Our day taking the Slow Train to Thazi started well. We’d been staying at Inle Lake and our plan was to get to the train station at Nyaung Shwe to take this glorious train which would get us to Thazi, where we’d catch another train for the rest of our itinerary today. Here’s all you need to know about the Slow Train to Thazi.
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The taxi arrived on time at the fabulous Zawgyi Inn, we were heading for the train station in Shwe Nyaung – just 8 km away from Nyaung Shwe on the shores of Inle Lake, to catch the first of two trains. With any luck our first train would get to Thazi on time and we’d catch a second train to Naypyidaw, Myanmar’s capital, and get in by 22:00. If it didn’t, well there was a second train that got in around midnight.
We’re taking the advice of the ManfromSeat61 again – the Slow Train to Thazi is one of those train trips not to miss. And so, as our taxi driver makes sure that we have a ticket (2,950 kyat US$2.30), makes sure we are in the right seats in our Upper Class carriage we wait for the train to depart.
We’re the only Westerners we’ll see all day. It seems to please our carriage conductor, he makes sure to stop by each time he travels past and check that we’re ok. Upper Class means something different in every place we travel to, but I’m not sure its ever meant this to me.
The train takes all day. Literally. We set off 10 minutes early at 07:50. And it’s very, very, basic.
And at first we’re on our own.
Later the train fills. This is definitely the locals train. It’s fabulous. If you’ve been to Sri Lanka, then its really rather like the Sri Lankan trains into hill country. Just glorious travel.
Many station platforms that we stop at are covered with fresh produce.
It looks like chaos. Everyone has a distinct job and collectively they’re trying to get all this produce into the goods wagon that’s behind our carriage.
Cabbages, pumpkins, onions, tomatoes. They’re all packed into bamboo baskets and bags. Sealed, and then weighed. It’s a woman running the show with her clipboard and notes.
Then a team of four load, two of them pick up the loaded bag and roll it onto the back of a lean, incredibly well muscled heavily sweating man. He balances it across his shoulders, and stalks towards the goods wagon. A run up the ramp and it’s in. His colleague takes the next bag.
The train fills and empties and stops and starts. We’re not that much of a curiosity, people are just getting on with their lives. Each platform we stop at has its fair share of women.
Their children tied to their backs with scarves, they’re buying and selling produce, food, laughing, smiling. This seems an incredibly happy society.
Most of the women and small children paint their faces with Thanaka Paste – its the ground bark of the Thanaka tree, used as a protection against the sun and to help keep their skin young.
There are switchbacks here on this route, like there were when we took the train over the Gokteik Viaduct – another must do train trip we heard of from the ManfromSeat61. It’s quite lovely countryside here.
Switchbacks here are called “Reverses” here. And this is the Zit Zat Reverse.
And so it goes on, until we arrive, on time into Thazi at 19:00. Our friendly conductor waylays another man (randomly it seems) and tells him (we assume) that he has to take us to the ticket office to get a ticket to Naypyidaw, and that we want to catch the express train. So we do as we’re told and trot off following him to buy a ticket.
If we’d missed the express, then this train will continue to Naypyidaw, but only after a rest of three hours and it is, after all, the Slow Train to Thazi.
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4 thoughts on “How to take the glorious Slow Train to Thazi – Myanmar Railways”
Looks and sounds absolutely wonderful. I am hoping to do the same in early 2016 and will look at your blog for some tips. Thanks for sharing. Wilbur
Myanmar was one of my favourite countries in SE Asia. Genuine, friendly, and not too much on the beaten track to be, well full of banana pancakes. Of course we went in the off season, which also helped! Hope you’ll enjoy it as much as we did!
Hi there,
Great write up!
Due to time constraints we need to get on board the slow train in Kalaw coming from Bagan. I wonder which seection is nicer, Thazi to Kalaw or Kalaw to Shwenyaung?
THANKS,
Thanks and hallo! The Thazi to Kalaw section will give you the zitzat reverse – the mountains and some of the locals on the platforms – the views are really nice. Kalaw to Shwenyaung – which we did in reverse was interesting for us, because there was a lot of time spent at one station while the produce for market was loaded – but if you’re going S to K, then you wouldn’t see that, so I would go from Thazi to Kalaw (although it is nearly twice as long as the Kalaw to Shwenyaung trip). A lot of folks hike from Kalaw to Shwenyaung (and Inle Lake). Hope you enjoy the trip, we had a great time!