Boatman piloting a tourist vessel on the Irrawaddy River, Mingun Jetty, Mandalay, Myanmar (Burma)

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The Irrawaddy is still the country's most important commercial waterway. Despite Mandalay's position as the chief rail and highway focus in northern Burma, a considerable amount of passenger and goods traffic moves by river. As the Irrawaddy Delta is one of the world's major rice-growing areas, one of the most important goods transported is rice. Teak logs – Myanmar is one of the world's top exporters – are floated down the river as large rafts. Before it is transported, teak has to be seasoned, because otherwise, it won't float.[51] This happens by girdling, a practice where a deep circular cut through bark and sap is made into the heartwood. Other major goods that are transported from the nation's heartlands to Yangon for export are other foodstuffs, petroleum, cotton, and local commodities.

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Size: 5320px × 3540px
Location: Mandalay Myanmar
Photo credit: © Rick Rudnicki / Alamy / Afripics
License: Licensed
Model Released: No

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