Burma-Myanmar: Food offerings in front of the Shan-style Buddhas at the May Nigone Mon Monastery,...

Inle Lake at 116 sq km (44.9 sq miles) is shallow, long, crystal clear and calm. Here the Intha people live, hemmed in on both sides by tall hills. The Intha men are famous for rowing standing up, using one leg, whilst fishing with tall, conical traps for Inle carp and the other, smaller fish with which the lake swarms. The Intha women, champion market gardeners, use the fertile soil around the lake, as well as floating islands made of water hyacinths and mud, to grow cauliflower, tomatoes, cucumbers, cabbages, beans and aubergines. Inle is a simple place, but a place of plenty - both restful and sublime.