Tuesday 20 January 2015


NYAUNG SHWE, INLE LAKE & IN DEIN

It was time to check out Inle Lake though, the main reason for stopping here in Nyaung Shwe, and what draws so many tourists to the area.  We opted for only a half day tour as we have obviously both seen enough markets and handicraft workshops, which are usually little more than a hard sell to buy some trinkets.

We also took the longer voyage which takes you out to In Dein, a small village made slightly famous for it’s ruined pagodas and stupas, located at the end of a small, winding, extremely picturesque creek.  The boat ride being more of a highlight than the actual temples or massive line of markets trying to sell you all manner of art, craft and jewellery in the entranceway.

The entire lake area was beautiful - a vast wetland interspersed with little islands, crops, stilt house villages with canal streets, floating gardens, local fishermen, more than a few market and handicraft shops, all surrounded by misty mountains. The whole trip was a definite highlight and should be on any travellers list, I’m only regretting we didn’t do the full day trip.

Our half day trip was $16, but that is the cost of the whole boat which can take around 5-6 people, though we went just the 2 of us.

Standout restaurants around Nyaung Shwe were the Sunflower (try the pork and pumpkin curry) and Beyond Taste, though the latter is much more upmarket and meals there were rather expensive at $4-$5 each!  We tried quite a few restaurants during our stay, but there were no others I feel worth recommending.

Another 11 hour bus journey took us south to Yangon again to organize my Thai visa, though this bus ride was easily the best we had endured on our Myanmar travels.  With small personal tv’s in the seats allowing us to simply kick back in rather spacious seating and watch movies the whole way, plus fairly smooth roads, the 11 hours went by quickly.






The canals in town are that dirty brown but the lake is nice


  






Great spot for lunch and a beer


The village houses right on the lake






Cruising the 'streets'