Umbrellas

Today, after flying to Heho, we dove through the Shan Plateau, stopping off at the Shan Paper and Umbrella workshop in Pindaya.
 
Here the family run business hand make beautiful papers from the fibre of local mulberry trees.  One of the products for which they use the paper is these umbrellas, which they also make by hand on the site. The craftmanship is extraordinary, and this guy was demonstrating some of the carving and woodturning techniques he uses to construct the bamboo frames,
 
We also visited the famous Schwe Umin caves, extensive natural caves which have been filled with some 8000 Buddhas.  I didn't count them.


Bacblipped from Yangon because the internet connection at our hotel in Nyaunshwe was too slow to upload pictures. Blips for the remainder of the trip may have to wait until after I return home at the weekend.