Having completed my goal of touring Inle Lake within my budget, it was finally time to go back. That was the day before the weeklong Thingyan festival which is celebrated in the whole of Myanmar. The funny thing is that all transportation between major cities stops during this festival, buses and trains all stop. However, there are still flights within the country. Obviously with my money issues, that was not an option for me. The Bright Hotel managed to book me a bus ticket on the last day before Thingyan, perfect.
Signs of Thingyan are already all over the place, most obvious is the chanting emanating from the monastery nearby. This chanting supposedly goes on for around two weeks, which is supposed to ward off evil spirits and all that. The chanting happens practically around the clock even early mornings. I guess it was okay if the monks wanted to chant, but the problem is that chanting is broadcast on loudspeaker for everyone to hear. Needless to say this chanting really gets to you and it has been difficult to get any sleep from all that chanting. The guests of the nearby Aquarius Inn have all moved out since the chanting started. I guess that chanting in Bright Hotel is not as bad as Aquarius Inn, since Aquarius Inn is right next to the monastery itself!
With the realization that I will be finally rid of that incessant chanting, not because the monks stop, but rather because I’m leaving for Yangon that morning, I didn’t really feel that bad leaving Inle anymore. The breakfast at Bright Hotel was, as usual, great. What caught my attention was the procession of young monks lining up for alms right in front of the Bright Hotel. The monks do not have any money and are totally reliant on the generosity of others. In true Burmese fashion, the locals willingly give what they can to support these monks. Most of the time, they would have tables laid out in front of the establishment and one would be scooping food into the bowls of the monks.
Add a few establishments doing this everyday, and the monks are guaranteed their daily fill of food. It was also heartening to see how generous Brumese are considering that they are not really rich to begin with. This culture of sharing seems to be ingrained into their culture. Walking along roads you will see jars of water with cups for the weary traveller. Anyone can just take a cup and get their fill, regardless of whether you are a monk or not. I think this is an amazing facet of the Burmese that the people of the world can emulate.
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