Myanmar. Lake Inle
In Yangon, a colorful advertising booklet about Lake Inle came to my eyes. "Do not visit this miracle lake – it means not to see one of the most beautiful corners of Myanmar", – Approved the authors of the brochure. How was it not to go on the road. Fortunately, from Yangon to Inle you can get an hour for three. Forty Minutes by Plane over Shan Mountain Plateau. At the bottom of the rectangles of peasant fields, elevation, in some places of forest. Landing in the town of Taundji and then on a flight bus to the village of Niaunswe. He is already on the lake. Free boats on the pier turned out to be excess. For seventy thousand kyat (this is a little less than ten dollars) Tin Ma Tha agreed to show me and Inle itself, and how people live on it. Inle from Burmese translates as "Little lake". It is located at an altitude of 900 m above sea level. Its dimensions: 20 by 6.5 km. The depth fluctuates from 3 m (in the dry season) to 5 in the rainy season. When and why people settled on the lake, the question for which there is no accurate answer. Most likely, it happened in the XI century. A certain group of Burmese was forced to move from sushi to water to protect themselves from raids of militant Shan tribes.
Inlers call themselves "int", What means "Sons of Lake". They build bamboo huts with reed roofs scored in the bottom of the piles and swim in high-speed boats – Sampanahs. The first thing affecting Inle is an unusual way of rowing practiced by local residents. Inta do not sit on oars – they are standing on the nose of Sampana and, whining the leg of the paddle, with an amazing dexterity to them. Such "Foot rowes" It is convenient because one hand remains free and it can be controlled by fishermen. Fishing – one of the main intra.
In addition, they are right on the water surface grow vegetables. Lakery gardens – these are actually rafts woven from the roots and herbs, on top of which ground grounds, plentifully fertilized with bottom zlom. And so that such a garden does not float, its "Prett" to the bottom of bamboo poles. Tin Ma Thi brought me to his friend at NGE. Work on the garden a lot, and NGE has built right here a small bamboo teremok to be where to rein the weather. On his waterfowl, he grows cucumbers, tomatoes, cauliflower and flowers. In Stradi, NGE helps the younger brother in the garden – to Shvi. Usually he is busy fishing.
On the peculiarities of national fishing, Inta is worth telling. Main Tackle here High, lined with a mesh, cone-shaped bamboo trap. It works on the principle of our top. Only here it is not put, but put on the bottom. Fish, which turned out to be such a leap, enters it and then can’t get out. And the pole fisherman worms to make it quickly moving and did not break into IL. Honestly, this method seemed to me not too effective. I even asked – why the lake residents do not use the usual networks or fishing rods. To Shvi: "And we have so good. Sometimes, you know which fishery come across, a kilogram for five". Make sure that I did not have the opportunity. How much did it immerse my bamboo basket to Shvi, none, even the smallest fish, did not please.
Tackle fishermen Mastery themselves. But boats – fast and light sampanets – order the master. Natpan village is famous for all Lake Inle’s boats. Everyone who needs to buy a new boat or repair the old, sail exactly here, to the grandfather of Chi, as gentlely called the main boat masters. During his life, Chi made more than five hundred boats. In the assistants from the Master – all the men’s population of the village is about forty person. Boats here do without a single nail using wooden brazed. Chi: "Motor boat fuel requires, and Saman – bought and float yourself on health, how much do you want. Good boat can last for a long time. Ten years old, and even longer". Chi spends on the manufacture of one boat a couple of days. It costs about eighty thousand kyat. Most intta pay the full amount at once. Therefore, the Sampans are most often bought by installments. Among the customers, not only the peasants. Chi: "One of the boats for the monastery of jumping cats. Tomorrow will come to take".
Monastery in the middle of the lake and even with such a name – not to visit him would be immoral. And I asked Tin Ma Thhu Take me there. Indeed, it was worth crossing the threshold of the abode, as I found myself in the cat kingdom. About snakes, monkeys and rats in the Hindu and Buddhist temples I heard, but about cats – never. The prior of Kei Ti scattered my bewilderment: "More recently, our monastery is completely died. Parishioners almost left. Monks gradually moved to land. It was necessary to do something, and I decided to resort to the help of cats – they always lived here".
No sooner said than done. Keii taught training and soon became local Yuri Kuklachev. The passion for the abbot of infected and other monks. Glory about the wonderful circus ideas suitable in the monastery, separated far beyond the county. Key Ti: "Now in the monastery there are always a lot of people. Who comes to just pray, who are on cats. All donations do .." On these donations to the monastery and lives. Monks stopped leave the abode. On the contrary, a year ago, a monk from the monastery in Yangon moved here. Mani Ta, monk: "I like it more than in the city. The lake helps to donate from all sorts of fuss. When a free minute is issued, I’m just like seeing. Quiet, beautiful .."
On Wednesday, however, about silence has to forget. From the early morning on the lake begins to work floating bazaar. Floating Bazaar Lake Inle is a completely enchanting spectacle. Every week, it sails here, it seems, the entire population of the lake and begins to be a browse trade. If your pocket has at least some money, be sure you leave them here. At the same time it does not matter whether you want to buy something or not. All here is sold and bought all: ranging from fresh vegetables and fruits, ending with the sacred statuettes of the Buddha. The buyer swims to the seller, takes what you need and directs the boat to the next. All this is very similar to the American System Store "DRIVE-IN", where all purchases are made without getting out of the car. Only here his role is performed by boat.
I wanted to buy the famous headlocks on the market, which Tkut only here, on Lake Inle, but Tin Ma Thi offered not to waste time and go to the workshop where these scarves do. While Men Lake Inle are busy on the gardens and fishing, women are engaged in weaving. Fabric produced on Inle is popular not only in Myanmar, but also in all Southeast Asia. In the workshop, everything has been preserved as it was, at times, when Mothers of these girls worked behind the machines, their grandmothers and great-grandmothers. The uniqueness of the local fabric is that the yarn for it is the fibers obtained from the lotus stem. Girls tkut shawl, tablecloths, scarves. Yun Wei – seventeen years. The first beauty infrared is going to move to the city: "The city is more interesting, fun. There at least there are streets"… This, of course, is sad, but keep modern young people in the village, especially located in the middle of the lake, the task is almost impossible.
True, my feeding Tin Ma Tha is not going to leave with Inle: "I personally suits everything here. There are, of course, problems, but on land are not less. I can understand those who leave, but still think that it is necessary to live where it was born". And though I was born for tens of thousand kilometers from Inle, caught myself thinking that I don’t want to leave from here. Even asked Tin Ma Tha boat to master this only on the lake. But I didn’t have any sense from this and the thought was to settle on Inle I had to leave. Still right authors of that advertising booklet: Inle is really the best, from what I saw in Myanmar.
