The nearest airport to Inle Lake is at Heho, about an hour’s drive distant. And in between Heho Airport and the lake lies this charming teak monastery, over 150 years old.

It’s not covered by ornate carvings like the royal monasteries and pagodas we saw in Mandalay. This is a regional monastery, and one dedicated to housing poor boys from the countryside, boys who might consider the monastery as a way of life. For them, it provides an education and a predictable meal–more than they might get at home otherwise.

We arrived during wash time. Monks were washing themselves and their clothing together.

The monks live in a dormitory, where each has his own space: a sleeping mat and a place to store his possessions, including a trunk. With a lock. Not that the monks aren’t honest. Of course they are, but a lock, perhaps, helps them stay that way. Or maybe it’s us tourists that they’re worried about.

The dormitory occupies half of the monastery building. The other half is a temple with an ornately carved ceiling, containing some of the sweeter Buddhas we’ve seen on this trip.

Nearby–perhaps part of the same monastery complex–is another pagoda with an abundance of Buddhas and beautiful glass mosaics.

The main Buddhas seem about to go out for a stroll.

All around the central sanctuary is a walkway with niches. In every niche is a Buddha (and a sign indicating the Buddha’s donor). There is much merit here.

The arched ceiling of this walkway is covered with mosaic murals of Buddhist themes. The one I like best shows how the righteous (men) get to pluck the fruit of the tree of virgins. Er… I am not making this up.

I do have to point out the sleeping righteous (men) at the right and below the tree, so perhaps this image depicts only the kind of pleasant dreams such people may have. Or perhaps the image refers to some canonical tale. I wouldn’t be surprised if the guy on the right is a person with a name that any good Myanmar Buddhist would know.