As the world’s largest raw material supplier of East Asia’s prized bird nests soup, Bokpyin in southern Myanmar knows how to pamper the nest-producing swiftlets with everything from purpose-built apartments to daily, evening acoustic entertainment.
By Raul Dias
Though he says he’s just turned 43, Htway Cho’s full head of snow white hair and weather-beaten, wrinkly face easily add on a couple of extra decades to his countenance. He’s not surprised when I tell him that. “This is what 20 years of climbing cliffs will do to you!” Cho smiles, revealing a set of orange, betel nut-stained teeth.
My guide Cho, like hundreds of other men—and even a few women, he tells me—of the sleepy, seaside town of Bokpyin in Myanmar’s southern peninsular Tanintharyi region is a bird nest harvester. A hunter-gatherer, who, until nine years ago would risk life and limb scaling the treacherous cliffs of islands like Kuant Ngar and Yay Aye that are part of the region’s Myeik archipelago. All this in pursuit of one of the most elusive, and thus expensive, animal products consumed by humans—a prized cache of pearly white bird nests made from the dried-up saliva produced by the male white-nest swiftlet (Aerodramus fuciphagus). A product that is said to have tremendous health and beauty benefits when consumed regularly as a soup.
These days however, the scene couldn’t be more different for Cho and his posse. Ever since the former military junta-owned Union of Myanmar Economic Holdings Limited or UMEHL that the harvesters worked for, gave up its monopoly over the harvest of the nests in 2011, exports surged. And to keep up with the demand for the dried nests—a kilogram of which can sell for as much as US $1,300 in the Chinese market—the canny residents of Bokpyin came up with an ingenious idea.
Back ‘Stories’
“We realised that we didn’t need to go out to the swiftlets. Rather, let them come to us,” says Cho. This “eureka” moment came to the townsfolk, when, a few years ago, they noticed a flock of swiftlets had taken over an old, abandoned house where hundreds of nests were found. Soon, there were dozens of such buildings—some even purpose built and multi-storied—that were ‘let out’ to the swiftlets. “And so, we started adding floors to our existing buildings to accommodate the birds who come to roost at dusk daily. We collect the nests three to four times a year. But only after the hatchlings have matured and flown away,” Cho is quick to add.
Today, there are at least a 150 such grey, concrete swiftlets tenements scattered across the town. Interestingly, land prices in Bokpyin have sky-rocketed to unprecedented highs due to this phenomenon. A plot in downtown Bokpyin, for instance, can sell for as high as US $77,000, which is as much one would expect to pay in some parts of the country’s commercial capital of Yangon!
So successful has been this ‘swiftlet in situ’ model that it is not only being replicated by other towns in Myanmar like Kawthaung, but also in neighbouring southern Thailand where the Pak Phanang District of the Nakhon Si Thammarat province is fast becoming another hub for such nesting houses.
Of Static Birdsong and More…
Walking through the non-descript town that was once Myanmar’s leading producer of betel nut, rubber and palm oil one late afternoon, all my senses were at once made aware of the town’s newest residents. It was not just the overwhelming avian odour that hit my nostrils, but the sight of thousands of birds circling overhead was enough to make me feel like I was in Myanmar’s remake of Alfred Hitchcock’s 1963 classic The Birds.
But it was another one of my senses that was most affected. Suddenly Bokpyin’s traffic din was all but silenced with a unique mixture of assorted bird sounds—from twittering to chirping to even the occasional cawing. It turned out to be emanating from the various speakers and boom boxes installed in the nesting homes in a bid to attract more winged tenants. A brilliant move.
“What about the bird droppings, doesn’t that cause nuisance?” I question Cho in all my urban insouciance. “Simple. Once a week we collect all of it to sell off as manure,” is his matter-of-fact rebuttal.
Once again, Bokpyin’s ingenuity comes to the fore!
TRAVEL LOG
Getting There
One can get into Bokpyin either by a two-hour flight or by an overnight bus journey from Yangon. There are also weekly flights from Bangkok to Bokpyin. There are daily flights that link both Yangon and Bangkok to several Indian cities. To travel within Bokpyin one can either hire a scooter or a car with a driver or simply walk, given its compact size. Myanmar now offers a visa on arrival for Indians that’s available at most major international airports in the country for a fee of $50.
Stay
With more accommodation options on offer for the prized swiftlets, the only, single guesthouse in Bokpyin to offer a good night’s rest to the town’s human visitors is the very basic and internet-bereft U Marle Guesthouse next to the bus station. Here, one can expect to pay 20,000 kyat (Rs 915 approx.) for a double room or 11,000 kyat (Rs 503 approx.) for a single room with a shared bathroom and without breakfast.
Tip
* Due to the nutri-collagen present in the swiftlets’ saliva, drinking a bowl of bird nest soup is believed to be great for the complexion and also to maintain youth, though there is no scientific data available to prove this claim.
* From Bokpyin, take a day trip to the nearby town of Kawthaung to see the beautiful steeple-like golden chedi of the famous Pyi Daw Aye Pagoda in downtown. Or perhaps travel a little bit north of Kawthaung to visit the Maliwan Waterfall, just off the main highway.
(An edited version of this article first appeared in the 18th May 2019 issue of The Hindu Business Line newspaper's BLink section on page 21 https://www.thehindubusinessline.com/blink/takeaway/a-myanmar-town-rakes-in-millions-by-letting-out-buildings-to-swiftlets/article27158829.ece)
By Raul Dias
Though he says he’s just turned 43, Htway Cho’s full head of snow white hair and weather-beaten, wrinkly face easily add on a couple of extra decades to his countenance. He’s not surprised when I tell him that. “This is what 20 years of climbing cliffs will do to you!” Cho smiles, revealing a set of orange, betel nut-stained teeth.
My guide Cho, like hundreds of other men—and even a few women, he tells me—of the sleepy, seaside town of Bokpyin in Myanmar’s southern peninsular Tanintharyi region is a bird nest harvester. A hunter-gatherer, who, until nine years ago would risk life and limb scaling the treacherous cliffs of islands like Kuant Ngar and Yay Aye that are part of the region’s Myeik archipelago. All this in pursuit of one of the most elusive, and thus expensive, animal products consumed by humans—a prized cache of pearly white bird nests made from the dried-up saliva produced by the male white-nest swiftlet (Aerodramus fuciphagus). A product that is said to have tremendous health and beauty benefits when consumed regularly as a soup.
These days however, the scene couldn’t be more different for Cho and his posse. Ever since the former military junta-owned Union of Myanmar Economic Holdings Limited or UMEHL that the harvesters worked for, gave up its monopoly over the harvest of the nests in 2011, exports surged. And to keep up with the demand for the dried nests—a kilogram of which can sell for as much as US $1,300 in the Chinese market—the canny residents of Bokpyin came up with an ingenious idea.
Back ‘Stories’
“We realised that we didn’t need to go out to the swiftlets. Rather, let them come to us,” says Cho. This “eureka” moment came to the townsfolk, when, a few years ago, they noticed a flock of swiftlets had taken over an old, abandoned house where hundreds of nests were found. Soon, there were dozens of such buildings—some even purpose built and multi-storied—that were ‘let out’ to the swiftlets. “And so, we started adding floors to our existing buildings to accommodate the birds who come to roost at dusk daily. We collect the nests three to four times a year. But only after the hatchlings have matured and flown away,” Cho is quick to add.
Today, there are at least a 150 such grey, concrete swiftlets tenements scattered across the town. Interestingly, land prices in Bokpyin have sky-rocketed to unprecedented highs due to this phenomenon. A plot in downtown Bokpyin, for instance, can sell for as high as US $77,000, which is as much one would expect to pay in some parts of the country’s commercial capital of Yangon!
So successful has been this ‘swiftlet in situ’ model that it is not only being replicated by other towns in Myanmar like Kawthaung, but also in neighbouring southern Thailand where the Pak Phanang District of the Nakhon Si Thammarat province is fast becoming another hub for such nesting houses.
Of Static Birdsong and More…
Walking through the non-descript town that was once Myanmar’s leading producer of betel nut, rubber and palm oil one late afternoon, all my senses were at once made aware of the town’s newest residents. It was not just the overwhelming avian odour that hit my nostrils, but the sight of thousands of birds circling overhead was enough to make me feel like I was in Myanmar’s remake of Alfred Hitchcock’s 1963 classic The Birds.
But it was another one of my senses that was most affected. Suddenly Bokpyin’s traffic din was all but silenced with a unique mixture of assorted bird sounds—from twittering to chirping to even the occasional cawing. It turned out to be emanating from the various speakers and boom boxes installed in the nesting homes in a bid to attract more winged tenants. A brilliant move.
“What about the bird droppings, doesn’t that cause nuisance?” I question Cho in all my urban insouciance. “Simple. Once a week we collect all of it to sell off as manure,” is his matter-of-fact rebuttal.
Once again, Bokpyin’s ingenuity comes to the fore!
TRAVEL LOG
Getting There
One can get into Bokpyin either by a two-hour flight or by an overnight bus journey from Yangon. There are also weekly flights from Bangkok to Bokpyin. There are daily flights that link both Yangon and Bangkok to several Indian cities. To travel within Bokpyin one can either hire a scooter or a car with a driver or simply walk, given its compact size. Myanmar now offers a visa on arrival for Indians that’s available at most major international airports in the country for a fee of $50.
Stay
With more accommodation options on offer for the prized swiftlets, the only, single guesthouse in Bokpyin to offer a good night’s rest to the town’s human visitors is the very basic and internet-bereft U Marle Guesthouse next to the bus station. Here, one can expect to pay 20,000 kyat (Rs 915 approx.) for a double room or 11,000 kyat (Rs 503 approx.) for a single room with a shared bathroom and without breakfast.
Tip
* Due to the nutri-collagen present in the swiftlets’ saliva, drinking a bowl of bird nest soup is believed to be great for the complexion and also to maintain youth, though there is no scientific data available to prove this claim.
* From Bokpyin, take a day trip to the nearby town of Kawthaung to see the beautiful steeple-like golden chedi of the famous Pyi Daw Aye Pagoda in downtown. Or perhaps travel a little bit north of Kawthaung to visit the Maliwan Waterfall, just off the main highway.
(An edited version of this article first appeared in the 18th May 2019 issue of The Hindu Business Line newspaper's BLink section on page 21 https://www.thehindubusinessline.com/blink/takeaway/a-myanmar-town-rakes-in-millions-by-letting-out-buildings-to-swiftlets/article27158829.ece)
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