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Myanmar > Places & Sights > Inle Lake
This lake, just 30 kilometers south of Taunggyi is one of the most beautiful spots in Myanmar. Once much larger, today it is about 22 kilometers long and 10 kilometers wide and 950 meters above sea level. The main town at the north end of the lake is Yaunghwe.
Around and on the lake live the Intha, one of Burma's ethnic minorities. There are still quite a few living in houses on stilts on the lake.
It is no wonder, that with this environment the Intha children learn to swim before they can walk. Intha keep track of their young by tying bells to their ankles. In the beginning they use wings made from gourds.
The Intha are skilled fishermen with a unique fishing technique. A conical trap made of bamboo or wood with a net inside is thrust into the water. When the fisherman feels (with a string) a fish caught in the net, he releases the net, and with some luck, a fish is caught in it. To scare the fish, so that it touches the net, a pole is used in the other hand to stir the water near the net.
They also have a very special way of rowing: standing upright in the long and narrow boats, they use the leg for moving the row, leaving both arms free to handle other equipment (e.g. nets.) However, one arm is used to give the oar some leverage.
Known widely as fine craftsmen, the Intha excel as silversmiths, blacksmiths, carpenters and as weavers of cotton and silk.
But also the farmers have developed some interesting skills. They use floating mats woven of dried reeds and grass covered with mud to grow crops. These mats are as long as 60 m, but very narrow, so that they can be easily worked from a boat. The term gardener gets a new meaning with some Inthas towing this "land" behind them and selling off slices according to the needs of their customers.
There is a market every five days at Inbawhkon. Inbawhkon is at the narrowest part of the lake, about two thirds of the lake's length towards the south.
Each October, during two weeks there is a big religious festival. An ornamental barge carrying the image of the mythical "karaweik" and four sacred figures tours the lake. The figures are thought to have been brought from Malaya by the 12th-century king Alaungsithu. According to the legend, the Buddhist devotee placed them inside a cave near Inle. Re-discovered centuries later, they have become increasingly significant in religion. Today, it is no longer possible to make out any features, since they are completely covered with gold. After the big boat finishes the tour, the leg-rowers gather for the most important regatta.
To visit the lake, you will have to pay an admission fee.