Thanlyin (once known as Syriam), located at the confluence of the Yangon and Bago Rivers, is major and worth-visiting port city in Myanmar. There was a number of early Mon pioneers and a few settlers originally from India, likely from the region of Orissa hundreds of years ago.

From the late 1500s to early 1600s, Thanlyin was the base of the Portuguese adventurer, Philip De Brito. Thanlyin kept on being a significant port until it was destroyed by King Alaungpaya in 1756 when the Mon revolt, while Kyaikhkauk Pagoda standing on the hillock at the outskirt of the town by the street to Kyauktan became an important landmark.

Around 20 kilometers South of Thanlyin is the old town Kyauktan. As its name implies, it is on a rough edge running from Thanlyin. Kyauktan has its well reorganization for its Yehlelphaya, a series of pagodas and temples arranged on a little island amidst the river. Another intriguing thing about Kyauktan is countless tame catfish, in muddy waters around the pagoda which are often fed popcorn by the travelers and guests,.