A Burmese Procession

It was decided to go to a country that had not yet been explored. Why not Myanmar, formerly known as Burma.

A country in Southeast Asia right next to Thailand, Burma became known as Myanmar in 1989, a year after an uprising that claimed thousands of lives. It is home to many pagodas, most notably the prodigious Shwedagon Pagoda with ancient Buddhist relics, many temples, monasteries, busy markets, a tropical climate, endless forested lands and bodies of water, among other things. Although tourism rates aren't as high as other Asian countries, the country of Myanmar still has a lot to offer. Especially during festival season.

In the northern region of Myanmar, there is a body of water known as Inle Lake. During festival season, four images of Buddha are placed on the Royal Karaweik barge (behind me) and towed by long boats all around the lake. There are hundreds of men in these long boats dressed in colorful costumes towing this barge, rowing with one ore attached to their leg. The 800 year-old images of Buddha are taken from a shrine inside the magnificent Phuang Daw Oo Pagoda, then placed back after the procession. They stop at 14 villages along the way, and the festival itself lasts 18 days. What a sight to see. I came at the right time of year.

Aside from fascinating festivals and magnificent pagodas, I also found a few lovely "long necked ladies" floating by out on the Lake.

They start wearing these gold rings at age 5, and most every year or every couple years they add another ring. The more rings, the more respected the person is by society's standards. The main reason for these rings is to avoid human trafficking, by making themselves perceived as 'ugly' by the traffickers, or at least uglier than the other children who don't wear them. There is also a legend, that many years ago a tiger started roaming around the villages in search of people's necks to break, and everyone started wearing the rings so the tiger won't come around anymore. Upon asking my guide, I was also told that it wasn't the neck that's pushed up by the rings, but the body that is pushed down, and there was an example set of rings that they let us pick up. It was almost ten pounds.

We got back in our boat and flitted and floated around the lake some more, coming across a few fisherman in their peaceful semblance. He has fully mastered the art of complete control and balance while fishing. Standing on the edge of his small wooden canoe, it wobbles and sways on the unsteady water as he holds his net, having just caught a slew of fish. He maneuvers the busting net out of the water and onto the canoe, his one leg effortlessly absorbing the shock of fish, the other paddling completely unsupported in the uneven waters with hopes of floating across the next school of fish in the water's abyss. Blissfully unaware of his surroundings.

All in all I found it a very rewarding experience coming to the country of Myanmar. Although not yet used to tourists, the people were still warm and welcoming. I got to see some cool monks, too.

Stood quietly in a temple, looking up in wonder and awe at Buddha, painted laying down on the wall. What must he be thinking right now? Does he like to fish too? What's the difference between rebirth and reincarnation? Is there chocolate in the afterlife?

So many questions.

Bailey Sue