Inle Lake

Inle Lake is in the eastern part of Burma known as the Shan state. It is a whole different world up there, and it feels completely cut-off from the outside. I did not see a single sign of western culture the whole time I was there.

This place is very unique. Houses are built on stilts over the water, and the only way to get from place to place is by boat. The roads that exist around the shore are poor, and are not used by cars. Every aspect of life at Inle takes place on the water.

The people have developed a technique of rowing their canoes with their legs. They wedge the end of the paddle under their arm, and wrap one leg around the paddle. Balancing on one foot at the end of their canoe, they pull the rowing leg and paddle back and forth like they are doing a hamstring curl. It is really cool. They have some serious balance and coordination. I saw one guy rowing with one leg and using both arms to pull in a long net of fish while his canoe was rocking hard in rough water.

The people in Inle are hands down the friendliest people I have ever come into contact with. As we went floating past houses on our boat, kids would come running to the porch. Children, women, old men, everybody smiled and waved and yelled. I don’t think there was a single person on that whole lake who didn’t smile and welcome us. When exploring the villages, many people were invited into Burmese homes for tea. It was amazing how welcoming theses people were. Inle is a very, very special place.

If we didn’t get a big excited smile and wave, we got a smile and a point and a laugh. When accidentally stumbling through peoples backyards in the forest, they would laugh like somebody had told a funny joke. They weren’t shocked, just very amused, and wouldn’t even bother to sit up in their chair. If I was in my backyard and a group of Burmese walked by, I think I would react differently!