mandalay

From Inle lake I flew to Mandalay, & stayed at the delightful

Peacock Lodge, it reminded me happily of the old

raj places in India that I rented or stayed at, lovely hosts too.

One day I shared the GH taxi with another guest, we

visited several interesting sites up hills, & further away.

A long climb (for me) to the top for this paya at Sagaing, a splendid

view of the Irrawaddy. The city is big & kind of messy,

the trick is to get up early, before it all starts up,

& the light is at an angle

treasure

Many sites at Bagan had dim mysterious interiors,

&, in October, lots of big old green trees

There were intriguing paths off through the greenery,

nearly always someone selling quite interesting stuff, which

I didn't see in other towns, & occasional gilded treasures.

I might go back one day, I really liked it.

Of course the real treasure is the Burmese people.

chance

The chance of being somewhere just as the light

changes, don't you love it? There was heavy rain between me

& the large pagoda. In the village this lady right

was a Burmese Vermeer.

laid back

At Inle lake I stayed at a small hotel with separate cottages,

so pleasant, & not cut off from the village nearby, a laid back

place. The Princess Garden hotel.

There are markets around the lake, in 5-day rotation,

the ladies were there, & the boys with their snazzy haircuts.

& a teak monastery.

Here are more during the festival - didn't I see those faces

in Mexico, or Guatemala? You can see how they balance

at the back of their skiffs, & row with one leg.

The rattan houses use different patterns in their weave.

Depending on your interests, it would be easy to spend more

time here, & at Bagan. It's really quite different at other

times of the year, too.

Not all places in Burma are open to foreigners.

eleven

Back in the here & now, it's the supposed 'big' date,

though it's not 11/11/11 everywhere on the globe..

'the end of the world as we know it'.. that gives quite a lot

of wriggle room, though am happy if the more optimistic

meanings come to pass.

The Petrea vine is flowering in my garden.

inle lake

More from the festival at Inle lake, in Burma; I took a lot.

north

I flew to Inle Lake after a few days in Yangon, there was

a big annual festival happening ~ boat races the

day I was on the lake, a great spectacle: the misty mountains

all around, the sunrise, the stilt houses, the amazing balance

of the leg rowing, & of course the colourful boats, one or more for

each village. Boats full of villagers too.

Our boatman took us to his house, made from woven bamboo

on stilts, the lake is not so deep. A simple place with

zero excess. The water looks clear, & there are floating

gardens in another area, I saw very healthy looking tomatoes.