Inle Lake

     This morning we explored the Pindaya Market and the temple grounds on the shore of Pone Taloke Lake.  After lunch we bussed to Nyaung Shwe the gateway for catching small skiffs at the canal leading into Inle Lake.  Skiffs with single cylinder diesel engines delivered us to the cottages/cabins on stilts in the middle of the lake where we would stay for two nights.  Leaving my duffel bag at the cabin we again boarded  skiffs to Nam Pan, a village built entirely on stilts.  We continued into the channels of the floating gardens.  The elevation of Inle Lake is 880 m, its length 22 km, its width 6 km.  It is, on the average shallow, only 1.5 m deep.  The gardens are anchored into the lake bed with bamboo poles. The soil, coming from the lake bed, is rich with nutrients, yielding a bounty of tomatoes and other vegetables.  We stopped at a wooden monastery Nga Phe Kyaung.  Looking like a barn about ready to collapse from the outside, inside there are some cultural gems.