183INLE LAKEDRINKING & ENTERTAINMENTEASTERN MYANMARDRINKING & ENTERTAINMENTEASTERN MYANMARNYAUNGSHWEby concepts such as Shan guacamole, the fol-
lowing places, generally open from 9am to
9pm, have been around for a while:
Unique Superb
Food House INTERNATIONAL, BURMESE $
(Map p 178 ; 3 Myawady Rd; mains from K2000) This
simple restaurant in a village house has a
menu that includes just about everything,
but the Western-style food here gets good
reports.
Smiling Moon
Restaurant INTERNATIONAL, BURMESE $
(Map p 178 ; Yone Gyi Rd; mains from K1500) A laid-
back terrace restaurant serving Inle regional
dishes, hill tribe food and the traveller holy
trinity of Chinese, pasta and pancakes.
Miss Nyaungshwe
Restaurant INTERNATIONAL, BURMESE $
(Map p 178 ; Phaung Daw Seiq Rd; mains from
K2000) Travellers gather at this cute bamboo-
fronted restaurant for inexpensive Chinese
and Bamar curries, plus pancakes, pasta
and bottled beers.
6 Drinking & Entertainment
Despite the backpacker vibe, there’s no
bar scene in Nyaungshwe. The locals head
to beer-based restaurants such as Kaung
Kaung (Map p 178 ; Main Rd; hlunch & dinner),
which has Myanmar and ABC beers on tap,
while tourists head to Min Min’s (Map p 178 ;
Yone Gyi Rd; hall day), where the beer costs
more but where the daring can order a caip-
irinha, Irish coff ee or pina colada.Aung Puppet Show PUPPET SHOW
(Map p 178 ; Ahletaung Kyaung Rd; admission K3000;
hshow times 7pm & 8.30pm) Down the road
opposite the Nandawunn Hotel, this place
has two nightly shows of traditional Bur-
mese puppetry. 7 Shopping
On any trip onto Inle Lake, you will be ap-
proached by dozens of vendors in canoes
selling crafts objects and curios, so there
isn’t any great need to buy souvenirs in Ny-
aungshwe. It is, though, worth going out of
your way to visit any of one of the fi ve-day
rotating market destinations (see the Mar-
keting Strategy boxed text for details).8 Information
Any guesthouse in town can arrange tours, boat
trips, fl ights and bus tickets. Some hotels are
willing to change US dollars into kyat for guests;
otherwise money can be changed at Mingala
Market.
See p 183 for information on the permit fee.
Comet Travel & Internet Café (Map p 178 ;
%209 126; Yone Gyi Rd; h7am-11pm) Books
flights and buses and has a few internet
terminals.
Golden Island Cottages (Map p 178 ; GIC;
%209 551; Phaung Daw Seiq Rd; h8am-6pm)
Come here to arrange guides to Kakku and
Sankar.MARKETING STRATEGYA rustic market rotates among several cities and towns in the Inle Lake region. The most
touted of these is the so-called fl oating market at Ywama, but this has become a victim
of its own success, and the land-based options, where tribal people come down from the
hills to trade livestock and produce, are much more interesting. The towns below Ywama
host the market once every fi ve days; hotels and guesthouses can advise you where the
market will be heading next. Keep in mind that markets are not held on full moon days.
» Heho, Thandaung – Thandaung’s market is small, but well off the beaten track.
» Taunggyi, Floating Market (Ywama) – The ‘Floating Market’ at Ywama has
emerged to become the most touristy of the circuit – consider heading elsewhere.
» Maing Thauk, Thaung Tho, Kyauk Taung – Maing Thauk is close to Nyaungshwe
and reachable by land or boat, but the Thaung Tho and Kyauk Taung markets, located
at the far southern end of Inle Lake, are largely off the tourist circuit.
» Shwenyaung, Kaung Daing, Kalaw, Inthein – Inthein, although now fully on the
tourist circuit, is still worth a visit for its size and setting. Kalaw’s tidy market spills over
to the streets on market day.
» Nyaungshwe, Pindaya, Nampan – On market day, Nyaungshwe’s normally sleepy
market swells to several times its normal size. Tiny Pindaya’s central market also at-
tracts vendors and buyers who come down from the surrounding hills.