Namsey Chholing Resort Paro

... br>108 Bhutanese Stupas. If the weather is clear you can see all Himalays<br>Ranges with all snow covered. Further drive to Punakha and visit<br>Punakha Dzong. The Dzong is situated between the two rivers and it is<br>one of the biggest rivers in Bhutan. We have to walk through the<br>suspension bridge to reach the Dzong. The Dzong was built in 1637 by<br>Shabdrung Ngawang Namgyal and is situated between Pho Chu (Male River)<br>and Mo Chu (Female River). For many years ...

I wonder to myself, after all the countries we've been to, what makes Bhutan so special. It is special!! Life here seems simple -- one people, one religion, nature at its finest, a national dress code, happiness as a national goal, people who generally look after one another, lovely housing, few roads(only 4.5 percent of the people own cars ...

... to perform and sing a little jig. Opponents can hurl abuse at the archer to distract accuracy. Often alcohol leads to stray arrows and injury from errant arrows has been a common event. We survived! We viewed a ruined fortress which offered maginificent views of mountains and the Paro valley. We spotted the famed Tiger's Nest monastery on a distant cliff face - our goal for next weekend! The next surpise was a ...

... 6.50 flight on Druk (dragon) Air - one of only two A319 planes in their fleet. En route we touched down in a smoggy Kolkata (Calcutta) before soaring to the crisp Himalayan air and to reach their foot hills. We get our first distant glimpse of Mount Everest - will it be shy when we fly to Kathmandu I wonder or will it show itself in glory - ummmm?! Mt Kachenjunga is very visible and the lanscape on our approach to Paro sharp V-valleys and lightly evergreen ...

... I've taken to wearing my waist pack 'a little low' to cover the suspect area. I'm not too worried about it - I've just taken it as a convenient way to make new friends in Nepal... ;) Other than that, its been interesting to see the snippits of the U.S. inaugeration on the cable TV news here. I really liked the First Couple's dancing to 'At Last' being sung by Beyonce - particularly their unrestrained hand holding of interlocked fingers. It ...

... whereas the capitol Thimpu, has about 60,000 people. The country as a whole has about 6 million people. 40% are farmers. There was no access into the country until the 1960s when a road was built so you could drive in from India. The original capitol was too far in to the middle of the country (and too blocked by mountains), that they moved the capitol so it would be easier to gain access by car. They all get an education, including English as well as the national ...

... with the help of our guide and driver) did not fit, and instead, I was lead into the back and what I would assume is the 'fat people's section'. Hunh! Kitty was next, and the female costume is called the kira. Basically it is a 3-piece outfit consistig of a sarong like bottom (skirt), a silk blouse and a silk jacket. With the assiatance of the shopkeeper, Kitty found a nice lilac and purple combination that prooved to be VERY ...

... fast !!! On the way down, we ran into loads of other tourists. It goes to show that getting up early pays as we had the site to ourselves. Dechen Phodrang How many monasteries does this country have? **** knows, but from a distance, this one looked like a Dzong sitting on top of a hill. Once there, we found out that it was actually a school for monks, and judging by their horn playing, they needed more lessons !!! We did a ...

... of horses paraded past camp under the cover of darkness. Only visible by headlamp and audible by the bell attached to the lead horse our guide told us that our path is used by smugglers who cross the border from Tibet and bring cheap goods into the country. At one path our trail takes us within an hours walk from he border! You're definitely far from home when the place you are laying your head is in the middle of a black market trade route for ...

... of the chaam dances that day I had seen in Ladhak in September, but the costumes and masks were a bit different and the dances lasted longer here. There were also a few tradional dances, very slow and a bit boring. It was so exciting just to see all the people in their national costumes, all the kids playing with plastic guns (a bit weird at a religious festival) and the amazing performance that I did not want to go for lunch! I wanted a packed lunch or ...