[Leica] Inle Lake

[cummer at netvigator.com (H&ECummer)]

Hello again,
On day 6 we again braved the turmoil at Mandalay airport and flew to Heho 
airport to take the one hour drive to Nyaung Shwe jetty to take a long boat 
into Inle Lake. The lake is 900 meters above sea level, 22km long and 11km 
wide. What is most impressive about it is the ecological balance. Despite 
the population, the water is clear, the fish taken from the lake are edible, 
and vegetables are grown on floating islands of peat. Really quite wonderful.

Here is the Nyaung Shwe Jetty. I really like the painterly effect in the 
early morning. I am going to get a painter friend of mine to commit the 
scene to canvas.

<http://gallery.leica-users.org/v/Howard+Cummer/Burma2013/NyaungShweJettyw.jpg.html>

http://tinyurl.com/ceu4ncx

Travel in Inle lake is by long boat powered by two cylinder two cycle 
engines with large fly wheels and long propellor shafts sticking out the 
back of the boat.
They are noisy and they are  fast! And some of them are smokey!

<http://gallery.leica-users.org/v/Howard+Cummer/Burma2013/LongBtMotorM9w.jpg.html>

http://tinyurl.com/cvmb72a

<http://gallery.leica-users.org/v/Howard+Cummer/Burma2013/BusyCornerM9w.jpg.html>

http://tinyurl.com/cu7c9ru

<http://gallery.leica-users.org/v/Howard+Cummer/Burma2013/SmokeyBt990w.jpg.html>

http://tinyurl.com/bvguxkj

Inle lake is famous for its fishermen who row standing up and catch their 
fish with baskets, plunged down in the shallow lake.

<http://gallery.leica-users.org/v/Howard+Cummer/Burma2013/Inlelegrowerw.jpg.html>

http://tinyurl.com/carphoc

<http://gallery.leica-users.org/v/Howard+Cummer/Burma2013/FishCaughtw.jpg.html>

http://tinyurl.com/c9asq73

At every jetty there are a group of boys ready to happily help you out of 
your long boat. They don't seem to want a tip and just do the job for the 
fun of it.

Here are a couple of the young helpers:

<http://gallery.leica-users.org/v/Howard+Cummer/Burma2013/BoatBoyM9w.jpg.html>

http://tinyurl.com/bn77f8o

<http://gallery.leica-users.org/v/Howard+Cummer/Burma2013/BoatBoy2M9w.jpg.html>

http://tinyurl.com/btpzu2c

We visited a silk factory on stilts at Indain village and watched the 
grandmas spin the silk into thread. This was M9 country - with the 50mm 
summilux Asph.
I got down on the floor with the grandmas to take these portraits.

<http://gallery.leica-users.org/v/Howard+Cummer/Burma2013/SilkSpin39w.jpg.html>

http://tinyurl.com/cnbfcxm

<http://gallery.leica-users.org/v/Howard+Cummer/Burma2013/SilkSpin29w.jpg.html>

http://tinyurl.com/c7p7h6l

<http://gallery.leica-users.org/v/Howard+Cummer/Burma2013/SilkSpin19w.jpg.html>

http://tinyurl.com/cchcv29

We were enchanted by Inle Lake. Were we to visit Burma again, we would 
arrange to spend less time in Mandalay and more time at Inle Lake.
It was really a very enchanting experience.

<http://gallery.leica-users.org/v/Howard+Cummer/Burma2013/InleReflect9w.jpg.html>

http://tinyurl.com/cacpbyo

Please look large.
All C&C most welcome.
Howard
(off to Pender Island today and humming bird country where the internet 
speed is not so good)