Burmese Times #5

As a side trip, in between trainings, I visited Mawlamyine, a decaying southern port city and another of Orwell's old haunts. In fact, his family had lived there for a couple of generations, long before his own arrival. I went to visit my friends in the Mon Women's Organization to discuss what we could set up in the way of trainings for next year. It was good fun to meet up with my old friends that I had first met during a solar training in 2008 in Sangklaburi. As always, the food was great chez the Mon ladies, but the highlight of the trip was a visit to the island just across the river – the ominously named “Ogre Island”.

A snake-oil salesman plies his trade on the ferry to Ogre Island.

As it turned out, Ogre Island is a wonderful place. Partly due to the fact of being an island, Mon village culture is still widely preserved. The houses are built close together, with constant visiting through doors that are only closed when everyone goes to sleep. It's one of the most peaceful and relazed places I've ever been. That's not to say that the people are just lazing around, chatting the day away. I was taken to see, (as I suspect, most visitors are), a family-owned rubber band factory and a woodworkers' shop that exports to other SE Asian countries. As an extra treat, I was taken to an ice making machine that is driven by a diesel engine, with producer gas from a rice husk gasifier added for fuel savings. Funky doesn't even begin to describe it. I was thrilled!

The land is flat and fertile, and were it not for the fierce heat and stratospheric humidity, Ogre Island would be high on my list of places to retire to, (whenever that will be!).

Family members scooping up rubber bands made from locally harvested rubber. They dye the latex, mold it and chop it into the requisite sized bands, all in their back yard. A real example of making a finished product from a locally available material. Now, if they could just gear up to making tires...!

The betel-chewing carpenter with his latest creation. I wonder if Eddie Van Halen would be interested?

The flagship project this year was the installation of a Solar Hot Water system at St Mathews Orphanage Center (SMOC), in Pyin Oo Lwin. I was ably assisted by our first volunteer, Cory, a solar professional from Canada. He and several SMOC helpers put the system together in record time, easily overcoming the few technical hitches that ocurred. We had to hoist the larger items up to the roof, but that proved to be no problem.

Cory and Mr Kiang Hkaw fit the evacuated tubes into place. Between the two systems, there are a total of 32 tubes and 60 gallons of hot water storage - enough for 40 showers on a good day!

The solar collectors, purchased in Mandalay, are of the evacuated tube type and work very well, even in low light conditions. One of the tanks proved to be defective but I was able to exchange it for a new one. This was very surprising, as the Warranty in Burma usually only lasts from the shop door to your taxi!

We set up 5 showers each for boys and girls and by 12 noon, the shower water is already extremely hot. Showering, instead of a dreaded obligation, has become a popular past-time! ​

Spiderman, (or is it Batman?), goes East and lands at SMOC!

The ever-resourceful and talented Mr Tu Mai, who made this tuneful flute out of the orange solar pipe. He also plays piano and is the resident solar expert!

I want to make a special mention of the great people at St Mathews: Mr Ting Hkaw and his wife, Mr Kiang Hkaw, Mr Tu Mai and Mr Sai Mai, all of whom looked after Cory and I, like royalty. They gave us acommodation, three wonderful meals per day and best of all, their friendship. Many thanks!

Our home-brewed watering can solar heater in action.

Expecting not to have the hot showers we had gotten used to at SMOC, Cory and I modified some locally-built watering cans and converted them into individual-sized solar water heaters. Counting on two well-known phenomena, (the albedo and greenhouse effects), we painted the cans black and put them inside clear plastic bags. They worked a treat!

Myanmar and foreigners work together to make the Downfeed adapter. Guillaume, our metalworking expert shows us how.

It was fascinating to see the Myanmar and foreign participants get on so well together. Part of the thrill for the foreigners was to actually be living in a Buddhist monastery and to be interacting with Myanmar people on a more intimate level that the usual tourist-local dynamic. All in all, our part of it was a great success, and we received many accolades from the participants.

While we were at Asia Light Monastery there was a large ceremony to initiate youngsters into the monkhood, at least for a short time. No expense was spared and the noise was phenomenal!