Joe Louis relaxes at a hot spring
The directions were fairly straightforward. Ride straight down the main road, turn left over the bridge, then turn right. There will be a dirt road that you basically take for 40 minutes with one marked turn. At the end would be nice, relaxing hot springs.
The trip itself wasn’t so straightforward. One major reason was that the bicycle I rented for $1 was pretty junky and the brakes barely functional. The second was that the dirt road was more like a pothole ridden path with lots of smog releasing vehicles (old tractor looking machines). For an extended stretch construction was being done and so riding across the single lane was like a game of chicken with oncoming traffic. So much for a scenic route.
Finally the end was in sight. I pulled up and parked my bike in front of a nice looking building and walked up to the attendant at the front. I was surprised and upset to learn that the hot springs, actually just a set of small jacuzzi-like pools, cost $10 for entry. Granted that isn’t a wallet-busting amount, but I was under the impression that they were free. I also envisioned craters in the ground with smoke rising from water. It was more like the indoor pool at a cheap hotel. I wondered if the owner conspired to make the road leading here bumpy and rough to encourage customers to stay.
On my way out, a man offered me a ride on a boat to see the surrounding area. I declined, preferring to get on my way home before dark. The ride back went faster, but I actually forgot where to turn back into town. I asked for directions from a few people, but ended up figuring it out through trial and error. I returned the bike and told the owner that the brakes needed fixing, but I’m guessing that was lost, or more probably dropped, in translation.
See what other blogs are saying about Inle Lake hot springs:
“We had the three small pools to ourselves, overlooking the fields with mountains behind us. As we eased into the steaming hot water we were glad we’d made it early enough to appreciate in the cool morning air.”
–Never Ending Voyage
