Pictures from a walk in Myanmar
There is a famous trek from the town of Kalaw to Inle Lake in Myanmar. On my search for a haircut I met a tour guide who I asked about it. “Yes, I have this trek, but it…” an expressive scrunching of the face “no good. Too many tourist! Sometimes, fifty tourists in monastery, no good. But yes I have.” I asked about other possibilities and he told me one was leaving the next morning to go up into the hills, visit the villages of a couple of the different local ethnic groups, stay in a monastery, and return the next day.
He gave me some more details, and his nephews kept smiling at me, so I signed up.
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- It is never mysterious in Myanmar which gender does the hard work.
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- The main crop in these mountain towns are those leaves, used for rolling cigars.
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- This little one hung out with us most of the night, in perfect silence and smiles.
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- I get the feeling these kids have seen cameras before…
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- They taught one of their games to one of the Italians
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- Our excellent guide, whose smiles were innumerable and good humor boundless.
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- This guy went first, then everyone wanted a turn.
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- The monastery where we slept. Good morning, buffalo.
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- Take it easy, morning buffalo.
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- The valley of Inle Lake as we descended just ahead of the monsoon.
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- Their heads get amazingly bright blue…
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- Back in Nyaung Shwe
It would be a bit of a stretch to call this leisurely walk a “trek” but it was beautiful scenery, nice people, and a good time.
A group of gorgeous shots. Have to get me over there soon! Which country are you in now?
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Thanks! I can’t seem to string a full sentence together today, so I’m going with pictures. I’m in Malaysia now, the Perhentian Islands, which are gorgeous, but I am cutting it pretty close on having enough money for food! It’s embarrassing to be dependent on ATMs…of which there are none here. I need to learn a street performer trick…
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Offer to take pictures of tourists then wait for a tip before handing back the camera? 😛
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Ha! I might just try that.
I saw a mid-aged lady shuffling on her slippers today towards the beach with a $1,000+ lens…she’s gotta have some pocket change!
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Really interesting post. Enjoyed reading a lot.
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Thanks! It wasn’t a very hard walk, but it was definitely an enjoyable one!
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You seem to be a sucker for the smiles, which is endearing. Posting a series of images with captions is great. Please do it again sometime! And did you see the young monk with the fingerless gloves? That kid is a tough little dickens! He’s going to be the one to string the harness through the buffalo’s nose one day.
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Ha! I think you’re right. Apparently all boys in Myanmar spend time in a monastery, so that little dude can grow up to be anything he likes…The Muay Thai Monk? I’m glad you liked the picture post, I think I’ll do more…particularly in weeks like this one where I can’t seem to form a coherent sentence.
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Stunning! I love the little monks. How cute. I’m dying to visit Myanmar – I can’t believe I didn’t go while I was in SEA!
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I definitely recommend it, but don’t worry, it’ll be there for awhile, though changing on a weekly basis, as far as I can tell. I need to go back.
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