The main tourist destination in Myanmar is Bagan, capital of the first Myanmar Empire; one of the richest archaeological sites in South-east Asia. Situated on the eastern bank of the Ayeyawaddy River. The Magic of Bagan has inspired visitors to Myanmar for nearly 1000 years. One of Myanmarââ¬â¢s main attractions, this is a temple town. The area known as Bagan or, bureaucratically, as the ââ¬ËBagan Archaeological Zoneââ¬â¢, occupies an impressive 26-sq-mile area. The Ayeyarwady River drifts past its northern and western sides. The ruins of medieval Bagan are scattered over an area of roughly 50 sq km (26 sq miles), 290km (180 miles) southwest of Mandalay on the east bank of the Ayeyarwady River. Formerly inhabited by between 50,000 and 200,000 people, the lost city is now largely deserted, with most of the local population and tourist-related businesses confined to settlements on the peripheries, leaving the monuments rising in a state of charismatic isolation inland.
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