Travel Day 1152 – Katha to Shwebo, MYANMAR
After such a refreshingly nice day yesterday with all the friendly village kids, today we were already off and down the Ayeyarwady River…
Food Service Boat from a local Village
Unfortunately we were already off at 5am and in complete darkness, but since there was only one fast boat leaving per day, we simply had to cope with the early start of the day. At least the fast boat was going down to Mandalay during the day as opposed to the government ferry which was making the distance after nightfall. Our rational had been that the extra money spent on the faster boat would at least pay off with some fine Ayeyarwady River views…
Well, this rational was by all means reasonable, but we didn’t quite factor in the Myanmar weather. This awareness came only after the earlier joy that the boat was empty enough for every single passenger to occupy a whole bench, stretch out and even enjoy the views from a window seat at the same time. But unfortunately as soon as we left the pier, it started to rain quite heavily and the assistants on the boat closed down all the open windows with a heavy tarpaulin…
Ayeyarwady River Food Service Buffet
So, for a good portion of the ride down the Ayeyarwady River we were left with nothing to do but enjoy the fine views of the ugly boat. Luckily the rain didn’t last and so we could first peek out from under the tarpaulin and later open it all up to fully see the surrounding landscape with its local bamboo villages. It all was a slight reminder of what we already suspected while visiting Katha: The real Myanmar was to be found up here and out there, away from the trodden tourist paths of planes, trains and fast boats…
Once more unfortunately, the travel book was suggesting that roads in this area would be entirely closed to foreigners. Still, the idea of getting off the boat along the way and seeing a little bit more of the local village life seemed great and Kyaukmyaung appeared to be the perfect place to do so. This was especially the case as it had a passable road connection to Shwebo, a small town that once used to be a royal capital of a newly unified Myanmar…
Wooden Ox-carts on the way to Shwebo
The only real cultural experience that was left to get on the boat was the then excellent food service. Every once in a while a local family was catching our boat and erecting a whole self-made buffet of the homey cooking pots. Not only was the food delicious, cheap and fresh but it was also very impressive to watch with what kind of efficiency the food was scooped on plates, passed out eaten. Within no time the family food service boat was gone, preparing new food for the next passing boat tomorrow…
While my travel companion continued the boat journey down to Mandalay, I jumped off for my next cultural experience in Shwebo. The never-ending trishaw ride along wooden ox-carts alone was already a slight indication that Shwebo was, even if close to Mandalay, quite rural and not really frequented by foreigners. In fact it was so rural and unspoiled that local people actually came up to me to introduce themselves, help me find a place to stay and invite me out for dinner. It seemed almost all a bit strange, but very nice, friendly and hospitable at the same time. Yeah, Shwebo really seemed already like an interesting place to visit…
Find all Shwebo Boat Ride Photos here.
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