Inle Lake, February 2014

We had a full day of exploring Inle Lake by traditional long boat. It was a great experience and definately a highlight, if not the highlight, of the trip. I wish we had had at least another full day in this area. While what we saw was "touristy" by Myanmar standards in reality all of it was traditional to the local lifestyle. Even in a touristy place in Myanmar you are greatly outnumbered by the locals, and people are genuinely happy to see you.

We arrived at the dock in Nyaungshwe early in the morning.
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This is our ride for an all-day tour of Inle Lake.
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A scene from The Mikado?
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Gassing up our ride.
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And we're off! Headed down the canal to Inle Lake!
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There is lots of traffic headed out.
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Motoring along.
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This dredge helps keep the canal clear.
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A fisherman? Well, sort of. These guys wait where the canal meets the lake. They don't fish, they just pose for pictures.
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I didn't care for this and was worried that we were in for a lot of posed pics...for tips. Fortunately these guys were the only ones doing that.
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Shortly after seeing the fake fishermen we spotted this boat full of locals headed out on the lake. Regular folks going about their business.
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These are real fishermen. They appear to be chasing fish into a net.
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There are many boats with no motors, people paddle.
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You see many people on Inle Lake gathering "seaweed." They paddle way out in the lake, fill their boat and head back. I believe it is used for fertilizer.
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Seaweed gatherer, Inle Lake.
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Seaweed gatherer, Inle Lake.
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Seaweed gatherer, Inle Lake.
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Seaweed gatherer on smoke break, Inle Lake.
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Arriving in Ywama Village, Inle Lake, Myanmar.
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There are many villages like Ywama near Inle Lake. They are reach via canals and streams.
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Our first stop on the tour.
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We are greated by this young lady at the Aung San Ther Silversmith in Ywama Village.
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We get to hold a bar of pure silver.
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They make beautiful jewelry.
Asia Aung Chan Thar Silver Smith Aung Chan Thar Silversmith Burma Inle Lake Michael Walker Michael Walker Photos Myanmar People Places Shan State Southeast Asia Tim Brooks Ywama Village michaelwalkerphotos www.michaelwalkerphotos.com
Yep, silver.
Asia Aung Chan Thar Silver Smith Aung Chan Thar Silversmith Burma Inle Lake Michael Walker Michael Walker Photos Myanmar People Places Shan State Southeast Asia Ywama Village michaelwalkerphotos www.michaelwalkerphotos.com
Tea break!
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One of the silversmiths at work.
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She is showing us some of their work.
Asia Aung Chan Thar Silver Smith Aung Chan Thar Silversmith Burma Inle Lake Michael Walker Michael Walker Photos Myanmar Places Shan State Southeast Asia Ywama Village michaelwalkerphotos www.michaelwalkerphotos.com
The office kitchen. Those are never clean, are they?
Asia Aung Chan Thar Silver Smith Aung Chan Thar Silversmith Burma Inle Lake Michael Walker Michael Walker Photos Myanmar Places Shan State Southeast Asia Ywama Village michaelwalkerphotos www.michaelwalkerphotos.com
This man is using some sort of press. I think it is part of the process to make silver chains.
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Silversmith at work.
Asia Aung Chan Thar Silver Smith Aung Chan Thar Silversmith Burma Inle Lake Michael Walker Michael Walker Photos Myanmar Places Shan State Southeast Asia Ywama Village michaelwalkerphotos www.michaelwalkerphotos.com
This guy is making an elaborate silver chain.
Asia Aung Chan Thar Silver Smith Aung Chan Thar Silversmith Burma Inle Lake Michael Walker Michael Walker Photos Myanmar Places Shan State Southeast Asia Ywama Village michaelwalkerphotos www.michaelwalkerphotos.com
We're back on the river, headed farther away from the lake.
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To keep the river deep enough to navigate, they build these wiers to provide a chute for the water.
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Boys on bikes.
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Man with a water buffalo. You see all kinds of sights from daily life.
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Monks filling jugs at the river.
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Pretty much all of life takes place at the river's edge.
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Our driver guns it as we head up to another wier.
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Jumping a wier. I've seen photos from the rainy season, it looks much wilder!
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We round a bend and Indein Village appears out of nowhere. Boats everywhere!
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Docking.
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We head out to explore Indein Village and their large market.
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The "port" in Indein Village.
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Long boats at Indein Village.
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A shady retreat from the heat.
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Some of the boats carry tourists, but many are just working boats.
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The food court at the mall!
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m i c h a e l w a l k e r p h o t o s

Inle Lake, February 2014