Page 355 - The Rough Guide to Myanmar (Burma)

Myitkyina and the far north NortherN MyaNMar 353
community-based tourism, with the profits ploughed back guides for day-treks for K10,000 per person and specialist
into conservation projects. They offer kayak (K15,000/ birdwatching guides for K15,000. They can also arrange
day), bicycle (K7000/day) and motorbike (K15,000/ motorbike taxis back to Hopin (K15,000). Most of their staff
day) rental, have good maps of the lake and can provide speak good English.
aCCoMMoDatIoN aND eatING
Lonton has one guesthouse as well as two or three “homestays” (although they’re actually small licensed guesthouses
rather than private homes). They’re all fairly basic, with bucket showers and mosquito nets over the beds, and none of them
provides breakfast. None of the homestays has an official name, so they’re listed here under their owners’ names. All
accommodation in Lonton charges the same price of K10,000 per person, and they work cooperatively – if one is full, they’ll
direct you to another. Lonton also has a few simple restaurants, while cheap and generous bowls of noodles can also be
found in many of the other lakeside villages.
HOPIN ★ Shwe Toe South of Indaw Mahar Guesthouse
Hopin Star Pyay Doung Su Rd T074 62261. Very little T09 7827 3313. This is the most attractive homestay,
English is spoken here, but the owners are friendly and the and the only one on the lake side of the road. Its six
simple rooms with shared bathrooms are perfectly rooms are spread over a series of wooden buildings
adequate. There are also a few en-suite rooms (K15,000). connected by raised walkways. To find it, walk back
It’s based in a green three-storey building not far from the south from Indaw Mahar Guesthouse; after you’ve
station, but it isn’t well signposted – to find it, you’ll have passed the third building, you’ll see a gate in a white
to ask locals. No breakfast. K20,000 fence, and through it a small arched bridge lined with
flowerpots. K20,000
LONTON Tha Zin Phyu & Su Hla Phyu Opposite Indaw Mahar 8
Indaw Mahar Guesthouse Lake side of the road Guesthouse T09 254 010 431, T09 421 144 061. This
T09 7325 1692. Trucks from Hopin will drop you newly built house appears larger and more solid than its
outside this striking white lakeside guesthouse, which is neighbours. Still unfinished at the time of research, this
reached by a wooden walkway from the roadside. It has homestay will be up and running by the time you read this.
six simple rooms and a pleasant open veranda The staff here speak excellent English, and they also work
overlooking the lake. K20,000 for Inn Chit Thu (see opposite). K20,000

The far north
Located at the point where the subtropical rainforests of Southeast Asia abut the
Himalayas, Myanmar’s thickly forested northern tip is a hotspot of biodiversity – a
treasure-trove of endangered and endemic species. At the far northern point, Southeast
Asia’s tallest mountain, Hkakabo Razi (5881m), was only climbed for the first time in
1996, by a Burmese–Japanese team.
The far north is home to a number of wildlife sanctuaries and national parks,
including the world’s largest tiger reserve in the Hukaung Valley. Unfortunately, in
the latter case, the sanctuary’s creation doesn’t seem to have stopped logging
companies and gold-miners from encroaching on the natural environment. Happily,
ecosystems elsewhere are more intact, making this area still your best chance
of spotting exotic wildlife.
Putao
The small town of PUTAO (pronounced “Pu-Ta-O”) is the gateway to this region, but
while you can fly into the town without a permit, travelling beyond its borders is only
possible as a guest of the eye-wateringly expensive Malikha Lodge or a paid member of
a tour (with permits taking three weeks or more to process; see box, p.384). Once a
Shan stronghold, and subsequently known by the British as Fort Hertz, Putao was
spared Japanese occupation during the war.
This quiet and rather spread-out town has a central market, a sprinkling of
pagodas and enticing views of distant mountains. Because of its remoteness,

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