Christmas Eve 2009 was definitely one to remember. While most of my friends were back in the States battling the snow and struggling with the slow airline travel, I was hanging out near Inle Lake in Myanmar.
We started the day pretty early, threw on our dusty jackets, and headed to the lake for a boat ride, where we spent most of the day.
The lake was breathtaking, and the tour was enjoyable. Not only did we get to see the sites and observe the locals, we also got to visit some floating markets. The markets had everything from silver to scarves, all of which were handmade.
Making Silver
At one of the markets, you can see women from the Padaung Tribe. These ladies are known for their long necks, which they get from layering rings on themselves since a young age. The sad thing is that as tourism has expanded, so too has the exploitation of this group (and many other minority groups in Myanmar for that matter). You can do a google search, or check Flickr if you are interested, because I did not take a photo. Due to the fact that these women are placed in these areas for tourists to take photos, I was not comfortable taking part in the ordeal.
One obvious downside to this tour was the fact that we stopped at so many touristy markets. In these areas, salespeople were probably the most aggressive I had encountered in the country, but they were nothing like those I encountered in Cambodia, or even China. In fact, it can be somewhat funny at times. Below is a picture of a young boy that grabbed on to our boat hoping to sell the fish he had just caught:
At first we thought he just wanted to show us, and then he started asking for money…
After a long, peaceful day on the lake, we decided to walk around in search of a place to have our Christmas Eve dinner. In our race to beat the darkness (no electricity in the city, just a few hotels and dining venues), I noticed a sign that read, “Wood Fire Pizza — This Way”. Although uncertain of how it would taste, it seemed like a nice change from our usual Thai/Chinese fusion.
This little Italian place had everything from pasta to gnocchi, which we thought was really interesting for a small restaurant in Myanmar. We decided to order the Pizza, and were really amazed by its quality and taste.
Why? How? What the…?
It turns out that this little place is run by a family that was trained (for three days) by an Italian lady, and have been around for the past 12 years.
In 1997, they met this nice woman on a trek near the town around the lake. She told them that Italian food was easy and delicious, taught them how to make it, and they have been around ever since. They even have a pasta maker and an herb garden! (she mailed them the stuff from Italy).
For other ingredients, such as Mozzarella, they have to import it from other countries. While that might not seem like that big of a deal, I would say you have to go to Myanmar. They don’t even have an address, and when they order a new shipment, it has to go to Yangon, and then be trucked up to Inle Lake…a drive that can take two days.
The family that runs the place is absolutely wonderful, and all members are active in the kitchen:
Even Grandpa is Helping
And the best part of the whole ordeal? Waking up to leftover pizza on Christmas Day!
My apologies for the late post…I still have a lot I need to get to from my trip to Myanmar…
(for more photos, you can check here)
