The mighty Ayeyarwady river, the lifeblood of Myanmar. Pic: Aung Tun Win

I had only ever made the short journey from Mandalay to Mingun by boat. This brief journey along the mighty Ayeyarwady River could hardly be called a cruise. Yet having grown up near the river, I longed to explore the vast waterways that dissect the country of Myanmar.

The Ayeyarwady, the largest river flowing through Myanmar, is the vital bloodstream of our country. Many Myanmar kings founded their royal cities on either side of the river, including Dagaung, Bagan, Inwa, Sagaing and Mandalay.

I was timidly excited to jump onboard the MV Paungte. A veteran ship of upper Myanmar, the journey I would embark on would take me upstream from Mandalay to the northernmost port on the Ayeyarwady, Bhamo.

The river, muddy and sullen while we were docked, became clearer and greener as the ship moved off into deeper water. The midday sun — powerful and penetrating — bounced off the rivers surface creating a natural light show for all.

The surface of the water was shimmering in colours of gold and silver, sometimes even in mahogany-red. But as the glare of the sun slowly faded away the beauty I had been transfixed by was suddenly broken by the presence of man. As we moved along, the boat passed by plastic bags and ragged cloths, bobbing their way downstream and contributing nothing more than an ugly reminder of laziness.

“Over the last few years we have seen more and more pollution enter our beloved waterways. Now we also see more sandbanks in the river and the tide has also changed.”

These words were spoken into my ear by U Aung Min, the captain of MV Paungte.

Having spent more than half of his life onboard river ships, the 52-year-old was certainly in a position to pass comment.

“If each large town on either side of the river, perhaps five, throws 10 tonnes of rubbish a day into the water then one can assume that the Ayeyarwady is forced to carry 50 tonnes of rubbish everyday,” he scorned. “Rubbish makes the river polluted and helps increase the formation of more alluvial soils, resulting in the rise of riverbed and water level.”

Flowing from Kachin State to the low-lying southern delta region, this mighty river is of great importance to the nation. Supplying millions of people with water to drink, to grow food and for transport, it is vital to preserve it in its natural state.

As we continued along upstream I saw small villages, fishing boats and other cargo ships making their. Behind the passing boats on the banks of the river one could spot the innocent faces of children, waving from land at our ship, the MV Paungte. I smiled and waved back to the young ones.

In the late afternoon MV Paungte paused at Kyaukmyaung to change the helmsman. From here we began passing through the Third Defile of the Ayeyarwady. The Third Defile is as long as 60 kilometres and here the river flows significantly faster. Making our way through the night, we passed Dagaung at dusk.

We arrived in Katha at 7pm where the ship stopped to exchange goods and passengers.

MV Paungte suddenly became packed with passengers heading to the town of Shwegu, the new arrivals carrying with them their foodstuffs and goods.

The next morning, we said goodbye to Shwegu and the MV Paungte headed on. There the water was emerald-green and smooth, and the entire surrounding scene was one of beautiful silence – not even the chirps of birds could be heard. Imposing mountains on each side of the river, covered with green forest, filled the blue skies.

As I drifted off into a world of wonder, the natural beauty giving me the most basic of pleasure, I was awoken by the words of a woman beside me.

“This region was once home to guerrillas. It was in 1986 when a group of guerrillas seized our ship and sank it. They also killed the captain. It was so scary that I can’t forget it,” said Daw Swe Swe Oo.

She has been trading between Bhamo and Mandalay by ship for 28 years, and despite the aforementioned tragedy, she said she will never give up trading on the river no matter how challenging it is.

“If I run a shop in Mandalay’s Zegyo Market, I’ll have to invest tens of millions of kyat,” she says. “It makes more money for me if I spend four or five million kyats in trading along the river,” she said resting on her walking stick.

“I love the Ayeyarwady. The water from the Ayeyarwady is sweet so I keep it in the fridge so I can drink. To me, this water is cleaner than others,” she said.
While we chatted away, the smell of fish paste floated past in the breeze. When I looked around, I saw big bundles of goods including bags of fish paste, rice, bean and materials used in construction.

As we approached Bhamo, the flow of water became stronger. The captain said that the water level was higher than this time last week.

It was rather dark when the jetty at Bhamo appeared before my eyes. The sun was on the verge of disappearing on the horizon. The colour of the river started changing once again. Alas, as my fellow passengers prepared to leave the ship – after claiming to love, thank and rely on the Ayeyarwady – threw away their rubbish into the river without a shadow of a doubt.

The Ayeyarwady did not look angry. She just carried all the rubbish away as she always did. But that time, I heard a low moan coming from our “mother”. Will people ever change? I wondered. Perhaps its true, you cant teach an old dog new tricks.

MV Paungte Ship organised by Inland Water Transport Board (IWTB) Local:K1380 for normal class            K2750 upper class Foreigner: US$9 and $27 upper-class. Departure time: at 7 am in every Sunday.