosovo. Seems so far away- but it was so good to get news from home.

We took boats to Inle Lake- a 61 square mile lake.

The lake life was interesting. The Intha villagers around the lake actually buy 100 metre by 2 metre strips of a humus like silt and weed mixture and tow these floating gardens to their homes. They grow everything imaginable on these floating gardens and use boats to harvest their produce (cauliflower, tomatoes, cucumbers, beans, peas, etc).

We piled out of our boats and stopped by yet another market.

This one was filled with “antique” dealers…everything is “old”. I priced a pair of earrings for Mom- the girl started at $25. By the time she had followed me through the market and all the way back to the boat, we settled on a price of 1500 kyat (about $3.50).
Then it was on to the silk weaving factory, the blacksmiths’ shop, and the silversmiths’ factory. We decided that it was time to make a list of all of the factories and workshops we’ve been dragged to. We had lunch across from the Phaun Daw U Pagoda, home of the famous bubble gum Buddhas (they’ve been plastered with so much gold leaf that the image of the Buddha is completely unrecognizable—they look like lumps of bubble gum).

Then, the highlight of the trip- the Nga Phe Kyaung (Jumping Cat) Monastery. The monks have trained the cats to jump through hoops. It’s was so stupid, it was funny. John suggested having them jump through a hoop positioned over a window leading to the lake. After a full day on the lake, it was time to head back.

We got to boat through the water buffaloes taking their afternoon dip in the lake. The look on their faces when they’re bobbing in the water is one of pure ecstasy.