Events of Friday, 14th September 2012
Rise at six, quick shower and to the restaurant for breakfast. Meantime, the ship had raised anchor and continued upstream as far as Kyan Hnyat village. The two 'Fast Boats' could be seen tied-up at the village and the both left the shore to meet us in midstream. Those passengers wishing to go on the early excursion transferred to the 'Fast Boats' at 7.30 for the short journey to the shore. The beach shelves only gently here, so my fast boat had to moor a few feet out from the water's edge. This meant that the normal 'two planks side-by-side' gangplank would not fully reach so a second, similar gangplank was laid on the first at a steeper angle making disembarkation a trifle hairy. The beach was rather muddy, so Logistics had laid a number of lengths of matting end-to-end. We then climbed a set of concrete steps to the level of the village.
Lots of children and adults were keenly watching the strange-looking visitors who arrive by the Great White Ship four times a year. The bustling village market extended right up to the top of the steps where pottery jars in various sizes were on offer and we were immediately immersed in the sights and sounds of vibrant commerce. We made our way through the narrow passages between rows of stalls selling every possible requirement. Vegetables, meat, fish, eggs, rice and spices abounded. But there were also manufactured goods, clothes, metalware and plastic items, mainly originating in China.
We left the market and walked along the dirt road leading to Kyan Hnyat school, passing a group of young monks accepting offerings of alms (prepared food) from the villagers. At the school, a large, open-sided assembly building was crowded with children of all ages, all squatting on the bare concrete floor.
As we arrived, the headmaster started the waiting pupils reciting whilst Doctor Hla Tun and various helpers unpacked the stationery which Logistics had brought from the ship. Each child was to receive an exercise book, a pencil and a short plastic ruler. A number of guests assisted in distributing this stationery and there was quite a hubbub as this task was carried out. 'Road to Mandalay' staff had set up a table at the rear of the hall with various types of soft drinks for the guests. By half past eight, all the children had received their stationery and the headmaster told them to go back to their classrooms for the start of their normal lessons.
The guests started to return to the 'Fast Boats' followed by lots of curious children and watched by friendly residents. I was interested in a small blacksmith's shop equipped with very basic facilities - various anvils, a few hand tools including tongs and a small forge. The forge was a hole in the ground for the fuel, surrounded by a series of crude curved metal plates vaguely enclosing the fire. To raise the temperature of the fire sufficiently for metalworking, forced air is necessary, produced by a bellows or equivalent. Here, ingenuity had been employed. The air was supplied by a ducted rotary fan which looked as if it had been rescued from some discarded equipment. The fan was mounted on a fairly substantial wooden chassis which was long enough to accommodate an old bicycle mounted upside-down. A drive rope passed around the large rear wheel of the bicycle (with the tyre and inner tube removed, of course) and connected to a small drive pulley on the fan. The blacksmith's young assistant proudly demonstrated how turning the bicycle pedal by hand spun the fan to get the forge to working temperature.
We ran the gauntlet of the numerous small motor bicycles in the main street, alked back through the market and boarded the 'Fast Boats'. In addition to the 'Road to Mandalay' Logistics team, we were seen off by the headmaster (who recorded the scene with a digital camera), a number of children, some of the young monks and various local people. By 9.00 a.m. we were back on board the ship. The 'Road to Mandalay' continued upstream for most of the day.
We passed the industrial area on the east bank I'd noted two years before but this had changed significantly. The new construction is a joint venture between China and Myanmar to produce nickel. A quay with two grab cranes has been built. These appear to be for unloading coal or ore from barges. The cranes discharge into hoppers feeding a conveyor system leading to a large stockyard. From here, the conveyor continues to a large processing building near a tall chimney marked 'CNICO'. A further very long conveyor appears from the mountain and extends to the processing plant. In discussions with the Captain, we concluded that the nickel ore is mined somewhere up in the mountains and then brought to the main plant for processing (or, perhaps, storage) by the very long conveyor.
Sunset was at 6.10 p.m. and we dropped anchor mid-stream opposite the town of Katha around this time. I enjoyed a leisurely dinner with Arun (a new friend) and Audrey and Margot (with whom I sailed two years ago). The launch of the Shan Fire Ballons took place a little earlier than advertised so, by the time I got to the top deck, the Fire Balloons were drifting away in the night sky.
Photographs:
Kyan Hnyat Village.
Kyan Hnyat School.
Upstream on the Ayeyarwaddy.
[Revised 7-Oct-2012]
