Life at the river

My name is Daw Khaıng Mar Cho. I was born in, and I am still living in, a riverside village named Gyıng Gyı. I had only primary schooling. I have 3 brothers and 2 sisters. I’m married, and I have four children. My husband is a boat driver.

Before we entered the tourism sector, I and my husband were farmers, but we went bankrupt. We had a lot debt. It was really hard; we even suffered from hunger in those days. Then we bought a small boat, a ferry to go back forth from Mandalay to our village. After the tourism boom in Myanmar, in 2012, lots of tourists started to come here. I have decided to organize boat tours at the river for tourists with our boat. I love this job because it makes me very happy to meet with new and different people.

I don’t have any idea for my future, because I have all the things that I need. I’m happy, my family is together, and they are happy also. My only regret in life is that I feel I could have planned it better. From now on, all that I want is to live my days happily till the end of my life.

Daw Khaıng Mar Cho
Mandalay, Myanmar, 17 January 2019