| Taungoo |
- Located 175 miles north of Yangon on Yangon-Mandalay road. Old Kaytumadi city was  founded by King Mingyinyo in 15th century. All four sides of the city wall are still very conspicuously seen, with the exception of the part of the southern wall. Taungoo is the main gateways to Bago Yoma and its teak forests and is worth exploring. Though its ancient empire has long since crumbled; Taungoo remains an important pilgrimage site for Buddhist devotees who flock regularly to Shwesandaw pagoda. - Elephant trainer or "Sinn Htain" as we called in Myanmar, and the workers of the timber extraction company build temporary shelters at the logging site. These shelters are used as houses for workers, storage for the equipment and accessories and also as an office. - These are normally made of woods and bamboo found in the forest. Much of the space inside are open (without a proper wall) except a small place for the sleeping compartment. For a relatively short operation the shelters will be less elaborate. Kitchen is normally a simple area with roof to protect from the rain. Toilets are usually outside of the shelters.  - If the logging operations are supposed to be a long term (many years) the shelter will become a permanent place for elephants and their trainers/workers. How to go there - When the travel dates are set permit to enter and stay overnight (if required). Truck could be arranged in Taungoo to go as far as possible into the forest. Then tourists may need to walk the rest to the camp. |
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