119. STAND & STARE - LIFE BY INLE LAKE
Related Post 101 - The Road to Mandalay
Heho! Heho! O'er the hills we go!!!
We explored the neighbourhood around the hotel and came across this home where a passionate puppet master shows his skill every night. He carries on a family tradition and laments the dying art. He was good - his puppets too - marionettes...
He takes snooze atop a tin can with a book as cushion...
This bridal twosome in costumes which can be Malaysian, Indonesian, even Cambodian...ASEAN is apt...
Bagan (post 101) would have looked like this before they made it look brand new. As it is now, work is been carried out to fix this lovely old place with its numerous old stupas. The newer stupas are the golden structures...
When I came off our boat, it was like discovering a lost land...!
It's about community, family and friends...
At this early morning market, the vendors are tribal folks who trek down from the hills to sell their wares. To get here, the boat ride took more than an hour...but what spectacular scenery...
Below, all manner of transport modes are out on the streets as folks arrived from out of town for this big, important Buddhist festival. There were tractors retrofitted to carry passengers, and former military trucks...so cool!
Lots of recycling take place in such rural, agricultural, island communities. Below, metal waste is remade into knives, using manual labour of course, smaller pieces are hammered into chimes and hanging mobiles...
Made a stop at this boatyard below. A long boat which can seat up to 20 was crafted by hand using simple 'primitive' tools....a saw operated by 2, axes, file, chisel and hammer, no nails. 'Glue' used to seal joints was made from resin with a mixture of sawdust and lime.
These boatmen dredge the lake bed for muddy but rich earth which is used in the farms and to reclaim land...The mud is mixed with straw, formed into blocks and left to dry...
...after which, arranged along the banks of this boatyard. As there's plenty of sawdust generated from the production of boats, sawdust is scattered over the mud to absorb moisture and provides a dry surface to walk on - it was bouncy. Brilliant! Out of the box. Organic. Recycling at its best! They didn't go to Uni to learn this and all other things I saw here...Singaporeans may have schooling up to a high level, but did they get an education, I wondered?
The Nga Phe Chaung Monastery, an old zinc and wood building with lots of cats. Sometime in the future, this may become a huge golden monstrosity, I'm thankful I'm seeing Inle in its authentic state...
Making of cheeruts - chopped leaves and stems
Long and short smokes. The cottage industry is organic, very clean...
Betel leaves and the nuts that go towards a good chew - a very Indian habit - still widely chewed on throughout Burma...this country was once part of a large Hindu kingdom...
Needless to say, life along the lake and streams is centered around boats. For 2 days, we had such a boat to ourselves. Exposed to the sun, I turned a crispy, toasty brown. The boatmen provided umbrellas, raincoats and life jackets. I'm quite amazed that a country that was cut off from the world for so long, had practically everything so developed...these are a smart people...
The spider orchid is rarely seen in Singapore but commonplace in the lake area as they are pure wild breeds not the hybrid types produced for commercial purpose - so too the Burmese cats bred by the owner at this resort hotel (below)
This is the only place I see fabrics woven from lotus stems. The stems are a metre long or longer. A slight cut is made on the stem before its twisted and broken into a few sections to draw out the fibrous part within the stem. Several fibres are rolled togther to form a single thread, it's slow and laborious and takes lots of stems to make enough thread so it's used mainly to weave scarfs which are not dyed...
Their weaving industry already suffers from labour woes - all the weavers were elderly but with amazing eyesight - none had glasses on as they tie knots, thread looms in natural sunlight coming in from windows
This is the only place where I see the authentic way of dyeing silk - using manual labour and steaming to make it colour fast. Even silk threads are made here and steamed (top, left) in a basket over a boiling clay pot of water.
Newly woven silk scarves - out to dry after steaming...
Skewered chicken heads - nothing goes to waste. Food is plentiful and they grow their own...
Large chunky slices of winter melon
Corn - in a deep maroon shade
This rich coloured fruit is the persimmon - their food is clean without a lot of rubbish added...
Bamboo is shaved - its hollow tubes used for boiling or steaming rice in...
Simple implements - for paper making and crafting umbrellas...
This trip allows me a glimpse into the many wonderful cottage industries still been practised in Myanmar. I fear these will all die out in time to come so I record them for posterity. In post 101 (The Road to Mandalay) I did likewise. This warm and smiley chap opened his home to us as he beats wet paper to a pulp before spreading that in water and sprinkling rose petals and leaves into it for colourful decorative effect. Although I've seen this in Thailand and Sri Lanka, this chap does it with so much pride...it was 5.30, he had closed for the day but opened up the place quickly and got to work
A wooden and bamboo bridge is as good a place as any to dry blankets...
We stopped at this village in a bamboo forest with its very many bamboo groves.
As bamboo is plentiful, a good many homes, furniture and rafts are crafted from this wonderful plant. I stopped to check out this fence below, put together without nails - its dried hard branches are sharp enough to poke intruders...
Myanmar is so close to North Thailand so the 'long neck' tribe is found here too - these 2 are probably displayed here for photo opportunities...
From her boat, she erects a fence of bamboo for the tendrils to twirl around...tomatoes are an important cash crop - they are harvested 3 times a year...
Perhaps, because they are grown over water, they are juicy but aren't sweet...
Public clinic - for a country that was isolated for so long, their public services are good - there's electricity and running water, toilets - roads and boat services are good - I didn't come across beggars or destitutes - this is so on Inle Lake, a rural farming region and is so in the cities which I visited last year...
Hill tribes arriving for the festival...
Every home along the length and breadth of the Lake has electricity - their cables strung on such wooden poles - it's wonderful how they make use of whatever local materials that's available in that region...
Balancing on her boat, she ties on to a bamboo pole, her day's work of noodles arranged neatly in bags, to dry...
Roadside tattoo artist - some black ink is applied to a design mould and pressed on to the arm...after which, powder is dusted over the tattoo to set it...
The show goes on - there was just the one boy on this ride and the vendor pushed him around several times using physical strength. This bazaar and the street buzz happened due to the festival of the Buddha images which had arrived on that day...at other times, this place is very likely a sleepy hollow...
This vendor's tribal cap is made from goats' teeth...
Like something from a Malay village....love the reflection in the placid water...
A prayerful people, many folks were dressed up and carrying offerings of flowers, fruit and cakes to the local temple to offer to several Buddha images which had arrived in a very fancy golden boat (below) This boat has been making stops at towns along the river and its images spent a day or two at temples along the way. My trip coincided with this festival so the town of Nyaung Shwe was at its festive best during my stay...
Almost like Bhutan - I like everything about Inle Lake and the town, Nyaung Shwe, where we were parked for 3 nights - this place is so raw, authentic, its people genuine...
Back to back on a cyclo built for 2 and cyclist makes 3 - as in India, such mode of transport cut through back lanes and side roads, usually bumpy and potholed....
At this simple local eating house, my juice came with a swizzle stick....this joint was just across the road from their international and domestic airports, it was where we waited till time to walk to their airports to catch relevant flights. The staff were warm and friendly, we were the only foreigners, all others were airport staff...
An ingenious way of trapping insects that hover by the hundreds at night under light tubes. Plastic bags filled with water are kept open with a chopstick, insects drop right in...clean, cheap, organic - brilliant - and the humans learned this from the Plant Kingdom...
William Henry Davies (1871-1940)
The flight from Yangon to Heho was short, about an hour. The very pleasant drive to the town of Nyaung Shwe in Shan State was another hour. This town is by the banks of Inle Lake where, for 2 days, a boat took us to explore the sights and sounds of a lake community. Like! Like! Like!
Her neighbours
We explored the neighbourhood around the hotel and came across this home where a passionate puppet master shows his skill every night. He carries on a family tradition and laments the dying art. He was good - his puppets too - marionettes...
He takes snooze atop a tin can with a book as cushion...
This bridal twosome in costumes which can be Malaysian, Indonesian, even Cambodian...ASEAN is apt...
Bagan (post 101) would have looked like this before they made it look brand new. As it is now, work is been carried out to fix this lovely old place with its numerous old stupas. The newer stupas are the golden structures...
When I came off our boat, it was like discovering a lost land...!
It's about community, family and friends...
Below, all manner of transport modes are out on the streets as folks arrived from out of town for this big, important Buddhist festival. There were tractors retrofitted to carry passengers, and former military trucks...so cool!
Lots of recycling take place in such rural, agricultural, island communities. Below, metal waste is remade into knives, using manual labour of course, smaller pieces are hammered into chimes and hanging mobiles...
Made a stop at this boatyard below. A long boat which can seat up to 20 was crafted by hand using simple 'primitive' tools....a saw operated by 2, axes, file, chisel and hammer, no nails. 'Glue' used to seal joints was made from resin with a mixture of sawdust and lime.
These boatmen dredge the lake bed for muddy but rich earth which is used in the farms and to reclaim land...The mud is mixed with straw, formed into blocks and left to dry...
...after which, arranged along the banks of this boatyard. As there's plenty of sawdust generated from the production of boats, sawdust is scattered over the mud to absorb moisture and provides a dry surface to walk on - it was bouncy. Brilliant! Out of the box. Organic. Recycling at its best! They didn't go to Uni to learn this and all other things I saw here...Singaporeans may have schooling up to a high level, but did they get an education, I wondered?
The Nga Phe Chaung Monastery, an old zinc and wood building with lots of cats. Sometime in the future, this may become a huge golden monstrosity, I'm thankful I'm seeing Inle in its authentic state...
Making of cheeruts - chopped leaves and stems
Long and short smokes. The cottage industry is organic, very clean...
Needless to say, life along the lake and streams is centered around boats. For 2 days, we had such a boat to ourselves. Exposed to the sun, I turned a crispy, toasty brown. The boatmen provided umbrellas, raincoats and life jackets. I'm quite amazed that a country that was cut off from the world for so long, had practically everything so developed...these are a smart people...
The spider orchid is rarely seen in Singapore but commonplace in the lake area as they are pure wild breeds not the hybrid types produced for commercial purpose - so too the Burmese cats bred by the owner at this resort hotel (below)
This is the only place I see fabrics woven from lotus stems. The stems are a metre long or longer. A slight cut is made on the stem before its twisted and broken into a few sections to draw out the fibrous part within the stem. Several fibres are rolled togther to form a single thread, it's slow and laborious and takes lots of stems to make enough thread so it's used mainly to weave scarfs which are not dyed...
Their weaving industry already suffers from labour woes - all the weavers were elderly but with amazing eyesight - none had glasses on as they tie knots, thread looms in natural sunlight coming in from windows
This is the only place where I see the authentic way of dyeing silk - using manual labour and steaming to make it colour fast. Even silk threads are made here and steamed (top, left) in a basket over a boiling clay pot of water.
Newly woven silk scarves - out to dry after steaming...
Skewered chicken heads - nothing goes to waste. Food is plentiful and they grow their own...
Large chunky slices of winter melon
Corn - in a deep maroon shade
This rich coloured fruit is the persimmon - their food is clean without a lot of rubbish added...
Bamboo is shaved - its hollow tubes used for boiling or steaming rice in...
Simple implements - for paper making and crafting umbrellas...
We stopped at this village in a bamboo forest with its very many bamboo groves.
As bamboo is plentiful, a good many homes, furniture and rafts are crafted from this wonderful plant. I stopped to check out this fence below, put together without nails - its dried hard branches are sharp enough to poke intruders...
Myanmar is so close to North Thailand so the 'long neck' tribe is found here too - these 2 are probably displayed here for photo opportunities...
From her boat, she erects a fence of bamboo for the tendrils to twirl around...tomatoes are an important cash crop - they are harvested 3 times a year...
Public clinic - for a country that was isolated for so long, their public services are good - there's electricity and running water, toilets - roads and boat services are good - I didn't come across beggars or destitutes - this is so on Inle Lake, a rural farming region and is so in the cities which I visited last year...
Hill tribes arriving for the festival...
Every home along the length and breadth of the Lake has electricity - their cables strung on such wooden poles - it's wonderful how they make use of whatever local materials that's available in that region...
Balancing on her boat, she ties on to a bamboo pole, her day's work of noodles arranged neatly in bags, to dry...
Along this stretch of the lake, noodle making seems to be the main job...
Roadside tattoo artist - some black ink is applied to a design mould and pressed on to the arm...after which, powder is dusted over the tattoo to set it...
Like something from a Malay village....love the reflection in the placid water...
A prayerful people, many folks were dressed up and carrying offerings of flowers, fruit and cakes to the local temple to offer to several Buddha images which had arrived in a very fancy golden boat (below) This boat has been making stops at towns along the river and its images spent a day or two at temples along the way. My trip coincided with this festival so the town of Nyaung Shwe was at its festive best during my stay...
Almost like Bhutan - I like everything about Inle Lake and the town, Nyaung Shwe, where we were parked for 3 nights - this place is so raw, authentic, its people genuine...
Back to back on a cyclo built for 2 and cyclist makes 3 - as in India, such mode of transport cut through back lanes and side roads, usually bumpy and potholed....
What is this life, full of care,
We have no time to stand and stare.
No time to stand beneath the boughs,
And stare as long as sheep or cows.
No time to see when woods we pass,
Where squirrels hide their nuts in grass.
No time to see, in broad daylight,
Streams full of stars, like skies at night.
No time to turn at Beauty's glance,
And watch her feet - how they can dance.
No time to wait till her mouth can,
Enrich that smile her eyes began,
A poor life this is, if, full of care,
We have no time to stand and stare...
William Henry Davies (1871-1940)
posted by shirley @ 12:49 pm
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