Hotel Druk Phuntsholing

... reallly need some training in typing . We were given permits only at 12 . We were supposed to get it only at 2: PM so we were a bit happy and rushed to the bus station to get mountain sickness bus drive to Thimphu! The Great Capital of Bhutan Empire

Phuntsholing is the entry point to Bhutan. We arrived quite late at night and well beyond the time when the Bhutanese immigration could accept us. I had not many problems because I have an Indian passport and in actuality I do not even require a passport. Stayed the night at a hotel after our guide and the driver from Sakten Tours and Travels had come to pick us up.

Our incredible adventure continues, with so many treasures along the way. So many Dzongs to mention. All so distinctive and unique unto themselves. We feel like we are the only tourists as we barely see any. Off in just a few to start our trek up into the Himalayas; with Guide, chef, pack horses and a Dining tent and Outhouse to boot! I have to see this! Hope to post again from Paro - our last stop in 5 days @ the Gentry Palace.

If there is heaven on earth, this is it . A valley of clouds that hid everything from mountain peaks to grasslands , flowers and birds and touched our cheeks gently as we got down to capture it on our lens . Jan 4 : We were driving from Dirang,a small hill station in Arunachal Pradesh towards Tawang set high in the Eastern Himalayas The mountains curved as ...

... village watching. Then we went through a huge thunderstorm which soaked our packs which were on the top of the bus. We finally arrived just after dark to be met by our guide Phub and our driver Tcheko, who had been worried about us. They were a welcome sight in their Gho's, the national costume of Bhutan. After helping us through customs we checked into a nice hotel. We didn't quite feel we were in Bhutan yet as Phuentsholing being a border town had more of an Indian feel.

Surprise!!! We're in Bhutan!!! We know we told you we weren't going to Bhutan, but Phub absolutely insisted that we came here to celebrate the King's birthday. We are able to stay in the border town of Phuentsholing overnight without paying the daily tariff that is normally required. We travelled down from Gangtok yesterday, a 7 hour journey out of the hills and onto the ...

Exhausted after our trek, we decided to get up at 5.30 the next morning so that we could leave for Thimphu at 6.30am. We returned on the road that we had come on, arriving at Trongsa by about 9.30am. We then drove on, with a brief stop at Chendebji Chorten - another Nepalese style stupa by the river. We were told there was a toilet here but it turned out to be a hole in the ground in a hut. You would think that we would be used to this by now ...

... a glimpse into the protected land acts as a 'natural' cap on the number of visitors, the result of a deliberate policy to avoid the destructive effects of opening to all and sundry which was the experience of its illustrious neighbour, Nepal. The seemingly overzealous isolationist measure certainly hurt our pockets, but having visited both countries, I could understand the rationale and even ...