We debated for a while whether we should head straight to Lake Inlé or do the 3 day trek from Kalaw. The reviews online were pretty unanimous: the trek is neither particularly exciting landscape wise nor technique wise, but the charm of the people you encounter along the way more than make up for that lack. At this point, we haven’t done a decent hike in months (Whanganui was canoe, after all) so we decide to go for it. I struggle to lockdown on a guide – I’m looking for someone who ideally is used to walking with children, knowing that only few children go on the full 3 day version of the walk. Requesting a few offers, I hesitate until literally the last minute to confirm (very much against my usual character, so let’s call this instinct) and just as I am about to contact our final choice, I come across a FB post on “familles autour du monde” from a family who just finished a 2D trek with a guide, singing his laurels, saying their child loved every minute. This was meant to be – I contact Soé immediately, he is free and so we agree to meet up in Kalaw, our departure point, 2 days later.
Our drive from Bagan to Kalaw is pretty smooth, only the last patch is a bit rough, pulling up the winding roads to the hilltop town. Our hotel is without charm but functional, set atop a hill overlooking the small but lively town. It is mid-afternoon, everyone is super hungry and we head down to find a goûter. There is one café in town that seems to understand the idea of a afternoon sweet snack, a concept foreign to locals, but, after a 15min walk in the hot, dusty streets, it turns out that the café is exceptionally closed. The bellies are seriously rumbling by now so I just propose to pull dinner forward by a few hours – apparently there is a decent Italian restaurant in town according to the reviews and no-one needs to be convinced to indulge in a good plate of pasta. The Red Chicken does not inspire by its name, that’s for sure, but as soon as we open the menu, we see that we are dealing with serious matters here. It’s unfortunately too early for their wood fired pizza, the oven is not fired up at 4pm yet, but we quite happily order their homemade gnocchi and pesto pasta instead. I should take a picture at this point, capturing the expressions of pure bliss on everyone’s faces as they tuck into their – truly excellent – dishes, but I, too, am distracted by the deliciousness and so the only snapshot I do have of this moment is of the Tiramisu.
Soé comes to meet us at the restaurant to take us through the last minute explanations of the route and preparations. He kindly walks us through town to gather the last few things, including a stack of school supplies to distribute in the schools along the way. We are all set – departure next morning at 8am at the hotel, a driver will take our luggage to our hotel at Lake Inlé and we just keep our backpacks. We are due to cover: D1 22km, D2 26km and on D3, 17km. Even if our kids are good walkers, those are pretty long days. Once we get out of town, we cross into the National Forest Reserve. Soé entertains us with lots of interesting facts about the flora and fauna around, the medicine men and women in the villages who still gather the herbs and plants to make their remedies but who struggle to find someone to pass their ancient knowledge on to, and the politics of the tourism development. The first 12km practically fly by, until we get to higher situated tea plantations where, on a clearing, sits a super cute Nepalese restaurant that churns out a mean pumpkin curry and delicious chapatis. This is also when we discover, that the Burmese really love their avocados, and eat them in all kind of varieties. We devour a heavenly guacamole – the first of many to come – and, ending on their delicious fresh ginger tea and an artistically presented fruit platter (I never knew one could make so many ornithological creations out of an apple), we relax with the beautiful view over the valley until we realise that we are one man down and have been for a while now – Nilay has disappeared. I venture into the kitchen to find Soé to ask if he has seen him when I discover a powder white little boy practicing his chapati rolling skills in the back of the shack. He’s already made buddies with all the crew and is building his chapati credentials. 16 masterpieces down, his boss declares his work finished and compensates him with a tour on his very grand motorbike. Needless to say, that Nilay’s smile reaches from ear to ear.
It is hard to get ourselves “resaddled” with our backpacks after this nice break, but we still have quite a way to walk and we want to get to our hosts before nightfall, especially since their home is off the grid. As we leave the forest behind, we come across a few local villages. It is fascinating how every village culture has its own dress code from how they tie their longi or sarong to – most defining – how they tie their headdress. The colors of the cloths used range from ochre to fuchsia, a beautiful spectacle amidst the dry surroundings. Almost at our final destination, we stop at a local school to drop off the supplies. The room is filled to the max with benches, several grades together, all the children sitting in orderly fashion, working on their revisions in their very neatly kept workbooks. Indeed, here, so far away from the next provisions, every paper and pencil counts and the students act accordingly. We say goodbye quickly to let them get on with their work, it is after 4pm now and at about 1900m altitude the sun still burns down pretty hotly but we will soon discover, as soon as it sets, it gets quite chilly, not helped by the fatigue which is definitely setting in now. We arrive at our hosts just as night falls. They show us our home for the night – 6 mattresses on the first floor, with lots of spare blankets. Soé reminds us that this is also the home of the family shrine, we must never point our feet towards it, and the pillows should only rest our heads, nothing else. Good reminder for some of this crew 😉 After the nearly 10 hours of walking today, it is time to wash off the grime, especially the boys who managed to kick up a ball match in the dust. We go to bathroom, a small enclosure covered by a curtain, a basin has rainwater and a bowl. Fortunately we have our mini torches to at least see where we’re splashing – it’s amazing how uncoordinated one gets when there is literally zero light out and up here, far from light pollution, it is truly pitch black dark. A chilly wash up later, we huddle up around a warm cup of tea and a game of cards before dinner. We get served a royal feast of vegetables in all colors and cooking styles, the dishes can hardly fit the big table. Served atop the obligatory portion of rice, we eat till we drop, brush our teeth and pass out on our mattresses within minutes.
Day 2 is extra long and will be extra hot – no forest today to shelter us from the sweltering sun. We bid farewell to our kind hosts and leave with energy – Soé keeps a good, crisp pace and knows how to throw in an interesting story about a plant or animal to spice things up when needed. Time flies by despite the burning heat as we cross through beautiful paddies and fields, exchanging friendly “Mingalabar!”s with the farmers who encourage us with wide smiles. Once again I am struck by how beautiful these people are – their features are not just handsome, which they are, with lovely skin to go with it, it is also that their faces express a deep peacefulness, equanimity even, that I find incredibly beguiling, women and men alike. Thierry and I, but also the children, soak up this unique energy here, which has a major recharging effect, despite the long walk. Today we first come across lentils – this is when I realise that I have never seen how this, one of my favorite pantry staples, grows!! Here, they eat small and medium sized yellow lentils, which they make into soups and stews and also tofu. We also walk through acres of chili fields, the small, evil kind that makes you blow out steam at the tongue touch. We not only really enjoy our walk, but we also have two memorable stops today, with two incredible families. The first is for lunch in the Kone Hla village, which is – no surprise here – simple and delicious, with a lovely wife and husband couple Daw San and Uthein Maung who go to all lengths to please the children with home made windmills and other bamboo confections. Soé even throws in an impromptu guitar lesson. The kids are over the moon and the next 15km pass with big smiles, quite speedily no less, after all, we want to make those windmills turn.
At every crossroad we opt for the longer, more scenic route, off the roads and across the fields. As such, we are running a bit behind schedule. Soé promised us a beautiful sunset atop a small mountain top but he estimates that we won’t make it in time, in which case the scramble both up and down won’t be super safe. Since we have little mountain goats for kids, though, and they are keen on the view, we decide to go for it, and, with several gears up, not only make it on time, but with even enough to spare to watch the change of colors in all its glory. 20min later we arrive at our hosts’ home, which has been recently refurbished. The families who participate in this highly controlled tourism program get paid, of course, but not only are most of them smart enough to reinvest a big chunk back into their home but in some villages, as in this one, Pattuupauk village of the PaOh tribe, the participating families agreed to funnel a percentage of their earnings into a communal pot to improve the overall village infrastructure from roads, school, and – eventually – running water and electricity. The place is simple and spic and span and much warmer than our previous night. Usain To and his family makes us very comfortable, serving us yet another beautiful, delicious meal. After a good, restful night, we even get homemade, honey filled, crêpes for breakfast! Vyas befriends the fun and friendly – and slightly drunk 😉 – granddad while Usain To and Soé make beautiful little bamboo flutes for the children. Once again, we realise how fortunate we are to meet such warm hearted, generous and kind people, with their intelligent smiles bridging any barriers language or culture may have put in place.
Day 3: “only” 16km today to Lake Inlé. This part of the route is not very spectacular, across train tracks and quite a bit of road. On the plus side, that allows us to meet a few more people. We also encounter a French family with 4 children (the youngest one barely 3 yo) who are travelling for 2 years – at least that is their plan, they started 4 months ago and at this stage, on Feb 22nd, 2020, COVID-19 hasn’t messed with anyone’s plans too much yet. We become friendly and shall see each other a few more times the coming days. We finally cross into the protected Lake zone, drop down for lunch – our last yummy guacamole for a while – and soon board our long boat to take us to our hotel. We quickly get introduced to the boat drivers incredible skill manoeuvring the boats along the canals between the lake gardens growing left and right, knowing when to avoid a patch of water plants and when it’s safe to go over it. Some passages have bamboo sticks suddenly poking out of the water, leaving barely an inch each side of the boat, which Kan Gyi, our boat driver, just whizzes through without batting an eye. We love it. Especially Nilay cannot stop shouting out with excitement for all the beautiful birds, fishermen, their unique nets and the different vegetables growing just a hand reach away. Thierry told me I would love the lake, that it had a special aura to it and I see why. The light is particular, the mountains are set in slight haze, the farmers are going about their business and even in the busiest part of the lake, the atmosphere is very peaceful. It is time to bid farewell to our fabulous guide Soé – we all got very attached to him and he will remain one of our fondest memories of our trip.
