Team Israel

We left for Bago at 830am in a local bus that cost less than a dollar. When we got there at about 1030, we were all surprised by the pressure for business put on us even before we got off the bus. We took shelter in a café and gradually the attention became more bearable so we were able to make some decisions. I voted myself into the position of Rucksack Minder while the others went off to different places to find out how best to get to Inle Lake and what we could do for our six hours in Bago. They arrived back with pretty much the same story; places were limited, sitting together might be a problem (didn’t really bother me), changing bus before day break was inevitable and the journey was long. So we bought the tickets. Then we agreed to pay 3000K (+$5 of the $10 government tax for tourism) each to four local moto drivers who took us on a sight seeing experience around Bago – to several temples, reclining Buddha, weaving factory, cigar factory and for local lunch where I spoke with Rosie who is learning English. At 630pm it was bus time and we were herded into one of several arriving buses for about $8 (10000K) each. I can honestly say that, despite having a seat this time, I slept for longer on the boarder crossing to Vietnam so I was glad to get off at 5am. This was where the journey got interesting; we had been told we would have to pay 1500K (just over $1) for the six hour, onward part of the journey. To start with the price we were actually offered was 7000K. We weren’t budging – sat in a coffee shop until day break, chatting to anyone who wanted to chat. There were 4 Germans with us by then who eventually took a bus for a bit less than the first offered price but Jair had to pray so we waited. At about 9, we were offered an uncovered van for a good price so off we struck, smiling at our hard won accomplishment. Ohhhhhhh how pride comes before a fall!!!! We found ourselves taken to the train track where it was clearly planned for renegotiations to take place. This wasn’t going to happen, so we insisted on going back to the bus station but these guys were keen to waste our time. After about 20 minutes, Ada and Jair got angry; we were put in a tuk tuk/bus and taken back to the station through the market (which was interesting and a bit different). There was some time pressure on us as Jair’s journey had to end by 4 pm so that he could start celebrating Sabbath. At the bus station, expressions of disappointment in Burmese pricing systems and scams, and threats of going back to Yangon and Thailand made to some nice people brought the price of the bus down to 4000k, which at that stage became acceptable. After getting my inflatable microphone out to show to a man playing guitar, we got on the very full bus, soon to be joined by a couple of military men and started the next leg of the trip. Exhausted by now, I slept for an hour or so. The scenery through the mountains was beautiful but the roads were treacherous. We got a taxi to Inle Lake where we had to pay government tax of $3 and found ourselves a guesthouse. That beer and shower were soooooooo good.