Iconic Myanmar Market Gets a New Look

As dawn breaks in Nay Pyi Taw， the capital of Myanmar， the Thapyaygone Market in the downtown district is already busy with grocery shoppers. On May 27， the formerly open-air market moved into a well-ventilated building of steel and cement funded by the Chinese embassy in Myanmar.

The market offers all kinds of food and other items that locals need for their daily cooking， including Myanmar specialties like fish sauce， tea salad and betel leaves. Some booths also serve breakfast and drinks as well as everyday items such as toys， clothes and shampoo.

The farmer’s market is a window for visitors to peer into the real life of the city.

Morning Buzz

Mango is a common sight at the Thapyaygone Market， in various sizes and differing degrees of ripeness. Myanmar is a big producer of this fruit， and China is its largest export market. In Myanmar people eat mango on its own， squeeze it into juice or finely shred it to make salad. Shredded mango in large buckets can be found everywhere at the market. Locals boil it with certain seasonings to make salad. Jackfruit is also popular here. Unlike Chinese who prefer larger， fully ripe jackfruit， Myanmar people enjoy a smaller-sized， green variety. Vendors in the Thapyaygone Market peel and slice the fruit for shoppers who cook it along with fish or pork.

Many items in the market are not sold by the measure of weight. Eggs， for instance， come in units of 10， with higher prices for those of bigger sizes. Pawpaw is priced individually， at about US$0.73 each. Rice comes in cans. There are as many as a dozen varieties of rice on display at each booth. Some products are priced by weight， such as dried fish. But locals use Myanmar units of measurement， including peittha. One peittha is equivalent to about 1.6 kilograms.

In the morning market， fresh sea food is rare， but dried fish of many different kinds is plentiful， which may be explained by the local climate and diet. Dried shark meat can also be found here. Fish sauce is popular among Myanmar people. To make it， small fish are cured in salt， and left to ferment for a certain period. Fish sauce is a staple in the local diet.

Microcosm of Local Life

Covering almost all the typical local family’s everyday needs， the Thapyaygone Market is， for many， where each day begins and ends.

There are many flower booths in the market， selling roses， lilies and chrysanthemums. Most buyers of such flowers use them as offerings to the Buddha — about 85 percent of Myanmar’s population of 60 million are Buddhist. It is a common practice for them to festoon a small sapling with fresh flowers， and present it to the Buddha. A garland made of white tiny flowers is also a popular offering to the Buddha， and it appears in large numbers at local shrines. In addition to the flower， Myanmar people also offer fruits and snacks.

When cruising the sprawling market， shoppers can take a break and have breakfast at one of its many eateries. A normal Myanmar breakfast includes fried fritters， hearty soups， steamed dumplings and milk tea. Milk tea is widely loved in the country， and possible reasons vary. Some point to the pre-reform era when free speech was suppressed， forcing citizens to share and comment on news in secret in teahouses.

In Myanmar almost all women and children wear Thanaka on their faces， some only on their cheeks while others use it to cover their entire face and neck. Thanaka is a cosmetic paste made from ground bark， and is believed to function both as sunblock and insect repellent. Local women and girls wear it all year round.

Though Thapyaygone is primarily a farm produce market； it is also a place where people sell clothes， shoes and a good variety of Chinese imports， including toys and discs of popular Chinese TV dramas like those based on literary classic Journey to the West， and those of martial arts and ancient detective stories.

China-funded Rebuilding

With 480 stands， Thapyaygone is the second largest among the 33 produce markets in Nay Pyi Taw. In the vicinity of the government district and a cluster of hotels， it is frequented by government officials， average citizens and tourists. Daily visitor numbers range from 10，000 to 100，000， with the busiest hours in the morning and dusk.

The old Thapyaygone Market lacked basic facilities such as a working drainage system， which resulted in regular flooding during the rainy season. The water consistently rose as high as knee level， damaging vendors’ stocks and causing great inconvenience for shoppers.

After conducting several field studies， Hong Liang， the Chinese ambassador to Myanmar， proposed rebuilding the market. Surveys indicated that as many as 90 percent of Thapyaygone stand keepers welcomed the idea.

Rebuilding took six months， beginning in December 2016 and ending in May 2017. In addition to housing the original 480 booths， the new facility set up dozens of mobile booths. Each lot is designed with not only space to display products， but also storage space. An effective drainage system was installed.

An Icon of Sino-Myanmar Friendship

“I hope the renovated Thapyaygone Market makes the lives of people in Nay Pyi Taw more convenient，” Ambassador Hong said at the handover and inauguration ceremony on May 27. He told the audience that China and Myanmar are close neighbors， and the two peoples are brothers and sisters who support and help each other. Within the past few months， Myanmar President U Htin Kyaw and State Counselor Aung San Suu Kyi both visited China. The state leaders of the two countries all agreed that the friendly cooperation between them should bring substantive benefits to their people. The rebuilt Thapyaygone is a product of such cooperation and an icon of Sino-Myanmar friendship， according to the ambassador. He said the Chinese embassy is ready to join hands with Myanmar to work on more projects concerning people’s livelihoods， making bilateral bonds more tangible and visible to the two peoples.

At the ceremony， Nay Pyi Taw Mayor Myo Tint expressed his gratitude toward the Chinese for their aid in the rebuilding project， which he said solved a problem that had long plagued local residents. He called the new market a landmark of Sino-Myanmar friendship that will contribute to deeper bonds between the two countries.

Representatives of Thapyaygone vendors also spoke at the event. After recalling the poor conditions of the old market and exulting over the amenities of the new one， they thanked the ambassador and the mayor， and emphasized that the renovation didn’t cost them a cent. Through this project they felt the genuine care and concern for local citizens by the Chinese embassy and the Myanmar government， they concluded.

The new Thapyaygone Market occupies 12，000 square meters， making it 8，000 square meters larger than the old market. With 480 regular stands， it serves the area’s 300，000 residents.