Kalaw is walking country, perched majestically between the undulating tips of the Shan Hills as they make their way down from the more dramatic karsts of Yunnan and the Indian Himalaya. First established by the British in the colonial era as a breezy and cooler alternative to Burma’s low-lying tropics, the town still bears all the hallmarks of its Victorian and Georgian onetime rulers, with half-timbered town houses with just a touch of the Tudor about them and grandiose villas intended for the empire’s well-to-do generals. Today, a bustling bazaar thrums with energy and a curious mishmash of scents and street foods cooked up courtesy of the town’s large Nepalese, Indian and Chinese populations, themselves also remnants of the British colonial boom times. Kalaw tour guides are now plentiful, making the most of the relaxed hiking restrictions placed on their beautiful highland plateaus. So if you’re looking to wax up the walking boots, consider hitting the trodden trails that head out to Inle Lake, the stunning caverns of the Shweoomin Pagoda, or the indigenous villages of the Danu, Pa-O, Palaung and Taung Yo people that pepper the farming communities all around.