i like to ride my bicycle

Us three musketeers ventured out for a miscalculated bike ride. We found some overrated "hot springs" and some beautiful lake side resorts. Seeing as how lazy we are, we opted to hire a little guy to boat us and our bikes to the other side of the river. Turned out to be a beautiful day out on the water. 

don't be deceived. that's petrol, not water

day of indulgence

We had a relaxing day of utter indulgence. It included a cooking class and eating until it hurt and then a bike ride to watch the sunset at a winery. 

As part of the cooking class, we started at the market in town. With our instructor we collected all the goodies we would need to create a decadent meal. 

the 3 musketeers 

inle lakeside

The 3 of us decided to check out Inle Lake. Tim had never been before and we heard some positive reviews. After spending a few days there, I have to say that I've seen better. It was pretty filled with tourist and hence has lost it's cultural charms. Needless to say, we found ourselves sharing a lot of laughs and made it a great time. 

First thing we did was a day long tour on the water. It included visiting a number of trade shops, some interesting, some not so much. 

We got off to wander and walked into a soccer game. There were so many colors going on that we couldn't figure out what the teams were. 

women weren't allowed at the 5 Buddhas so I watched from afar while Tim and Nate were given good luck

a monk feeding the birds

fishing

hanging gardens

some sweet girls harvesting flowers threw me a bouquet

Around sunset, some fake fisherman come out onto the waters to pose for tourists... as strange as it was, they still looked pretty cool 

kyaukme with tim

After a bit of a goose chase around Kyaukme, we finally found Uncle Tim! He came to join us for the last leg of the trip without any plans. We spent the day with him exploring Kyaukme and finding everything it has to offer from a bamboo paper plant to some of the best Shan noodles.