Things to do
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Indein
Hundreds of stupas crowd a hillside above a creek on the western shore, some restored in gold, others cracked open with trees growing out of the brick. A long covered stairway lined with stalls climbs to the upper group at Shwe Inn Thein. Boats reach the creek only when water is high, so the approach depends on the season.
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Inle Lake
Leg-rowing fishermen work a shallow freshwater lake about 22km long, where Intha villages stand on stilts and gardens of tomatoes float on beds of weed anchored to the bottom. Boat days take in silk weaving from lotus fibre, silversmiths and a cheroot workshop. Water levels drop late in the dry season and some channels then close to longtail boats.
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Nga Phe Kyaung Monastery
Teak posts hold up a wooden monastery on the lake, built in the 1840s and known for a collection of Shan, Tibetan and Bagan-style Buddha images in its dim main hall. Monks once trained cats to jump through hoops, a routine revived for visitors. Most boat itineraries stop here, and the building itself rewards the pause more than the act does.
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Phaung Daw Oo Pagoda
Five small Buddha images, gilded past recognition by layers of leaf applied over generations, are the focus of the principal shrine on the lake, near Ywama. For eighteen days each autumn four of them tour the villages on a gilded barge. Women are not permitted onto the platform where the images sit, and the festival crowds the water.