February 2016
Inle Lake, in eastern central Myanmar, is the second largest lake in Myanmar, and one highest, at almost 3000 feet. It’s really just a big puddle, with a depth not more than 12 feet, during the dry season, and up to 17-18 feet during the rainy season. Its fame, and the reason it’s visited by so many tourists, is due to the unusual way in which the fishermen row their boats.
According to Wikipedia:
Local fishermen are known for practicing a distinctive rowing style which involves standing at the stern on one leg and wrapping the other leg around the oar. This unique style evolved out of necessity as the lake is covered by reeds and floating plants, making it difficult to see above them while sitting. Standing provides the rower with a view beyond the reeds. However, the leg rowing style is only practiced by the men. Women row in the customary style, using the oar with their hands, sitting cross legged at the stern.
The best way to see the lake is of course by boat. We cobbled together an unlikely group of fellow travellers – three young Chinese women who were staying at our hotel, Franco, a young French Canadian guy we’d met the day before, when we shared a boat ride, all of us with bicycles, across the river, and us, two well-seasoned (some might say aged) English Canadians. Down at the lakeside we perused the boats and boatmen, looking for the most ‘sea-worthy’ craft and least sleepy-looking pilot. The boats are long and thin, like over-sized canoes, unfortunately equipped with noisy gas engines that discourage normal conversation. Our boatman spoke just enough English to negotiate a price for a day trip.
A very full canoe, similar to the one we took on our tour around the lake.
We started off motoring slowly into the centre of the lake where traditionally clad boatmen, most with their leg wrapped around their oar, and holding their big hooped nets aloft. Fetching and very photogenic poses – for a price. We all took photos, and paid the ‘models’ what to us was next to nothing (less than a dollar), but to them was clearly well worth their efforts – evidenced by the big smiles we got.
Next we visited the ‘floating gardens’. It’s not clear if they are actually floating, given the shallowness of the lake, or just appear to be floating. In any event, all manner of crops are grown on these little islands, which are tended by families in boats.
It was interesting just to see how the people lived in and around the lake, the houses on stilts, the paths through the waterways, the bridges over them. A whole different world from the land side.
We stopped in at a couple of artisan villages where old and young folks made jewelry, pottery, woven mats and other crafty items, primarily for the tourist trade. One very young boy busy was making jewelry. He barely looked up when we were there. Was he happy in his work?
At the end of the trip we went to a market, on one side of the lake, and also accessible by car or bicycle. Although there were many items made primarily for the tourist trade, there were lots of locals there too, buying fruits, vegetables, baskets, firewood, woven mats, and household sundries.
It was a nice relaxing day, albeit very touristy. But still, sometimes the tourist schtik is if not exactly good for tourists and locals alike, at least not too bad. Hopefully the folks of Inle Lake will find a way to manage tourism so that the charms of the lake, which are many, are not spoiled.
Note: for more info about Inle Lake, its people, its unique aquatic plants, flora and fauna, and its environmental issues, go to https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Inle_Lake
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