Lake Inle is well established on the tourist route and is a good stopping off point between Yangon and the north, or vise versa. The lake itself isn't the largest in Myanmar, that title goes to Indawgyi, but Lake Inle's charm comes from the various villages and the unique way people and nature come together.
The lake is 13.5 miles and 7 miles wide and nestled in the mountains making it a spectacular location, and so the journey getting there is also quite exciting, whether you choose to fly, take a bus, train or hike, as we did from Kalaw - read about our trek.
We stayed at Inle for two full days at the Inle Star hotel in Nyaung Shwe - located right on the canal by the numerous tourist boats. The hotel was great, with AC, hot shower (much needed after trekking for three days), clean bathroom, TV (with english movies!) a good breakfast (Eggs, toast, pancake and local options) and the staff were friendly and more than happy to help. The location was great for organising a boat, and provided interesting views of the canal, but it did get a bit noisy during the day.
As we had got on so well with our fellow trekkers - Phil, Hayley, Martin and Pepe, we met up for dinner at the market - Shi Yaw, which did some some super Shan Noodles - and decided to check out the area by bike on the first day and boat the second.
Biking Inle
Our plan was to head to one of only two wineries in Myanmar and then ride to Maing Thauk a third of the way down the lake, catch a boat and cycle back on the opposite bank. It is easy to pick up a bike as most hotels (including our own) provided good bikes for 1,500 Kyat. Sadly Julia didn't feel that great, so decided to take a day off.
Biking around the town was very easy and rather pleasant (even if the chain fell off in the first 5 minutes... maybe i was a bit too keen with the gears!) with many locals saying hello and only a few cars on the streets. The route was fairly obvious, but we did meet several people with maps (but they are not really required). After about 10 minutes of cycling we arrived at the foot of the hill up to the Red Mountain Estate vineyard. Phil and I decided to brave the hill, whilst the others - Martin, Pepe and Hayley parked up at the bottom near the guards.
The estate had wonderful views across the valley and a lovely garden. We explored the wine making area and vineyards trying to figure out what everything did (no-one stopped us!) and settled down on a bench in the sun overlooking the valley for some wine tasting.
You get 4 wines to taste - three white and one red. They focus quite heavily on Muscat so the wines are quite sweet and the red really wasn't that nice, but it was a stunning setting and it was really nice to chill out with our trekking friends and have a glass of wine at 10am in the morning!
Sadly Phil and Hayley needed to head back to Kalaw, so we said our goodbyes and headed our separate ways, with Pepe, Martin and I heading south down the lake.
The cycle was nice passing through various towns and waving to people as we went. The route ran along the main road, which meant it was paved, but there was the occasional truck. As we neared Maing Thauk a young boy who was wearing an Everton shirt (I couldn't pronounce his name properly so just called him Everton) approached us and started asking where we were heading, before cycling with us all the way to the village.
We parked up the bikes and walked along the 400 ft or so wooden bridge across the water to a boat which would transport us to a restaurant (which Everton piloted across) for lunch.
Lunch was super - the avocado salad was especially good and much cheaper than other restaurants in the area. After relaxing for an hour or so we went to arrange a boat to take us to the far side of the lake. It become apparent why Everton had been so friendly, as there he was waiting on a boat for us. After some comedy hard bargaining we jumped onto a boat for 6,000 Kyat and headed across the lake.
The journey across was good fun. The boats used on Inle are narrow and long with the engine at the back (wear ear plugs or put on some music), so the front lifts up out of the water. You sit on small wooden chairs one behind the other and the bikes were balanced at the front. It was a little windy and as I was at the back, the spray made me quite wet to the amusement of Everton.
Once on the other side we peddled back on the road stopping at various points to take pictures of the surroundings, watch a competitive volleyball match and look at the roadside sellers.
The bike ride took us only a few hours and we were back by 4pm making it a nice leisurely day or half day trip.
Julia was feeling much better by the time we got back so we headed for some food and arranged a boat for the following day.
Boating Inle
We met at the dock at about 8am (another early start) and agreed the route with the boatman. It seems the best time to arrange a boat was just after sunset the night before as the boats arrive back and boatmen try to pick up business for the following day. We had quotes ranging from 25,000 - 18,000 Kyat for four of us for the entire boat (less if there are fewer of you so it's good to shop around). Also, it was cheaper going direct to a boatman than an agency. We agreed at 18,000 for the full day - 8am to 6pm.
The day involved a number of stops at sites and craft houses in the various villages. Each village around the lake specializes in some sort of craft, including blackmiths, weaving, gold/silversmith, boat building etc.
We also stopped at a blacksmiths, making knives and various other metal ornaments.
We ended the day watching sunset over the lake and various 'fishermen' vying for tourists to take the photo with the sunset.
We really liked Inle and the town Nyaung Shwe. It was well set up for tourism and it looks like it is going to get much busier with lots of new large hotels being built. It had a nice balance of good cafes, local eateries, street food and western restaurants, whilst being small enough to be easily walk-able.
Lake Inle itself is very special, and despite getting a bit touristy on the boat trip, we'd still highly recommend the boat tour as you really need to be on the lake to appreciate it. The shops did get a little 'jade factory' esk, so we decided to miss a few towards the end and we also passed on the human zoo of the long neck tribe. You will find on the trip back to watch sunset there are a number of traditionally dressed fishermen not really fishing. They are just there for tourists to get the stero-typical 'inle fishing man' picture. Take your photos of these guys, giving them a few hundred Kyat to say thanks and leave the real fishermen to fish from afar.
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| One legged fishing |
The lake is 13.5 miles and 7 miles wide and nestled in the mountains making it a spectacular location, and so the journey getting there is also quite exciting, whether you choose to fly, take a bus, train or hike, as we did from Kalaw - read about our trek.
We stayed at Inle for two full days at the Inle Star hotel in Nyaung Shwe - located right on the canal by the numerous tourist boats. The hotel was great, with AC, hot shower (much needed after trekking for three days), clean bathroom, TV (with english movies!) a good breakfast (Eggs, toast, pancake and local options) and the staff were friendly and more than happy to help. The location was great for organising a boat, and provided interesting views of the canal, but it did get a bit noisy during the day.
As we had got on so well with our fellow trekkers - Phil, Hayley, Martin and Pepe, we met up for dinner at the market - Shi Yaw, which did some some super Shan Noodles - and decided to check out the area by bike on the first day and boat the second.
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| Boating our way around Inle |
Our plan was to head to one of only two wineries in Myanmar and then ride to Maing Thauk a third of the way down the lake, catch a boat and cycle back on the opposite bank. It is easy to pick up a bike as most hotels (including our own) provided good bikes for 1,500 Kyat. Sadly Julia didn't feel that great, so decided to take a day off.
Biking around the town was very easy and rather pleasant (even if the chain fell off in the first 5 minutes... maybe i was a bit too keen with the gears!) with many locals saying hello and only a few cars on the streets. The route was fairly obvious, but we did meet several people with maps (but they are not really required). After about 10 minutes of cycling we arrived at the foot of the hill up to the Red Mountain Estate vineyard. Phil and I decided to brave the hill, whilst the others - Martin, Pepe and Hayley parked up at the bottom near the guards.
 |
| Wine at 10am...why not!? |
You get 4 wines to taste - three white and one red. They focus quite heavily on Muscat so the wines are quite sweet and the red really wasn't that nice, but it was a stunning setting and it was really nice to chill out with our trekking friends and have a glass of wine at 10am in the morning!
 |
| The vineyard |
The cycle was nice passing through various towns and waving to people as we went. The route ran along the main road, which meant it was paved, but there was the occasional truck. As we neared Maing Thauk a young boy who was wearing an Everton shirt (I couldn't pronounce his name properly so just called him Everton) approached us and started asking where we were heading, before cycling with us all the way to the village.
 |
| Everton showing off the local way of rowing a boat |
Lunch was super - the avocado salad was especially good and much cheaper than other restaurants in the area. After relaxing for an hour or so we went to arrange a boat to take us to the far side of the lake. It become apparent why Everton had been so friendly, as there he was waiting on a boat for us. After some comedy hard bargaining we jumped onto a boat for 6,000 Kyat and headed across the lake.
The journey across was good fun. The boats used on Inle are narrow and long with the engine at the back (wear ear plugs or put on some music), so the front lifts up out of the water. You sit on small wooden chairs one behind the other and the bikes were balanced at the front. It was a little windy and as I was at the back, the spray made me quite wet to the amusement of Everton.
 |
| Bikes all aboard |
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| Volleyball game in action |
Julia was feeling much better by the time we got back so we headed for some food and arranged a boat for the following day.
Boating Inle
We met at the dock at about 8am (another early start) and agreed the route with the boatman. It seems the best time to arrange a boat was just after sunset the night before as the boats arrive back and boatmen try to pick up business for the following day. We had quotes ranging from 25,000 - 18,000 Kyat for four of us for the entire boat (less if there are fewer of you so it's good to shop around). Also, it was cheaper going direct to a boatman than an agency. We agreed at 18,000 for the full day - 8am to 6pm.
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| Plenty of choice! |
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| In Paw Khone - the floating village |
- Market at Phaung Daw Oo Pagoda
The market rotates around five sites and takes over. It is huge and every imaginable item is sold. The majority of stalls are geared towards local people which was good, as tourist markets don't really interest us unless we are looking for trinkets. There was fresh fruit, fresh live fish, petrol (no kidding), cooking oil, bamboo ready for weaving, food stands and even a barbers! We really enjoyed wandering around.
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| Shopped out at the market |
- In Dein
A little off the main circuit, but well worth it, just for the trip alone. The canal has a series of weirs so its a bit like a log flume which was great fun. We found the old group of ruined stupas known as Nyayng Ohak and then headed to Shwe Inn Thein Paya - a large complex of stupas found at the top of a hill which was a beautiful sight. Many of the stupas had been renovated with donations from people around the world - each with a little plaque explaining who had kindly donated the renovation money
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| In case we hadn't had enough of golden stupas! |
- In Paw Khone
At this lakeside village, silk weaving is the main craft here. We stopped at a factory on stilts and were shown traditional weaving methods. They even weave using lotus roots, and we saw them creating the yard from the roots themselves. Amazingly 5,000 lotus stems are needed to make just one scarf, and the prices of the scarfs in the little shop matched this!
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| Lotus flower thread |
- Nam Pan
Where do all these super boats get built? Nam Pan that's where. We visited a work shop there where they were building what is known as a 'tourist boat - yours for $2500 and a fisherman's boat - coming in at a very reasonable $800. There were various wood related handicrafts they made from the discarded teak wood as well. The journey through Nam Pan was really picturesque too. It is a floating village, so all on stilts in rows along the river streets.
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| Boat making in action |
- Ywama
It wouldn't be right without a gold and silversmiths. Well Inle has one in the form of Ywama village. We were shown how they make their silver and mix it with copper, made the silver wire and watched how they made all the small silver links which are used to make a silver chain necklace. It was really interesting to see them at work and much cheaper to buy from here than the market.
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| Silversmith at work making the links for a silver chain |
- Floating gardens
If you lived in the middle of a lake with a supply of water, what better way to farm that to create floating fields! This fascinating farming method was based on long floating rafts, growing tomatoes, beans, flowers and other vegetables. We were able to get out the boat and nervously stand (balance) on it, but watch out as you slowly start to sink!
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| Chris and Martin trying not to sink! |
- The Cat monastery
The monastery is a lovely teak building, with lots of cats milling around. It is famous for its cats who have supposedly been trained to jump through hoops by the monks during the quiet hours between recital times. We didn't get the honour of experiencing this slightly strange tourist show as they only put it on when they're not in meditation sessions or having dinner.
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| Meow |
We also stopped at a blacksmiths, making knives and various other metal ornaments.
We ended the day watching sunset over the lake and various 'fishermen' vying for tourists to take the photo with the sunset.
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| Sunset posing |
Lake Inle itself is very special, and despite getting a bit touristy on the boat trip, we'd still highly recommend the boat tour as you really need to be on the lake to appreciate it. The shops did get a little 'jade factory' esk, so we decided to miss a few towards the end and we also passed on the human zoo of the long neck tribe. You will find on the trip back to watch sunset there are a number of traditionally dressed fishermen not really fishing. They are just there for tourists to get the stero-typical 'inle fishing man' picture. Take your photos of these guys, giving them a few hundred Kyat to say thanks and leave the real fishermen to fish from afar.
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| Our 'fisherman' with his only fish! |
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