Myanmar The Travel Show


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test. That line just breaking in the last few moments. We will bring you

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any updates we get here on BBC News. Myanmar has always

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been on my wish list. But, because of decades of military

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rule, it was off-limits. Now the place is opening up,

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and I want to meet the people who have been behind

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closed doors for so long, and find out what makes this

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country so mystical, I'm starting my journey in Yangon,

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the former capital of the country Heaving street markets,

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gridlocked roads, and ramshackle And also, as it is monsoon season,

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it is drenched with rain. But then, in the middle

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of all the mayhem, is this place. It is actually quite

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an overcast, grey day. But you come here,

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and it is like it is brilliant The Shwedagon Pagoda

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is a revered holy site, years, surviving earthquakes,

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invasions, and the country's more The story of Myanmar over the last

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two centuries has really been all about other countries

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and the military muscling The remnants of British influence

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can still be seen all over the city. They seized control

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in the 19th century. Many found colonial Yangon,

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then called Rangoon, Rudyard Kipling, author

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of The Jungle Book, described it In 1948, Burma finally

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gained its independence. But there was much instability

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and ethnic conflict, and in the early 1960s,

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the country was thrown into turmoil Decades of isolation followed,

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as the army ruled the nation They also changed the name

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of the country to Myanmar, In 2011, the military

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government relaxed its grip, and although ethnic tensions

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continue, there have been It turns out my taxi driver Shell

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was himself a victim Imprisoned after taking place

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in student protests in 1988, he has spent a total

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of 14 years behind bars, and when he came out

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he struggled to get a job. TRANSLATION: I wasn't able to study,

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since I was imprisoned for 14 years Job opportunities were very slim,

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so I learned how to drive. Now he and two other former

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political prisoners have started a cab network called

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Golden Heart Taxis, to raise funds and help others like them readjust

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to the outside world. Do you think that tourism

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is good for this country? TRANSLATION: We've not seen anything

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like it in our lifetime. It's very good for the country,

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because we have more hotels for the tourist sector,

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more job opportunities, And that all generates

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foreign currency for us. In parts of the city,

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the outside world is already Something unprecedented has

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happened in Myanmar. Even in a country blessed

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with so many amazing steeples, Yep, it is the first Western fast

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food joint to open in the whole A regular meal costs way more

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than the average daily wage here. Some worry this is just the start

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of a big brand invasion, that will ruin the unique

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character of Yangon. But, as I found out from Myanmar's

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answer to Lady Gaga, there will always be a uniquely

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Burmese twist on popular culture. One is your unique voice,

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and also your dress sense. And she helps me out

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with all my wardrobes. She has this inspiration

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from our traditional creators. There are very colourful and bright

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colours, and even the masks, and she turned it into

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modern costumes for me. Phyu Phyu is one of the country's

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most famous pop stars. She actually trained

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as a doctor, but was determined No easy feat under the military

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junta, where rebellious artists and musicians were kept in check,

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something Phyu Phyu Their arbitrary statement said

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that my style of singing is very bold and very different

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from the norms. The movement of my lips,

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and even my voice. Despite the censorship,

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Phyu Phyu has lasted 12 years Tonight, she is performing

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at a charity gig. I know you have recorded

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with artists around the world. What do they know about

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Myanmar, about Burma? The first impression is that,

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how could this be possible to survive in the dark

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cave for like 50 years? It's always a very strange thing

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for my international artist fans. They would really want to know

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how we could survive. The next day, I'm leaving

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the city for the countryside, I'm heading to

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a pilgrimage site that is It is a volcanic rock

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over 700 metres high. I can just

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about see it through the fog. But there are 2,000 of them and, I

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must admit, the novelty wears off. So, here we are,

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near the base of Mount Popa. And I'm here to meet

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a spirit mediator. These 37 nats are spirits, and

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part of an ancient form of worship And Mount Popa is thought to be

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the home of the nats. TRANSLATION: Spirit

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worshippers believe that each And if they have a problem,

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they come and pray, They hope the nat will fulfil

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their desires. And tell me,

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what is your role in this? TRANSLATION: I connect with nats

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and communicate with them, and Of course, we don't always

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connect with the spirits. But if one comes,

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my body will start to shake, and Then I get the message,

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and pass it to the person. The mediator explains how offerings

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of flowers One of the nats prefers

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to be offered alcohol. It is all a bit mysterious,

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if you ask me. And that is

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before I've even started the climb. First, like all religious sites

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in Myanmar, it is shoes off. I should have brought

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a spare pair of socks. And you do wonder who is really

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in charge here. People actually being attacked

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by the monkeys. The climb is steep and not helped

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by the fact that some of the steps Golden pagodas peeking through

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the swirling mist. OK, I've climbed the 777 steps to

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the top of Mount Popa, And because of that mist,

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it is eerily beautiful. In the central plains of Myanmar

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lies an ancient site that some say rivals the far more famous

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Angkor Wat in Cambodia. Here we are, Bagan - 42 square

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kilometres of monasteries, temples and pagodas, with a claim to be the

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largest archaeological site in Asia. I'm told this is

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the best way to get around. This was Myanmar's first capital and

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where Buddhism in the country began. Over 2,000 religious monuments

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dominate the landscape. The showstopping scenery was largely

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hidden from the world during the years of military rule and is

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yet to be overrun by tourists. So, this is one of the showpiece

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temples in this whole complex. It is supposed to be amazing,

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and I'm going to meet a man who in a way created tourism here,

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way back in the '70s. If anyone knows about

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the background, the history, the Hello!

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Welcome to beautiful Bagan. We haven't even reached

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the shrine yet! By hand!

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No machinery at all. Ayethwin used to work

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in a fertiliser factory, but in 1971 he started showing tourists around

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in exchange for English lessons. The temples here have withstood huge

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earthquakes and some ham-fisted attempts at restoration under

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the military junta. Some say that is one reason why

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Bagan hasn't yet been awarded Yes,

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they painted whitewash everywhere. And now they're trying

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to restore it. Yes, slowly.

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But the calcium fades the colour. There is a lot to be done,

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but Ayethwin hopes this is the start of more people coming to

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see the unique monuments here. Because of the government situation,

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nobody mention I wanted you to know

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about my country and about We have many things to see,

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like these temples. Next, we're heading east,

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but on the way to the airport I am, Chinlone, it's called,

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and it's a 1,500-year-old ritual, where the emphasis is not

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on winning but on how beautifully There are the 200 ways to kick

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and pass the ball. An hour's flight

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from Bagan is the vast Inle Lake. It covers 116 square kilometres

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and supports a way of life I have The locals here live in stilted

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houses and farm floating gardens. Mountains in the background,

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huge expanse of lake. Yin Myo Su's family are

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from the Intha people, whose name We had no land to grow,

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so those bushes, when they die, they become floating piles

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of rubbish, but good rubbish. On top,

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we put the earth from the water. It is an important part

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of our cuisine. We grow things like tomatoes, beans,

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eggplants. Tell me

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about the background to this. How old is the tradition

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of floating gardens? All our ancestors have survived

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this way for many centuries. There is a whole community set up

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on the lake. Some of the fishing techniques

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are also unique to Inle Lake. This fisherman is putting the

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fishnet into the lake. Yes, we paddle by legs,

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as you can see. All girls

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and boys know how to do that. When you are standing like this,

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you can see the way better, and you can see some sign

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off fish under the water, and we believe it is faster when you

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are driving the boat by legs. Images of the one-legged fishermen

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of Inle are used to sell Myanmar the world over, but she tells me

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today will likely be fruitless for the fishermen as recent wind

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and rain has made the water murky. Pollution is also a problem here

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and over the years, I am going to try to balance it

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for him. This is when you zoom off and I

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never see you again! As I come to the end

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of my journey through Myanmar, the main impression I am left with

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is that this is one of the most resourceful and fascinating

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countries I have ever been to. Despite five decades of isolation,

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the people here have found some way to adapt and survive, whether it is

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the pop singer I met who battled against censorship or the former

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political prisoner who has created a future for himself driving tourists

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around. The resilience

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of people here is truly humbling. Sandwiched between the tourist

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powerhouses of India and Thailand, travel here is not easy or cheap,

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and many hope things will stay that way because as Myanmar starts to

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reconnect with the outside world, there is a strong message

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coming from the people here. "We will do things in our own way

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and at our own pace." However, please leave us to

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be independent as well. We can even inspire other people

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because we somehow kept protection in a little bubble

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for five or six decades. So, like a sunken treasure we

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are hidden and kept intact. Maybe this is

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a great opportunity for all people

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