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Destination>Sittwe (Akyab)
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Sittwe is the provincial capital of Rakhine, Myanmar’s most westerly state. This port city sits at the mouth of the Kaladan River where it empties into the Bay of Bengal. Sittwe is, however, a Muslim city in a largely Buddhist country. For both Buddhists and Muslims in Sittwe, there is a distinctive Rakhine twist on standard Myanmar culture that includes the enjoyment of much spicier foods and brighter coloured clothing. The town has two museums of interest and has a huge local fish market that is intriguing. An old steel clock tower topped with a weathervane in the centre of town was erected by the Dutch in the 18th century. A historical footnote: Scottish short story writer and novelist Hector Hugh Munro, known by his pen name ‘Saki’, was born here in 1870.
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