{"id":20359,"date":"2015-11-27T00:00:36","date_gmt":"2015-11-27T07:00:36","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/rivercruiseadvisor.com\/?p=20359"},"modified":"2022-05-23T13:40:10","modified_gmt":"2022-05-23T17:40:10","slug":"vikings-myanmar-explorer-day-6","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/rivercruiseadvisor.com\/2015\/11\/vikings-myanmar-explorer-day-6\/","title":{"rendered":"Viking’s Myanmar Explorer – Day 6"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

A River Runs Through It – In Myanmar <\/span><\/h3>\n\n\n\n
\"There's<\/a>
There’s nothing quite like Myanmar’s Inle Lake. Photo \u00a9 2015 Aaron Saunders<\/figcaption><\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n\n

Tuesday, November 24, 2015<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

If I were a better writer, I\u2019d have a decent shot at describing the adventures we\u2019ve had today. As it is, this sixth day of our Myanmar Explorer <\/em><\/strong>river cruise tour with Viking River Cruises<\/strong> <\/a>was absolutely packed with experiences. That alone makes description difficult. But more than that, it\u2019s putting into context the places, people, sights and sounds that we\u2019ve experienced today that is giving me pause.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"Today,<\/a>
Today, we explored the Inle Lake region by land \u2026 Photo \u00a9 2015 Aaron Saunders<\/figcaption><\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n\n
\"...and<\/a>
\u2026 and sea. Photo \u00a9 2015 Aaron Saunders<\/figcaption><\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n\n

As an example: Today, we had lunch at an Italian restaurant, set on stilts, in a floating village on Inle Lake<\/strong>, in Myanmar. Have you had oven-fired pizza in Myanmar in a restaurant situated on stilts? I didn\u2019t think so. It\u2019s the kind of thing that, if you saw it in a movie, you\u2019d say, well, I don\u2019t believe that happened!<\/em> Yet here we are.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"From<\/a>
From local artisans \u2026 Photo \u00a9 2015 Aaron Saunders<\/figcaption><\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n\n
\"...to<\/a>
\u2026 to local markets \u2026 Photo \u00a9 2015 Aaron Saunders<\/figcaption><\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n\n
\"...everything<\/a>
\u2026 everything here is still done in the traditional way. Photo \u00a9 2015 Aaron Saunders<\/figcaption><\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n\n

We also walked through a traditional \u201cpop-up\u201d market that only appears in a small village near the Areum Inle Lake Resort<\/strong> on every fifth day. Here today, gone tomorrow. What\u2019s more, we once again passed through the market as if we were invisible: Not a soul hassled us to buy anything, and at no time did I ever feel as if someone might rob or otherwise interfere with us. It was as if we were locals.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

And yet, I am surprised at how developed<\/em> Inle Lake is. It\u2019s a far cry from some of the floating villages I saw in Cambodia two years ago; resorts almost outnumber villages here. Even Novotel has set up shop, with a new-ish looking property not far down the road from our own Areum resort.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"A<\/a>
A piece of advertising on the ground … Photo \u00a9 2015 Aaron Saunders<\/figcaption><\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n\n
\"...looks<\/a>
\u2026 looks remarkably like the local children: cherubic. Photo \u00a9 2015 Aaron Saunders<\/figcaption><\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n\n

Rather than go on and on with facts and dates and figures, I figure I\u2019ll summarize today with this: I am, once again, impressed with how Viking handles its land operations. Today was a huge day excursion that saw us depart at 8:30 a.m. and return just before sunset. Yet everything was timed perfectly and our transportation \u2013 which ranged from mini-bus to walking to four-person wooden boats operated by local Burmese citizens \u2013 was faultless. A day like today has a lot of moving parts in it, and those have to be carefully timed in order to have a successful journey. They were.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"In<\/a>
In addition to eating lunch at an Italian restaurant on stilts \u2026 Photo \u00a9 2015 Aaron Saunders<\/figcaption><\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n\n
\"...we<\/a>
\u2026 we also visited a silk weaving factory – also on stilts. Photo \u00a9 2015 Aaron Saunders<\/figcaption><\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n\n
\"Photo<\/a>
Photo \u00a9 2015 Aaron Saunders<\/figcaption><\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n\n
\"While<\/a>
While silk weavers worked their magic, tour groups were herded in and out of the facility. I fear its realistic quality may change in years to come. Photo \u00a9 2015 Aaron Saunders<\/figcaption><\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n\n
\"Photo<\/a>
Photo \u00a9 2015 Aaron Saunders<\/figcaption><\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n\n
\"To<\/a>
To get back to our hotel, we traveled in the traditional way: by water. Photo \u00a9 2015 Aaron Saunders<\/figcaption><\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n\n
\"Photo<\/a>
Photo \u00a9 2015 Aaron Saunders<\/figcaption><\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n\n
\"Boats<\/a>
Boats of all shapes and sizes carried locals \u2026 Photo \u00a9 2015 Aaron Saunders<\/figcaption><\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n\n
\"...and<\/a>
\u2026 and tourists alike. Photo \u00a9 2015 Aaron Saunders<\/figcaption><\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n\n
\"Today's<\/a>
Today’s scenic river cruise was nothing short of breathtaking. Photo \u00a9 2015 Aaron Saunders<\/figcaption><\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n\n
\"Photo<\/a>
Photo \u00a9 2015 Aaron Saunders<\/figcaption><\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n\n
\"Just<\/a>
Just before sunset \u2026 Photo \u00a9 2015 Aaron Saunders<\/figcaption><\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n\n
\"...arrival<\/a>
\u2026 arrival back at the Areum Inle Lake Hotel and Resort. Photo \u00a9 2015 Aaron Saunders<\/figcaption><\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n\n

Myanmar is just now on the verge of becoming a democracy. Tourism is opening to the West. Change is afoot. But I have to wonder: Will Inle Lake still look the same ten years from now? Or will this new openness to travellers from around the world alter its very essence in the same way it has in places like the Caribbean and Hawaii?<\/p>\n\n\n\n

For me, that raises the biggest question: How do you encourage tourism while still protecting what is already there?<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"Photo<\/a>
Photo \u00a9 2015 Aaron Saunders<\/figcaption><\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n

Viking Mandalay - Myanmar Explorer<\/h2>\n\n\n\n\n\t\n\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t
DAY<\/b><\/th>PORT<\/B><\/th>\n<\/tr>\n<\/thead>\n
Day 1<\/a><\/td>Bangkok, Thailand<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Day 2<\/a><\/td>Bangkok, Thailand<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Day 3<\/a><\/td>Yangon, Myanmar<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Day 4<\/a><\/td>Yangon, Myanmar and Shwedagon Pagoda<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Day 5<\/a><\/td>Inle Lake, Myanmar<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Day 6<\/a><\/td>Inle Lake, Myanmar<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Day 7<\/a><\/td>Mandalay, Myanmar; Embark Viking Mandalay<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Day 8<\/a><\/td>Mandalay, Myanmar & the U Bein Bridge<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Day 9<\/a><\/td>Ohn Ne Choung, Myanmar<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Day 10<\/a><\/td>Bagan, Myanmar<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Day 11<\/a><\/td>Salay, Myanmar<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Day 12<\/a><\/td>Yandabo, Myanmar<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Day 13<\/a><\/td>Myint Mu, Myanmar<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<\/tbody>\n<\/table>\n\n\n\n\n

Our Live Voyage Report <\/em><\/strong>from Viking River Cruises\u2019 Myanmar Explorer<\/strong> continues tomorrow as we travel to Mandalay, Myanmar <\/strong>to board the Viking Mandalay! <\/strong>Be sure to follow along with our adventures on Twitter <\/em>@deckchairblog<\/em><\/a>. <\/em><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

A River Runs Through It – In Myanmar Tuesday, November 24, 2015 If I were a better writer, I\u2019d have a decent shot at describing the adventures we\u2019ve had today. As it is, this sixth day of our Myanmar Explorer river cruise tour with Viking River Cruises was absolutely packed with experiences. That alone makes […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":7,"featured_media":20383,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_genesis_hide_title":false,"_genesis_hide_breadcrumbs":false,"_genesis_hide_singular_image":false,"_genesis_hide_footer_widgets":false,"_genesis_custom_body_class":"","_genesis_custom_post_class":"","_genesis_layout":"full-width-content","footnotes":""},"categories":[96,417,87],"tags":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/rivercruiseadvisor.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/20359"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/rivercruiseadvisor.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/rivercruiseadvisor.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/rivercruiseadvisor.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/7"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/rivercruiseadvisor.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=20359"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/rivercruiseadvisor.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/20359\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/rivercruiseadvisor.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/20383"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/rivercruiseadvisor.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=20359"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/rivercruiseadvisor.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=20359"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/rivercruiseadvisor.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=20359"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}