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DestinationTwanteTwanteIt’s an interesting day trip from Yangon to Twante, a small town noted for its pottery and cotton-weaving, and for an old Mon paya complex. One can travel there by public car from Dala (on the opposite bank of the Yangon River) or by ferry along the Yangon River and Twante Canal. Twante marks the start of the Twante Canal, dug by the British in the 19th century because of the delta’s slender rivers were too narrow for shipping. The canal allowed ships plying the Ayeyarwady to sail directly to Yangon from the north instead of tracing a convoluted journey through natural rivers that led first to open sea and back to Yangon. It remains a vital water way connecting Yangon with Pathein, the largest town and port in the delta. It is also the home stretch for ship- sailing on the Ayeyarwady from the north. POTTERY
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There
are about dozen major pottery works in Twante. In
addition to these commercial outlets, quite a number of
small households churn out a few pottery pieces to
supplement their agricultural income. Counting these,
the figure is closer to a hundred potteries. Ready
–to-be-moulded clay is brought in from nearby villages
and potters manipulate it into the required consistency.
Laborers work in teams of two to fashion the clay by
hand into various shapes. While one worker looks after
the spinning on the wheel, his partner is responsible
for the moulding . Once the moulding is finished, the
completed piece of pottery is left to dry in the sun
before it is fired, together with other pieces, for up
to two days at extremely high temperatures. The complex
process of firing and cooling takes about two weeks.
Although much of the pottery produced in Twante is sold
locally in the town’s market, it is also transported to
other parts of the country for sale.
