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6. Mingalar Market

Mingalar Market

Authentic and colourful
Published/Last edited or updated: 28th March, 2017

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Nyaung Shwe market is hard to miss: it's that vivid green square thing stuck smack bang in the middle of the little town. This is the permanent, daily market, open from early morning to mid-afternoon. Thankfully, and perhaps surprisingly considering the influx of visitors to Inle Lake's gateway town, it's managed to remain largely traditional and authentic, which is more than we can say for some of the rapidly changing lakeside village markets.

Travelfish says:

Apart from its permanent market, Nyaung Shwe also has a five-day market, though note that it's not connected to the Inle Lake five-day market. Rather, it has a separate schedule that it shares with the nearby towns of Kalaw, Aung Ban, Heho and Pindaya. Every five days then, Mingalar doubles in size and overflows onto the surrounding streets and pavements.

Since most visitors would tend to be out on the lake during the daytime, this market is less tourist-orientated than the further-flung lakeside ones, some of which now see as many tourists as locals and have as many souvenir stalls as fruit and veg ones. Especially colourful at Mingalar are the flower growers bringing their temperate flower varieties of roses, carnations, chrysanthemums and so on down from the hills to sell.

During high season, when the lakeside markets can get very busy with foreign visitors, this is a much quieter and appealing alternative. Sure, you won't have the boats and lake background, but you can sample the atmosphere (and local snacks) of a traditional Burmese market in relative tranquility, and it won't cost you anything to get here. Vendors are mostly Shan or local Intha people, though you'll also see Pa-O and even occasionally Palaung from the ... Travelfish members only (Full text is around 200 words.)