The river has been a lifeline for trade and communication for many centuries. This is not a particularly casual cruise. Sumptuous meals are served elegantly on bone china embossed in gold with the ship's symbol, a mythical lion-like creature. It is nearly impossible to move more than 10 feet onboard without one of the ever-solicitous crew offering help or greetings. Outside, local river traffic floats very close by, dwarfed by the vessel, which carries a maximum of 126 passengers.
People paddle by in dugout canoes heaped high with produce.
Others sail bamboo rafts, some with tattered sails. Crowded riverboats list, swaying against the current, ferrying local passengers in less luxury. On nearby banks, farmers in lampshade hats plow with oxen. Monks in red robes stand in silhouette against white or golden-domed pagodas. The highlight of this voyage for many passengers is the visit to the city of Bagan, an ancient repository of 2,500 Buddhist shrines and temples dating from the 11th Century.