Day 15 Kalaw to Inle Lake 11 January

We had a leisurely start after sleeping well as we were taking the slow train to Inle Lake. After packing up after breakfast we took a taxi to the train station to find out when the next train might be. They were expecting one around 11:30 and told us to come back at 11:30. We left our bags and walked up to RDS as we had been so impressed with Tommy and the work he was doing that we decided to give him a donation. He wasn't there but we were told he was over at the school so we headed there. A big community gathering was taking place in the hall. Tommy was sitting on the stage with what looked like other leaders in the community and speeches were being made. We were told they were recognising and remembering past teachers and asked us to sign a book and big sheet as a gesture. There were also art works from the children on display.

It looked like the ceremony was going to go on for a while, so we headed into town to pick up some food from the market for the train trip. Heading back to the station we dropped back in at RDS and left our donation with an Australian couple who were volunteering at RDS. Back at the station we were told the train would be arriving at 12pm, only 1/2 hour late. Tickets with full passport details were purchased for $1.20 for the full 3 hour train trip, again in upper class. The boys devoured some samosas from the local Indian vendor.

The train arrived and left pretty promptly. There was a mixture of locals and foreigners in the upper class, which was pretty filthy. The trains are very old, probably the original ones that were first on this track. We headed off at a very slow rate. I don't think it got over about 30kms / hour and was very rickety, rolling from side to side. It stopped 4 times with vendors selling fruit and food. It was picturesque country side, but surprisingly we didn't seem to drop in altitude although there were large plains with rolling hills. Lots of small villages and farming. This area is where most of Myanmar's farming takes place. We all enjoyed the trip as it is a great way to see the countryside. The trip took 3 1/2 hours at times the train crawling along, especially over bridges.

At our destination an enthusiastic taxi driver jumped on to the train and we went with him to Ngwe Shaw the town where we were staying on the edge of Inle Lake. It was another pretty drive in on a tree lined elevated road, which seemed to have marshes and water on the side. Presumably covered during the wet season. We checked into our lovely little hotel where we had a villa, run by some French people. Mandy and Chris went for a walk as Chris was in the need of food. He was very excited when we found a pizza shop. We wandered around the town, a series of chanting was taking place in the monastery and was being broadcast all over the town. We went and had a look and found out that it was an initiation ceremony for some novice monks. The chanting and speaking continued until 9:30pm that night. We rescued a tiny puppy that was stuck on the bridge who then wanted to follow us home.

The pizza was a huge success so much so that luke insisted we go back for dinner. We are obviously back in a high tourist area as there were lots of foreigners around. There appears to be large numbers of older Europeans travelling through Myanmar on tours. It is still surprisingly cold so we headed back to our nice villa.

Location:Kalaw