Messing About in Boats on Inle Lake

Monday, December 03, 2012
Inle Lake, Myanmar
08:46 We are going on a boat trip today, so it was up just after 7 for a whirlwind breakfast and then waiting for the group to gather before walking to the jetty.
We boarded our long thin boat which had chairs in a line down the centre complete with seat cushion, water bottle, umbrella and picnic rug (it's actually a bit chilly) as the clouds are covering us and it has rained overnight .
 
09:40 We passed through a town on the lake, all built on stilts as well as the electricity wires. All the streets were water ways, each house had its own little jetty. There are lots of fishermen here who stand at one end of the boat on one foot and with their other foot hold an oar, and paddle along whilst their hands are dealing with a fishing net- this takes tremendous balance and strength and they make it look so easy!
 
10:31 We stopped in at a lotus silk weaving factory. They pull 10cm or so of a sort of stringy fibre out of a lotus plant and stick it with a few more and eventually make a long thread. The weaving looms are deafening as the thread shuttle is hit from one side to another weaving the silks. The smell of burning wood wafts through the air from the dyeing room. Such a lot of sensory sensation.
The clouds have nearly all burnt off and we are left with a cloudless sunny afternoon pottering about in the boat which is truly lovely.
 
13:37 Before lunch we also went to a blacksmiths and a place where they were making teak boats, but also had a whole load of other things to sell . Lunch was the same food- chicken with cashew nuts, green bean salad, rice, soup and unusually they eat avocados for pudding. The avocados here are amazing, really big just perfect and soft.
 
14:44 After lunch we went by a silversmiths and mum bought a few items from girls on boats. Then 100 yards up the water we saw a lady with the brass rings round her neck, we felt the weight of a similar sized set of rings and it was very very heavy! We passed through fields of tomatoes and visited a monastery which had a couple of very ill looking kittens in them, one may not live out the night. There are lots of stray dogs around, mostly in packs, some looking very worse for wear with mange and the like. It would upset animal lovers coming here seeing this.
 
19:46 We returned about 5pm and I had a bath and relaxed before dinner. On stepping out of my room I had to put my fleece jumper and jacket on... did not expect that. 
You can imagine my joy when I discovered that dinner was once again, soup, various curryies and steamed rice. I have reached the point where I can no loner be bothered to eat. I'm a little depressed about the lack of variety in food, despite the variety being available on the menu.

It really has been a lovely day though out on the lake and I'm looking forward to going out on it again tomorrow.

Best: day on the boat
Worst: little bored with eating
Beautiful: all the incredible views on the lake
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