Hotel Lhaki Yangchak Phuntsholing

We were in the immigration office only to find that it had closed at 12: 30 itself. WE were there at 3 PM.! we took a hotel and ate pork beef and alll kinds of nonsence before we headed back to the Indian behavioured Bhutanses immigration officers ...

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.

... clung to the rock face in several places, since the waterfalls were making the trail slippery. Then to recover, I arranged for a traditional Bhutanese stone bath with two other members of the group. We were led to an open sided wooden hut at the edge of the woods; inside were three wooden troughs with partitions at the ends. The baths were filled with cold ...

... guides are having a great laugh getting me to pronounce their names....involves a lot of silent Gs and Ys and other mystery letters. I thought I had a good ear for languages, but I'm **** at even _hearing_ this one! ;) Thanks for the update on Oscar - please keep sending emails, even if I can't reply. I'll read them all back in India. love Vicki ps. The skies are full of fruit bats...

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.

... meet at 13700 feet. At the height of Indo-China war in 1960s, Sella was a local maiden who had fallen in love with Jaswant Singh , an Indian soldier . She died a martyr and the pass was named after her and was marked as a boundary between India and China. Jaswant Garh,a memorial for the soldier is also close by. We had none for company except for a ...

The strike had impacted our travel plans so we had to make the journey from Darjeeling to Phuentsholing in one day. We reached Siliguri, where we had to catch the bus to Bhutan in good time but unfortunately the 12.00pm bus was full and we had to endure a 2 hour wait for the next one in the stifling heat. On the way the bus had an accident with a passing truck which took off our wing mirror. A huge argument ensued between the bus and truck driver with the whole bus and half ...

... the King, and some Bhutanese dancers. Then we went to the local school fete - a strangely familiar experience including hoopla, bingo and splat the rat. After lunch we went up into the hills a little way to a temple which had a fantastic view over the Indian plains and where you could see the Himalayas suddenly rise up out of the ground. We sat on the hillside next to the ...

... just as it was getting dark. We went out for supper with "the Phubs" (guide and driver) at Plum's Cafe and then went to bed and watched TV!! Hotel room has bath and hot water too - total luxury! Next morning we went around Thimphu, to the bank and the post office and bought a few little things in the handicraft shop (yes - more weavings). Then we went to a textile museum (more weavings) and to a folk heritage museum. A quick trip to visit ...

... each precinct. Druk Yul, as the country is known to its inhabitants, has a sense of peace and orderliness under the protective tutelage of the current monarch, King Jigme Singye Wangchuck, an enlightened leader by all accounts. He has continued the modernization programme started by his father while steadfastly maintaining the policy of environmental conservation and the preservation of ...