The shoe factory

An entire village to the extreme outskirts of Bagan gravitates around the footwear business.

The smell of glue reaches the nostrils much before reaching the laboratory. Outside a blinding light, inside the shadows, just cut by some blade of light. Silence in the air, mixed smell of chemical and rubber compounds. Young hands and bare feet. A job to be done with closed eyes, without thinking. Adults maneuver the machines, others grow up without a better tomorrow. The finished products leave the laboratory to be prepared for shipment by older women.

And children all around to watch and play, waiting for their turn arrives.