When people think of Inle Lake, the image of the fishermen with their nets basking in the early morning light often comes to mind. I have that photo too, except the fisherman was just an actor, and waits around to pose for tourists like me. I found that rather disappointing, but there’s no way to fault someone for wanting a better life, and a small tip from a tourist is probably worth than an hour or two of hard fishery work.
Later that morning, our boat passed these actual fishermen, who weren’t dressed up as nicely in traditional garbs, but I loved the fact that they were just going about their day. As a tourist, it’s not necessarily my intention, but my arrival in a place where the cost of living is much lower always causes disruption to the traditional way of life. Even for these fishermen, perhaps my dinner that night would be the fresh fish they deliver to the newly opened restaurant that caters to tourists. It’s not a bad thing, after all, everyone deserves a chance for a better life, right? Yet of all the people I’ve met, the ones that haven’t been exposed to all the materialism seem to be the happiest.
I guess that’s why I appreciate this photo, taken as an outside observer, much more than the beautifully posed one.
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