Doug and Annette

Day 23-Tuesday-February 2 After breakfast we met at the dock again at 8:30 and boarded the same boat with Rick and Jeanine. The yellow group headed out into the lake and came upon some morning fishermen. We got some nice photos. We then saw men filling their boats with more underwater vegetation. Our first stop today was the Nyaung Shwe 5-day market, only open here every 5th day. It rotates between different locations over a five day period. It was a very interesting spot for seeing many fabulous images. Women and men from various hill tribes who live in the Inlay region come to sell their home crafts, products, fruits, fish and vegetables in this market. Being here today was a great experience. Next, we walked over to the Hpaung Daw Oo Pagoda. Situated on Inle ... read more

Day 21-Sunday-January 31 This morning we checked out of the Sule Shangri-La and got on the bus for the airport at 8:30 to catch our flight at 11:00 to Inle Lake. Inle Lake is located in the heart of the Shan Plateau. It is a beautiful highland lake, 2,950 feet above sea level. The lake is 13.7 miles long and 6.2 miles across, and inhabited by many different ethnic nationals of the area. The Intha people are the lake dwellers who are unique for their leg rowing. Leg rowed traditional boats are the main ceremonial attractions of Inle Lake. The Intha people are hard-working. Cigar-rolling and weaving are the women's work. One tradition says that the Intha people living on Lake Inle are the descendants of those who fled from Dawei, about 500 miles to the ... read more

Day 19-Friday-January 29 We arrived in Pyay this morning and set off on our final excursion. Present day Pyay is located at the confluence of the Ayeyarwaddy and Nawin Rivers. The British Irrawaddy Flotilla Company established the current town in the late 19thcentury on the Ayeyarwaddy River as a trans-shipment point for cargo between upper and lower Burma. Pyay is one of the most famous tourist destinations in Myanmar and is home to more than 80 gilded pagodas, including the Payagyi Pagoda which we will see this morning. Our first stop after leaving the boat and boarding the bus was the ancient Sri Ksetra Pyu City Gate and wall built between the 4-7th century that encompassed Pyu City, an area of over 5 square miles. We then went onto the Sri Ksetra Museum which held many ... read more

Day 16-January 26-Tuesday-This morning we set sail for Magwe. The Magwe Region is Myanmar’s 2nd largest of its seven regions located in the central part of the country. It is bordered by the Sagaing Region to the north, the Mandalay Region to the east, the Bago Region to the south, and the Rakhine and Chin States to the west. The capital is the city of Magwe. The majority of the population is Bamar, with very small numbers of other ethnicities. This region produces most of Myanmar’s natural gas and petroleum. Agriculture is also important, with the principal crops being rice, millet, maize, sunflowers, beans, tobacco, onions and potatoes. At 3:15 this afternoon we took a bus tour that included a brief stop at General Aung San “Bogyoke” Statue for photos. He was very instrumental in Burma’s ... read more

Day 12-Sunday-January 24- Today Annette & Doug decided to do different excursions, Annette taking the Bagan city tour and Doug taking the Mount Popa tour. We both departed the boat at 9:00am. Before we started our separate tours, both buses met at Thatbyinnyu Temple for a few exterior photos from a distance. It is a famous temple, the tallest in Bagan at just over 200 feet. It is shaped like a cross, but is not symmetrical. Ye Min was Annette's Bagan tour guide and Duli went to Mount Popa. On the Mount Popa tour, there were only about 18 on our bus. Mount Popa, 37 miles southeast of Bagan is an extinct volcano and the oasis of the arid zone. On a clear day it can be seen from the Ayeyarwady River. The soil is naturally ... read more