In Dien - Central Burma

Not far from Inle Lake are the 900 year old Buddhist temples of In Dein. You can walk in or on them as you wish. They are near a small village. We were the only people there.

Our guide led us into several of them, sometimes clapping his hands loudly. He told us that this aroused the snakes (vipers and cobras) which sometimes crawled into the temples to escape the midday sun. Some of the statues of Buddha were in remarkably good condition.

While meandering through this wonder, we came across a local farmer going home. He is carrying his hoe. Despite the poverty and oppression, he was typical of the seemingly happy and very friendly people.

It could be that at least part of his gaze was the common reaction that Pauline's blonde hair engendered. We even had two girls come up and ask to have their picture taken with her. We found out that they had come to see a local temple, and lived in an area where foreigners are not allowed. Our guide explained that our height and skin color were a real oddity to these people. We were told that quite possibly these people had never seen a foreigner!