JWM - Volume 3, Issue 1 - (Page 70)

T TO THE RIVER The Road to Mandalay as it makes its way on the Irriwaddy River in Myanmar. o cruise along the Irriwaddy River as it slices through the very heart of Myanmar (formerly Burma) is to be transported back in time. Our cruise ship shares the waterway with ﬁshermen in bamboo boats who cast nets as they have for centuries. Immense rafts constructed of teak logs maneuver around our ship, skirting broad sandbanks. Onboard the rafts are small huts or tents that shelter the raftsmen on the long journey downriver. From our vantage on the ship’s deck, we watch as farmers plow their ﬁelds behind massive water buffalo. At each stop, we encounter the local people going about their routines. Early morning brings farmers into town to sell their goods in open-air markets. A procession of saffron-robed Buddhist monks, lined up in order from small boys to old men, snakes through the streets, collecting the offerings people drop into their baskets. Men dressed in the traditional longyi, a sarong of brightly colored fabric, gather for tea and conversation. And everywhere are pagodas, literally thousands of pagodas, some with glistening golden stupas, some of rose-colored brick, some more than 1000 years old, where supplicants wait patiently to add another small patch of gold leaf to the Buddha. It is as otherworldly a spot as you’ll ﬁnd anywhere on the planet. The kind of destination that draws travelers who are looking for new experiences, who want to be immersed in an exotic destination. The ship, Road to Mandalay, has several decks with different size staterooms, a pleasant dining room, lounge, bar and a large observation deck with a swimming pool. She was one of the earliest river cruise ships to pierce the inner reaches of an isolated land. She spent more than 30 years on the Rhine before Orient-Express, in search of a ship that could navigate the sometimes shallow stretches of the Irriwaddy (or Ayeyarwady, as the Myanmar government prefers), gave her a face-lift and launched their excursions. Now, she’s hardly a novelty. River cruising of the luxurious kind is the fastest growing segment of the cruise industry. In 2013, the major river-cruising companies will add 16 new ships to

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of JWM - Volume 3, Issue 1

JWM - Volume 3, Issue 1
Table of Contents
Contributors
JW Experts
Editor's Letter
Distinctive Products, People, Ideas & Style
A Quiet Place
Our Clutter, Ourselves
A Taste of Heaven
Art Everywhere
The Portal
Player's Paradise
Melting Pot
Take Me to the River
Breaking the Rules
JW Experience
My Passion

JWM - Volume 3, Issue 1