Myanmar

Nampan Village
Nam Pan Village is located in the south of Ywama village. The whole village is situated on the stilts over the water, which is a traditional way of building houses in Inle Lake. Alodaw Pauk Pagoda, which is situated in Nampan, is the oldest pagoda in Inle Lake. This pagoda enshrines a gem-encrusted Shan style Buddha stupa. In the Nampan, there are a number of cheroot (traditional cigarette) factories. There are also a few restaurants that serve delicious food at an affordable price on the edge of village There is variety of these floating gardens to the north of Nampan village, where the Intha farmers grow tomatoes, flowers, squash and vegetables on long trip of floating land. This is a naturally formed collection of tangled, old, decayed water hyacinth, weeds, reeds and grasses that formed around the rim of the lake. It takes years to form a thick layer of floating land around the rim. Inthas usually go and look for a good piece of light, deep trough around the rim of the lake. Once found, they cut them into long piece and towed them by boat back to their village. Here, they were tied down to the bottom of the lake by long bamboo poles. Called Kyun myaw, Intha women cultivate vegetable on this floating garden from boat, usually working on both sides. These vegetables are the main source of income for Inthas. They sell them all over Shan State and Myanmar.

In 2015 I spent three weeks in Myanmar, one of the best journeys I have ever done. One of the things that became apparent was how easy it is photographing people. I found the Myanmarians a very welcoming people and their faces caught my eye again and again.

Connecting with local people is probably one of the greatest joys I derive from travelling. I love the learning and sharing that stem from unexpected conversations, or, when language barriers prevent words, to communicating with mime and smiles and gestures. Much to the amusement of many and the in credulousness of my partner

My journey took me through three distinct areas, Yangon, Bagan and Inle, although I would say that Inle has two areas Inle, and Inle North. I found the faces did differ, and besides helping me expand my personal photography in “people and street photography” I feel is a journalistic look at the faces of Myanmar. Some of the images are of working people, some of people going about their daily lives, all I think you will find will give the viewer a unique look into people’s lives.

The two Sisters-
A series in Annette's Shorts" on the Temples of Bagan In Early 2015 I spent three weeks in Myanmar. No part did I fall more in love with than Bagan, and archaeological, modern day historical site. True many of the local people were relocated a mile away, but they still all benefit from the visitors that come here to see what I believe is arguably the largest collection of Temples and Pagodas in South East Asia . Info:The Seinnyet Nyima is a phato or pagoda built in the 12th century by Queen Seinnyet’s sister. This pagoda is believed to be older than the Seinnyet Ama temple. The pagoda is solid with a square floor plan. cSeinnyet Nyima and Seinnyet Ama Paya meaning "The Seinnyet Sisters Pagoda". Nyima meaning younger sister and Ama meaning elder sister. They are two pagodas standing side by side, donated by two sisters of the Bagan monarch. Also know as the "two sisters" temples, they were constructed by two Seinnyet Queen sisters during the 11th century.

Apeyadana Temple Myanmar
Another "short" in my series of Bagan. In Early 2015 I spent three weeks in Myanmar. No part did I fall more in love with than Bagan, and archaeological, modern day historical site. True many of the local people were relocated a mile away, but they still all benefit from the visitors that come here to see what I believe is arguably the largest collection of Temples and Pagodas in South East Asia . Info:Apeyadana Temple is best known for its frescoes inside that depict the Brahmanism gods and divinities of the Mahayana pantheon. Unfortunately, it's quite dark inside and very hard to photograph in there. There is space inside that was meant for a number of statues, but most of those that survived have been moved to the Bagan Archaeological Museum a few miles up the road.

n Early 2015 I spent three weeks in Myanmar. No part did I fall more in love with than Bagan, and archaeological, modern day historical site. True many of the local people were relocated a mile away, but they still all benefit from the visitors that come here to see what I believe is arguably the largest collection of Temples and Pagodas in South East Asia . We will start with Ywa Haung Gyi, there isn't a lot of information about this Temple, apart from the wonderful arches and many people come here to watch the sunset!. My pictures were actually taken in the morning, given the temple itself this beautiful deep, rich, red glow.