Darina Allen: The tastes of Myanmar

I’M SITTING on the balcony of the View Point Hotel in Nyaungshwe overlooking the jetty where most of the skiffs and narrow timber boats leave for Inle Lake, one of Myanmar’s biggest attractions.

It’s really chilly at this time of the day.

There’s two-way traffic: some boats, laden down with tomatoes, aubergines, and gourds in huge bamboo baskets are on their way to the Mingalar Market in front of the pagoda. Farmers and their families sit, hunched up on the floor of the boats in woolly caps or hoodies.