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Venturing beyond the popular tourist areas of the Irrawaddy, Sara Macefield discovers the colourful, cultural banks of Burma’s lesser-travelled Chindwin with Pandaw.
I’m still recovering from a bone-crunching minibus ride through Burma’s forested interior when I suddenly realise that I’m surrounded.
A gaggle of giggling Burmese schoolgirls has crowded around our group as we stroll towards the revered Buddhist cave complex of Phowintaung, and all thoughts of ancient treasures are forgotten as they jabber away in Burmese while waving a mass of mobile phones.
In an instant, they are laughing, linking arms with us and posing for selfies, chattering excitedly as they triumphantly compare shots of these novel foreigners.
I’ve never been so popular, and I realise we are the main tourist attraction as these girls are clearly unaccustomed to seeing Westerners.
But it’s a sign of things to come on our Chindwin River cruise as it delves deep into Burma’s northern hinterland away from popular tourist areas of the Irrawaddy River, which has been increasingly busy in recent years.
Up here tourists are a rarity, as just a handful of riverboats can navigate the Chindwin’s shallow depths. Pandaw is one of them, and the sole company to offer departures for eight months of the year.
During our week-long sailing northwards from the town of Monywa (three hours’ drive north of Mandalay) to Homalin, which sits close to the Indian border, we never see other tourist boats – or other tourists for that matter – so often become the centre of attention wherever we stop.
Our group is small – just 11 Americans and I, and there’s a blissful feeling of being truly off the beaten track as we wander into villages where we are greeted by wide-eyed giggling children on the riverbank who follow us in Pied Piper fashion.
Admittedly, once you’ve seen a few villages with muddy tracks and paths lined with wooden-stilted houses, they tend to blend into one.
It’s the people that stand out: farmers driving oxen carts laden with crops; women balancing impossibly large baskets on their heads; children on battered old bikes; and locals smoking cheroots or chewing betel nuts, a popular stimulant that stains their teeth blood red.
Whichever way you turn there is a picture opportunity, whether it is the captivating tropical backdrop amid the rice fields and mountains beyond; the golden glint of a nearby Buddhist temple through the trees; or local schools where lines of children appear at the windows waving enthusiastically as word spreads that strangers are in town.
It is the irrepressible curiosity and enthusiasm of the youngsters and genuine friendly greetings of their elders that is so heart-warming. There are no hawkers, no hands outstretched for money, no entreaties to buy tourist tat – just a genuine curiosity and friendliness.
I soon get into the habit of calling out the Burmese greeting “mingalaba” to every person I pass and am rewarded with beautiful shy smiles as they respond.
Our Burmese guide Sandro acts as an interpreter to uncover captivating local stories from villagers we stop and chat to in our hunger for details about their daily lives.
But the most fascinating encounters are with octogenarians who remember invading Japanese troops sweeping through their villages during the Second World War. One woman recalls retreating British soldiers taking her and other villagers with them as they escaped across the mountains to India, just 20 miles away.
The small town of Mawlaik, which like many other places on the Upper Chindwin can only be reached by river, was the regional centre of British rule in colonial times.
Traces remain, from the clock tower and century-old administrative headquarters, where up to 3,000 expat Brits were based, to the quaint nine-hole Mawlaik Golf Course, dating from 1916 and said to be linked to St Andrews in Scotland with members able to play at both.
After testing our putting skills on one of the manicured greens, we ride in tuk-tuks past teak houses and a school originally built for British expats’ offspring but now educating the children of local families.
Such slices of colonial history add a fascinating dimension to our journey and every day brings a fresh place to explore as we gently cruise along, watching with interest as cargo vessels piled high with giant oil drums and noisy, packed passenger boats chug past us.
Thankfully life aboard the 20-passenger RV Zawgyi Pandaw is quieter and more comfortable, its teak surroundings combining the best of natural rusticity with modern comforts.
The library becomes our dining room one night, when the heavens open, but meals are generally served on the spacious top deck, with its dining area and cosy lounging space, where we while away hours watching the view and reading books.
Mealtimes are a highlight with bread baked onboard and four-course feasts at lunch and dinner featuring fresh fish, stir-fries, creamy soups and curries.
Our admiration for the Burmese crew grows when we realise the galley is tiny. But all the staff are so helpful, proffering drinks and cold flannels as we return from another muddy village; cleaning our shoes, and mixing pre-dinner cocktails with gentle Burmese smiles.
If you want to venture off the beaten track in style, this is definitely the way to do it.
Book it: Cruise-only can be booked online via Pandaw at pandaw.com, while packages are offered by selected tour operators. Audley Travel’s 13-night trip including a seven-night Pandaw sailing from Monywa to Homalin, two nights in Mandalay pre-cruise and two nights in Yangon post-cruise, with overnight Thai Airways flights via Bangkok and transfers, costs from £4,250pp, based on two sharing. audleytravel.com
