N & H Trip Web > Burma > Burma part 3

"Taking a taxi we headed off into the outskirts of Mandalay, weaving through the afternoon traffic. We arrived at the house and introduced ourselves to the family who were very welcoming. In the corner of the room lay a little old man on a woven mat covered by a sheet - this was U Nyo Lay. His strength became apparent as I walked in, despite his crippled body his eyes glinted and looked merry, he had a huge presence to the room. It is terrible to hear what this man has been through, struck down with polio as a boy and then later a horse and cart overturned breaking his collarbone and the then a car accident in which he suffered more broken bones. His body is now totally useless but his hands he puts to good use painting these amazing bottles. IV bottles are used and the brush is bent at an angle to reach the inside, most of them depict Buddhist scenes and a couple were portraits taken from photographs - Jerry Garcia obviously a favorite.

"Tea and cake were brought out and we sat around a little table studying all the bottles which were being extracted from a glass cabinet. I was totally petrified I might break one when handing it to Katrina. I felt a little uncomfortable photographing Nyo Lay - so pitiful the sight but he seemed not to mind. I took hold of his hand and squeezed it saying thank you - he smiled back and his eyes glinted, reminding me of the last time I saw N's Grandpa. Such a lovely man."

Magazine article about U Nyo Lay's life

Next it was Hannah's turn to get ill, and because we were running out of time we took another pickup from Mandalay to Kalaw, near Inle Lake.

"By the next morning I looked like death and couldn't hold water. In order to get through the day I took two stopper pills and two stugeron. N & I sat in the back with the 2 bikes and all the luggage whilst D & K squashed into the front. The road was horrendous and the van lurched up and down the whole way. I don't know how I kept control of my bowels."

"After an interesting trip to Pindaya caves and an umbrella factory I had the honour of riding in the front seat of the taxi on the way back and admired the views of women working the fields, oxen and ploughs, men on wobbly bikes, rice paddies, majestic banyan trees and a million other things that make up this wonderful country. We dined on a dinner of chicken curry and chapati at the Nepali restaurant. First time I've had an appetite in three days."

"What a great bike ride from Kalaw to Nuangshwe, not too many hills, rolling scenery, lots to look at and I felt stronger than I have in days. We stopped in Heho for a drink and in front of the tea shop a grubby man had a huge wok of fat on the boil and was making up our favourite (not!) shrimp cakes. Next to him on the floor was a sack of potatoes - now that would make a good dish! After some sign language and a bit of cooking we had a pile of delicious chips in front of us!"

"In Nuangshwe we picked a great guesthouse called 'Teakwood' at $8 per night including breakfast and dinner. The owner is very efficient at organising tours and yesterday we spent the whole day on a canoe being paddled around the canals of Inle Lake. Nice not to have to do all the work for once. Lazily we drifted among the floating gardens of tomatoes, occasionally getting trapped in weed. It truly is a maze of passages like little country lanes only water filled instead."

"Dragonfly are king here, millions of them swarmed around the boats suspended on golden wings like a sprinkling of gossamer, making the air look like it's full of sparkles."

"The next day we were ferried around the lake in a longtail... ...and then came the gem in the trip. A drop off at a silk weaving factory. As soon as I walked in I realised this was a remarkable setup. Based in a teak house typically designed on stilts over the water. Five girls worked looms and were producing some very fine pieces of fabric. The cloth that is produced is beautiful and so intricately designed - the owner tells me that she has an in-house designer. I ran round like a woman possessed taking photographs of details, threads, looms and girls. Definitely the best run business we have seen in Myanmar."

Inle was again a magical place and we thoroughly enjoyed our time. The four of us left feeling completely refreshed. With just a couple of days left we took the bus back to Yangon, a reasonably comfortable 17 hour trip assisted by valium.

"Took a trip to meet the British Ambassador in Yangon today, which was very interesting. He was a pleasant man, softly spoken, with some very strong views on Myanmar, mainly that it was in a state of financial collapse and the people were extremely unhappy. We had received conflicting messages about the country the whole way around and we wanted to get a clear picture of the real state of it. He told us that malnutrition was rife, as was poverty, the spending on healthcare 70 kyat per person per year (that's 10 cents), virtually no education and, I quote, 'these people have bugger all'. It was obvious that the political and humanitarian situation frustrated him as much as it did us."

All in all it was a wonderful 6 weeks and I won't write any more as you'll probably won't get any work done. But I can't describe how nice it is not to have to pick cockroaches out of our bed, and bath in a tub and not in a petrol tank out the back. Long live civilisation... ...but let's hope McDonalds et al stay away from Burma.