Page 243 - The Rough Guide to Myanmar (Burma)

KALAW AND AROUND INLE LAKE AND THE EAST 241

INLE MARKETS
A number of markets in the Inle Lake area operate on a rotating five-day cycle, moving
around different towns and villages. With the possible exception of the very touristy Ywama
“floating market”, they’re fascinating places (particularly early in the morning), where people
from remote villages come to sell their produce or livestock and buy essential goods. The
products on sale at most markets are generally geared to locals – fruit, veg, clothing, fishing
equipment and the like. You’ll also find fabrics including longyi and the headscarves used by
local ethnic-minority women, while the more tourist-oriented markets sell a range of local 6
antiques and cheesy souvenirs too.
Three or four markets take place simultaneously on each of the five days; in the schedule
below, the last place listed for each day is either on or around Inle Lake.
Day 1 Kalaw/Shwenyaung/Inthein
Day 2 Nyaungshwe/Pindaya/Nampan
Day 3 Than Taung/Heho/Kyone/Taung Tho
Day 4 Aungban/Taunggyi/Ywama
Day 5 Pwe Hla/Maing Thauk/Phaung Daw Oo Paya.

Hnee Pagoda
• Hnee Pagoda Rd • Daily 24hr • Free • From town, take Min St south and turn right onto Cherry St; continue straight uphill for
1km and then straight on at the junction with Damasatkyar Rd for another 400m to reach the complicated road junction in front of the
Junction Rose hotel; from here, take the small road on your right, which brings you to the back of the pagoda after another 800m. If you’re
approaching from Shwe Oo Min Paya, follow the road as it loops west past the cave, through the golf course, then swings north through a
checkpoint to reach the Junction Rose hotel
Around 2.5km southwest of central Kalaw, the hilltop Hnee Pagoda (“Bamboo
Pagoda”) sits amid rolling countryside that simply begs to be delved into. The main
hall is home to the pagoda’s revered Buddha statue, made of bamboo (hence the
temple’s name – although the original material is now invisible beneath the inevitable
layers of gold leaf) and said to be more than five hundred years old. The hall doubles
as a local dispensary, bookstore and teashop – the little old ladies who work here will
probably offer you a cup of green tea and a plate of edible pickled tea leaves and nuts
to round off your visit.
ARRIVAL AND DEPARTURE KALAW AND AROUND
BY PLANE passing through in transit en route to or from Taunggyi.
Heho airport is around 35km east of Kalaw. Most people Services stop at the various bus company offices along the
landing there are heading towards Inle Lake, which makes main road, where you can also buy tickets, although you
it hard to find people to share a cab to Kalaw (1hr); cabbies might find it easier to book either via your hotel or through
may start the bidding at around K40,000, though K30,000 any of the tour and trekking operators around town (see
–35,000 is a fairer amount for the distance. The only p.242). Pick-ups to Taunggyi (2hr 30min) leave from just
alternative is to walk the 2km or so to the main road and southwest of the Aung Chan Tha Zedi, travelling via the
wait for a passing bus – this can take a while to arrive, and turn-off to Heho airport (1hr 15min) and Shwenyaung
even if you’re lucky enough to get a seat you’ll probably (2hr), at the junction of the road to Nyaungshwe; vehicles
have to change in Aungban. From Kalaw back to the tend to leave when full and are most frequent in the
airport, taxi prices are often a little cheaper; plane tickets morning from around 7am to 8.30am.
can be purchased from agencies on Kalaw’s Union Highway. To Nyaungshwe A few minibuses and buses (originating
Destinations Kengtung (2 weekly; 40min); Lashio (1 daily; in Mandalay) pass through Kalaw en route to Nyaungshwe,
50min); Mandalay (5 daily; 35min); Nyaung U, for Bagan although reserving a seat can be tricky. Alternatively, catch
(1–2 daily; 40min); Tachileik (1–3 daily; 50min); Thandwe, a local pick-up or minibus from the transport stop just
for Ngapali (3 daily; 1hr); Yangon (6–7 daily, plus additional southwest of the Aung Chan Tha Zedi to Shwenyaung (2hr),
services via Mandalay and/or Nyaung U; 45min). from where you can catch another pick-up or a taxi to
Nyaungshwe (30min).
BY BUS, MINIBUS AND PICKUP To Pindaya To reach Pindaya you’ll have to take a pick-up
Hardly any buses originate in Kalaw itself, with most or minibus (or motorbike taxi) to Aungban (30min; K1000),