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Land of the Thunder Dragon (Or, less mythical, "Land of the Friendly Dogs")

Visiting Bhutan

Annette
2005-08-29 18:40:32

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as restaurants are crowded. There may not even be enough rooms, so some travelers will be housed in tents, and restaurants literally will be serving food in shifts. Better be on time to get that table!

"A trustworthy person steals one�s heart"

***

"The stripes of a tiger are on the outside

The stripes of a person are on the inside"

By being willing to travel in the cold season, I missed the masked dances that are performed at festivals in spring and fall, but I avoided the masses of tourists. Moreover, the unavoidable monsoon rains during the summer season wreak havoc on the mountain roads. There were several repair projects along the main East-West road which had simply slid down the mountainside. People planning a trip to Bhutan should be aware that the infrastructure can only handle so much, and that the travel experience itself is best described as "rustic". However, being one of less than 100 tourists in Bhutan for the turn of the century, I felt truly pampered by the guide and driver. I had a few precious opportunities to visit inside the famed monasteries ("Dzongs"),something I very likely would have not been able to do during the busy season.

The most memorable of these visits happened in Central Bhutan, in the Bumtang Valley. There is a small monastery called the Jampey Lhakhang that dates back to the year 700 A.D. Imagine walking toward the main gate of the monastery, through walled-in grounds. Step through the gate and walk clockwise around the large, old prayer wheels set up at the entrance. Go further into the courtyard, where you will see large buildings in front and to your left. To your right, you will see another gate, and a monk allows you into this section. You take off your shoes at the threshold and step in. A dark red carpet woven of hard fiber is stretched over a stone floor. It is cold here, and the floor covering doesn't keep ...