Flying home

Up at 5.30; tea at 6.15; met Kinley and Tsering at 6.30. A quick drive brought us to the airport and farewells and thank yous to the two of them. We joined the queue to get through security, then checked in for Kolkata on KB120. Through to departures and more security; out on to the tarmac to identify our luggage and confirm it is going to Kolkata, as most people are staying on the plane to go to Bangkok. After a short wait we were boarding, sitting in E & F 21, next to the last row, with all the Kolkata passengers. On the plane we saw Kachenjunga (8598m) gliding by. Kanchenjunga is the easternmost of the 8000 m Great Himalayan peaks and the third highest mountain in the world. Arriving in Kolkata, we cleared passport control, collected the bags and changed some money. It all went well, but outside there was no sign of Blue Poppy’s agent. A huge storm was approaching rapidly with gusting winds, so Alan negotiated a taxi to the hotel for about £3. The taxi is a yellow Ambassador with a plastic quilted and buttoned ceiling. As we left the airport, we entered a cacophony of noise – horns, hooters, engines and the general melee going to Kolkata! The hotel is less than 20 minutes from the airport and we checked in, finding our room with the help of very pleasant porters. The first room wasn’t any good (why?) so they moved us next door, putting on the a/c and ceiling fan. We went to breakfast at 10.00 – just juice, coffee and toast; then putting our feet up in room 704. A call came through to say our driver had arrived, but obviously this was where the mix up was, and we didn’t need him now. So we got out the books, my Palm etc. and put some cricket on the TV. It was very wet outside, which took some time to clear. It was 15.00 before we took a break and went down to the restaurant for a snack. Alan fancied a cheese butty and I had seen that they did spring rolls on the room service menu. We also ordered coffee. When it eventually arrived, we had a huge loempia each with salad, which wasn’t quite what we had expected. Nevertheless, it was very good, so no problem. We wandered back upstairs for more of the same, but as it got dark, there was a series power cuts. Was this the hotel or general? We had torches with us, which was lucky.
By 9pm we decided to eat again, so went down to the restaurant. Alan decided to order beer while we looked at the menu – but they can’t serve beer there. The waiter decided to take us to their other restaurant on the first floor. When he opened the door, we were deafened by the live music; so he decided to take us to yet another place on the fourth floor! This is the Aranyak restaurant! Here we could have a relatively peaceful meal with a beer, although there were people smoking. You can’t have everything! We had Black label beer, tandoori chicken, paneer tikka masala, raita salad and rice, which was delicious. At last, we returned to the room for further rest before leaving in the hotel minivan for the airport at 4am. We travelled the first 200m on the wrong side of the dual carriageway!! Still, safely deposited and nothing to pay, we entered the airport a bit too early for check in, but still queued up ready for the flight opening. We travelled business class and our seats were on the right of the plane. We were so lucky as we had the most stunning views of the Himalayas including, we think, Everest (Sagarmathan (n)and Quomolongma (t)) (8848m) and Macchapucchre (6993m) to name but a few. Photographs were taken! Then we tried to sleep, which we were a little short of!

Blue Poppy Tours and Treks

Day Thirteen

Up at 6.15 and breakfast at 7am. I think we were a bit too early for the dining room, but OJ was on the table and tea arrived very quickly. Then we had a short wait, during which K and T wandered through for their meal in the kitchen. When ours arrived we were a bit surprised as there were omelettes, fried ham in discs and tomatoes. The waiter then asked if we would also like some cereal, but that was a bridge too far. Just some toast and more tea. We were ready to go at 7.30 and Tsering drove us off up the valley to the trailhead for Tiger's Nest. We were not the first to arrive, two vehicles had got there before us, and at least one followed us in. Nevertheless, we started off on our own, and pretty much stayed that way. The trail begins by meandering through a conifer forest. There is a babbling brook, a sort of picnic area, but you soon leave the latter behind as the trail gently climbs. Apparently, some people take horses up the trail - Nu.300 to the cafe, and Nu.500 to the view point before the steps. There was plenty of evidence of their having been around recently. From here we had no view of the monastery, but the trail gradually steepened and zigzagged up the hillside. Then we caught a glimpse, through the trees, but the sun had yet to reach it, so we agreed to keep going and stop for photos on the way down. It was getting hotter as we came out of the trees and we were definitely in the sun. There were still trees to the sides of us, and there was continuous birdsong, although we couldn't see the birds. Alan stopped for a moment to remove his pully, but we generally kept up a steady, slow pace, passing a large prayer flag with others strung out from it like a maypole. Onwards, negotiating steps cut into the earth, twisting and turning, noting the rhododendrons, pieris and cotoneaster growing amongst the conifers. Just as we were thinking we needed a rest, Kinley announced that we were almost at the cafe, so we pushed on round another couple of bends, and there was a flat path off to the right - the path to the cafe. We were glad of a seat and a cup of tea - but first we were stunned by the view of the monastery which dominates the scene. It had taken us 45 minutes to get here - as we hadn’t stopped for any photos. The tea was slightly smoky and very tasty, as were the usual salty/sweet crackers. We enjoyed the rest. After half an hour we pushed on again, taking the steep short cut out of the cafe up to the path. This was pretty hard going as a re-start, but then we were back to the steady climb. After a while we passed a cave which was full of the little cones people put in such places for their dead. This cave was used as a meditation cave. Further along is a wooden building around the place where one of the Lamas was born in 1928, the year of the tiger. It is his re-incarnation that we saw in Tharpaling. We hadn't seen so much of the monastery on this upper part of the walk, but gradually, the path evened out somewhat and there was a gateway across the path with prayer flags. As we rounded the corner, we had a breathtaking view across the ravine. We had to stop and take this in. From here onwards we had to negotiate steps - there are around 400 going down into the ravine, passing a chorten on the way. Alan did very well - knees and vertigo well under control. There were three monks walking way in front of us, and we could see them below us reaching a bridge at the bottom, by a waterfall. Soon we reached this point, then began the climb back up again - about 300 steps to the monastery entrance. Here, Kinley signed us in, and we had to leave our bags with the army guard, as nothing is allowed into the monastery. K and T had to put their mobile phones on the desk to be collected after our visit. We had walked up 900m, more or less.
Now we walked up more steps to start the visit. Kinley told us the story of how Guru Rinpoche flew to the cliff top site on the back of a tiger - the manifestation of his consort, Yeshe Tsogyal. He came to subdue a local deity who was causing trouble. This done, he meditated for three months in the cave, which is now surrounded by the primary lhakhang. All this happened in the 7th century, and since has been regarded as a holy place. In 1646 the Zhabdrung visited and in 1692 that primary lhakhang was built by the penlop of Paro. Subsequent penlops extended the monastery, which now has four main 'temples' with others not open to the public. We began our visit at the temple containing a chorten containing the ashes of a disciple of the Guru from the ninth century. In the floor is a fenced area where you can see an auspicious rock, but it was damaged during the renovation. Richly decorated walls show images of the manifestations of the Guru. The next temple we saw, down some steps, contained statues of the Guru on his tiger and behind a heavily carved screen was the cave where the Guru meditated. There were images on the wall and a glass box containing a manifestation of the Guru. People had thrown in money and prayer flags and white scarves. Back up the steps again, directly over the cave, was a temple containing three very large statues, manifestations of the Guru. All these were in the restored part, as the monastery was almost completely destroyed by fire in 1998. Only one tower was untouched.
We spent a little time looking at the view, then descended to the 'ground floor'. Here Kinley showed us a stone - one of the treasures of the Guru, found by Pema Lingpa, on which we saw a moon and a sun. There was also a shiny indentation. If one made a wish, closed one's eyes, then approached the stone with an outstretched thumb; if one hit the indentation with said thumb, the wish would be fulfilled in one's lifetime. Needless to say, we missed.
So it was time to leave this magical place and we made our way back down the steps to the army guard, collected our bags etc. and left the monastery confines through the gate. Now we retraced our steps, this time stopping to take lots of photos. At the chorten, we waited in vain for the sun, hiding behind clouds. K and T had great fun using the binos. We got down to the cafe for lunch at around 1 pm. and we sat with a wonderful view of the monastery overlooking us. Lunch was the usual suspects - only missing the noodles, and any meat as it is all vegetarian on the mountain. On the second half of the descent, we again stopped for photos, and then there were the birds. We saw some more laughingthrushes, a great tit, and Alan and K saw another yellow beaked blue magpie. I was sorry to have missed it.
Now we had a couple of things left to do; firstly, to see Jomulhari, but this just wasn't going to happen because of the clouds. On the way down the road we came across a caravan of donkeys all carrying huge bails of wheat that the farmer had just cut. The lead donkey had a lovely red plume on his head. Then there was a troop of horses, some with western leather saddles. Were these headed for the Tiger's Nest trail, we wondered.
The second was to visit Dumtse Lhakhang, 1433, built by the iron bridge builder. We entered, to see that it was shrouded in yellow curtains. Behind these are some amazing wall paintings. After prayers, Kinley led us round the outer part of the interior; there is no electricity, so it’s quite dark in there. Then we were able to enter the inner area, and we should definitely have had a torch with us. I led Alan by the hand, though even I could hardly see where we were going.
Now it was time to go back to the hotel; packing and baths were in order, but tea on the balcony first. Then the jobs before dinner at 7.30. Kinley joined us and had some fearsome looking red chillies and cheese. At the end of dinner, Kinley called Choki in Thimpu, who phoned back and Alan spoke with him. After the call we were given our homework - the end of holiday questionnaire. This has obviously worried Kinley, who hoped we would give him a good report. He also regaled us with various tales, but sometimes he's a bit difficult to follow. With an uncontrollable yawn, I finished off the proceedings. Kinley ordered tea for us at 6.15 as we have to leave for the airport at 6.30. So that was our last day in Bhutan.

Blue Poppy Tours and Treks

Day Twelve

We met K and T at 8am. There was talk of a picnic, so we had to wait a few minutes when a flask of tea and a mysterious box appeared. We set off for Cheri Goempa - a very old monastery perched up a mountain. We were going to walk up to it - about 300 to 400m. It took about forty minutes to get there, driving along a tumbling river. Then we got on the boots and adjusted our sticks and crossed the river, Wang Chhu via a covered bridge. Tsering stayed behind to rest before the difficult drive to Paro. It was a great disappointment to me that there were quite a lot of flies, so despite the heat, I kept my pully on for protection. We climbed steadily upwards, through the trees. In front of us, we spotted a medium sized brown and white bird, then another and another until there were around eight of them pecking in the leaves. Alan managed to take a photo. Subsequently we have identified them as white throated laughingthrushes. We gradually reached a large chorten, where we rested for a short time, then continued onwards and upwards. Suddenly we saw a sunbird flying into trees close by. What a surprise. And also we spotted a goldcrest. This all helped us on our way, and within the hour we had just about reached the entrance gate to the monastery. We stopped to take the view of it, and Kinley pointed out some deer at the side of it. We walked to that side and took photos. We have identified them as goral. Then we walked into the monastery, which was founded in 1620. Our first visit was to the temple where the ashes of the Zhabrung's father are kept in a silver chorten. Zhabdrung Ngawang Namgyal built the goemba and attracted 100 monks to join him. Inside there were two sets of statues of the past, present and future Buddhas. Now we needed to climb up to the high temple. As we climbed up, we counted a total of 158 steps, stopping to rest on a concrete bench after 100. As we reached the top, we walked around the back of the building, then descended a few steps to the entrance to the temple at the opposite side. This building is built right up against the cliff, with rock forming the back wall. We had to walk through a sort of anti room/ corridor to reach the inner area. Here a monk was reading the tracts in a chant. We stood to one side, while K prayed and then the monk stopped and started talking to him. In a cave at the left back, almost hidden from view is a statue of the Zhabdrung. It was here that he performed a three year and six month meditation. The young monk was very happy to talk to us through Kinley, and eventually invited us to have juice in his room. He has studied classical language at university - Sanskrit, and has now come to meditate at Cheri Goemba. He was such a personable young man, we felt very honoured to be invited into his room. Soon we had to leave, thanking him for his hospitality. We then made our way across to the side of the monastery and regained the path down just by where we had seen the deer. Back at the car, we met up with Tsering again. As there was a bus load of people picnicking by the bridge and also because of the flies, Kinley suggested we picnicked on the way back near the Queen mother's Palace and the Royal Body Guard barracks. Then it all got very confusing as it seemed that we were expected to have the picnic and lunch when we got back to Thimpu. Well, we had to put a stop to that. So in the end, we all made it back to the Wangchuk Hotel and K and T had their rice and chillies and we had Sunday curry lunch. After all this, we set off for Paro - a dusty, hot and busy journey. As we approached Paro, there was an archery match going on and K was keen to watch, so we stopped and observed the match for a while. Alan was taking photos and spotted a man with an amazing furry hat; where did that come from? We arrived at the hotel and had tea in our sitting room. We have a curved balcony and a view of Paro Dzong. But this was not the end of the day; we still had one more visit to make. This was to Kyichu Lhakhang, +/- 659, which was built by King Songsten of Tibet to pin down the left foot of the ogress. It was extended in 1839. As we approached it, a hoopoe was spotted perched on the telegraph wires. It has that air of extreme age, and in the courtyard there were four orange trees, one bearing fruit. The doorways were covered by colourful hangings, and we swept these aside to enter. Inside it is so different to other temples as it is brightly lit by a crystal chandelier. The statues down either side of the inner area are richly clothed in silk brocades. In the outer part are no less than three statues of Chenresig with eleven heads and a thousand arms. In the other temple there is a huge statue of the Jowo Sakyamuni, or historical Buddha. It is said to have been cast in the 7th century at the same time as the one in Lhasa. We emerged into the sunshine to find a wood burning stove had been lit in the courtyard. We made our way around the outside in a clockwise direction and rejoined Tsering. They now drove us downtown and dropped us off to make a half hour circuit of the main streets. Loads of Indian 'gast arbeiders' were in town as its Sunday, their day off. In Paro most of the shops have open windows with wooden shutters, not like Thimpu that has more glass nowadays. Back to the hotel, and it was time for showers and dinner at 7.30. We have a lovely view of the Dzong, which is now floodlit. Dinner and bed, as it’s the big walk up to Tiger's Nest tomorrow.

Day Eleven

Last night was not good as we were a bit cold in the room and it was strangely noisy with dogs and cement mixers. We met Kinley just before 9am to 'finish off' the sights of Thimpu. The plan was to start at the painting school, but the pupils were still in assembly, so we walked round the corner to the Folk Heritage Museum, but this was closed until 11am. As we walked back to the car we noticed that the students at the National Institute for Zorig Chusum (Painting School) were on their way to the classrooms; so we visited their exhibition, first. There were some wonderful figures from the festivals, as well as dolls in East Bhutan costume. Then we went to visit the classrooms where they were working on wood carving, metal work, drawing, painting, embroidery, weaving and sculpting. There was also a room where they were selling clothes made in the tailoring school. There were a couple of really beautiful jackets - one turquoise and gold, one with an elephant on the back, but these were not for sale. Soon it was time to move on, and as the museum was still closed, we made our way to the Post Office, where we visited the Philatelic room. Hundreds of stamps are on display, commemorating everything under the sun. We bought two sets - the National Emblems and the Traditional Dancers. From here we drove round the corner to the government handicraft emporium, which is a non-governmental organisation? It has many high quality crafts for sale. Here we found the lovely yak hair hats from Sakteng called shamo . We bought a small chilli pot made from rhododendron wood as we had been served honey in one this morning. Kinley recommended a CD of music for us. Now we could go to the N FH Museum. This was the Chief of the area's house, historically. It has been restored and is furnished as it would have been in the early 1900s. It was immensely interesting, not least as we discovered what the usual toilet arrangements were. At the top of the house, 3rd floor, there was the sleeping room and the altar room, where important guests would stay. Just off here was a small wooden room, built out from the building. An oblong box, fitted with a lid served as the private, only for guests, toilet. There was a wooden 'pipe' leading down to a pit at ground level. The family did not use this, but used the public toilet in the village as did all the inhabitants. There is access up a ladder to the roof, and a cooler, breezy area where grass was dried for winter fodder, among other things. Kinley told us that as a boy it was fun to sleep up there in the summer. Looking down we could see a traditional hot stone bath in the garden. At the other side, they had planted out the grounds with small crop fields, mostly potatoes. There was also a grinding wheel powered by water, the water then went on to turn the prayer wheel. This was a very interesting visit. The morning was gone, so we headed for the Conifer Restaurant for lunch. Alan was pleased to have fish and mince curry with his red rice and noodles. There was also potato datse, mixed veg and some tomato and cucumber salad. A minute square of cream caramel finished the meal. Tea and coffee was served, the latter being almost undrinkable according to Alan.
This afternoon we were able to visit Trashi Chhoe Dzong. This is not only the Dzong of Thimpu, but also the seat of government. The King has his offices in one of the buildings and ministries are scattered around outside. As we approached, it was hats off because we could see the national flag and we could only take photos of the dzong - not to the right as the King and the Royal Family are in temporary residence in the large assembly hall to the right. The Royal Palace, a bit up in the hills, is being renovated for the new king who took over from his father in January. Dad is just retired and is still 'on hand' to give the fifth king advice if needs be. The first entrance we passed was for the King and his ministers, we lesser mortals are allowed in at the second entrance, where Kinley registered us and we walked through an airport style security gate. Alan and I set it off with our camera bags, but no-one batted an eyelid. Kinley led us up a flight of stairs and as we turned the corner a vast courtyard comes into view. Opposite us was a long line of prayer wheels, the longest we've seen, and the buildings seem very large. To the right is the main temple housing a two storey high statue of Sakyamuna, the Historical Buddha. We entered, to discover that there is a renovation taking place, not as extensive as at Gantey Goempa, but still impressive. The artisans were busy painting pillars and temple furniture, with coloured and gold paints. We came out into the sunshine and crossed the huge courtyard where they hold the Thimpu Festival to take a look in the Lhakhang Sarpa with its many carvings. Upstairs we found two monks, one washing small brass cups; the other making butter sculptures like the monk at Bumthang. Out in the courtyard again, Kinley explained how the two Thondrols are raised up the side of this building and the huge utse (tower) at the festival. Each meter they are raised, the trumpets are sounded. He says it is very impressive. Three young monks came walking across the courtyard and we took their photographs, and then showed them. They were quite amused. Then we were on our way again, walking back to the car, admiring the rose beds. As we had finished, we thought we would go back to the hotel, but Kinley and Tsering decided to take us up to a small nunnery, which had suffered in a fire four years ago. It had been rebuilt, but we couldn't really get in to see anything, so back in the car, we took a roundabout route back. Then we were stopped as the road was closed. As we had to turn back, I asked if we could go back up the hill to a house with an interesting mural, much to K and T's amusement. They explained that the dragon was for prosperity and the penis was for fertility. We had seen several of these all over the country on all sorts of houses. It is just normal in Bhutan. At last we got back to the hotel, made arrangements for the morning and bade farewell to Kinley. We learned that he is an avid Manchester United fan and there was a match on the television!
We took our stuff upstairs, then got organised to go out into town. In the square the fair was in full swing again. We walked up the steps and along to the police traffic control roundabout. A left turn took us up to some steps, and there in front of us is the Swiss Bakery. Why not pop in for a decent cup of coffee and a cake? The guide book highly recommends this cafe, established in 1970. It lived up to expectations, as we enjoyed excellent coffee, chocolate cake and chocolate éclair. Thus fortified we wandered around, first finding the Hong Kong market, not too exciting; located the Seasons Restaurant cum bar; then down to Mendayla Sweets, which sells Indian style sweets. We weren't too sure which shop it was, but nothing even came close to the wonderful shop in Guwahati. Close by we found a lovely little garden in a tiny space by the road. It was full of wild flowers as well as a lovely poppy. Back onto Norzin Lam, we wandered along up to World Music, opposite the Craft Emporium. Alan asked if they had any instrumental music - we were really looking for 'the yak song' Kinley had on his phone. Clearly we were in the wrong place as their music was all vocal and pop or film music. Still the helpful assistant suggested we try the shop in the Norling Centre. So back down the road again, and there the man showed and played us a CD of Bhutanese music played on traditional instruments - flute (lyem), lute (draymen) and yangchen - a 72 stringed instrument struck lightly with two thin bamboo sticks. This sounds lovely so we bought a copy; but still no ‘Song of the Yak’. More handicraft shops were scrutinised all along the road, but no more purchases.
Back at the Wangchuck Hotel, we ordered tea and sat in reception writing and reading. After, we went up to our room to sort out things ready for our walk tomorrow and also leaving for Paro. At 7.15 we got a call about dinner, only it wasn't clear what. Soon our friendly waiter came up asking us did we want dinner in the room - well, there's hardly room for that. So, we were asked to come for dinner at 7.30. When we appeared, it was obvious that we are the only takers, tonight. We ate dinner -very delicious, under the eagle eye of the dining room staff, who were waiting for us to eat and leave so they could go home. All a bit unnerving. Then we sat in reception again, finishing off this story.

Blue Poppy Tours and Treks

Day Ten

Today began early at 6.30 as the electricity came on. I had left my bedside light on when it went off last night. Still I switched it off and turned over - but no sleep, so another few pages of the book before getting up. A buffet breakfast with some cornflakes was a good start, and we met up with Kinley who had been able to stay in one of the ground floor rooms. So much for there being no room for us - suddenly there seems to be at least two vacant ones. Our first stop was the Black-necked Crane Centre. It is a circular building with big picture windows overlooking the marshy area where the cranes come to over-winter. They left in the middle of March. The Warden was very helpful and decided to show us the film about the cranes made about ten years ago, immediately as there was going to be a meeting in the room. The curtains were duly drawn and the video switched on. The film was excellent - well made and very informative. Since it was made, when numbers were declining, the cranes have made something of a comeback. Their numbers have increased from 106 in the early nineties to 370 in 2006/07. More information about the Black-necked Cranes can be found here. After our visit we had to start our long journey back to Thimpu.
Our first stop was to be the Dzong at Wangdi Phodrang. As we were leaving the valley, a hoopoe landed on the fence just beside the car, but flew off before either of us could take its picture. Then, we were held up by some men from the restoration project loading huge tree trunks on to one of the big Indian style trucks. Soon we were on our way again out of the valley; driving over a small pass, then down into the Wangdi area. We got to Wangdi at 12.15 and Kinley wanted us to have lunch, but it wasn't ready, so we went off to see the Dzong. This is very old - dating from 1638. It has suffered a lot from earthquakes; the last in 1897 has left it very unsafe. Kinley told us that plans were afoot for a complete renovation in the next few years. We went all the way inside to a great hall high up in the Dzong, with a fabulous view out over the bigger of the two rivers. We also stopped by the young monks’ study/hall/dining room where they had just been served butter tea and rice. As we were leaving, Alan and Kinley started talking to some young monks, one of whom had a bamboo ‘penny whistle’. He gave them a demonstration of how he played it and Kinley told us that this is how they start playing the flute for the ceremonies as they have to learn how to play without a break. Soon it was time to leave again, and we walked back up the hill to our restaurant for lunch. After our rather monotonous food in the Rinchenling, this was good - Alan had some chicken for a change; there was also peas, asparagus, baby courgettes, and warm toms, cucumber and apple salad.
Now we set off again, to find the bank where Alan could change some dollars. We drove round to the place where Kinley had gone to school - we think - and eventually found the bank, which closed at 1pm. Still, Kinley persuaded them to let Alan change the money, and after endless to-ing and fro-ing, he got some Niltrum. So we headed for the checkpoint, and we were soon on our way to Thimpu. A bit further along the way, we spotted a lone macaque in a tree, which we watched for a few minutes. Then it was the long climb out of the valley up to Dochu la and a cup of tea at the restaurant. Sadly the wonderful view we had had on the way to Wangdi was totally obscured by the smoke from the forest fire. But the tea was very refreshing. Kinley and Tsering had butter tea, made with cow's butter, not yak's. It smells just as it should - of tea with butter in it. At last we were in Thimpu, arriving about 5pm. Back to the Wangchuck Hotel and a new room - 208. Kinley arranged to meet us at 9am tomorrow, then headed off home. We took a stroll into town. The square was alive with a fair, raising money for the Queen's charity. There were lots of stalls selling anything from plants to bamboo products, funfair games such as coconut shies etc. In the centre was the music area where we saw some young people showing off their skills at break dancing. We visited the bookshop and bought Joanna Lumley's book as well as the book written by the Queen - all for about £16. Dinner was at 7.30 and we ate next to a table of Russians, which was quite a surprise. There was a lovely different range of dishes including Thai rice, veggy noodles, pork with garlic, mushroom datse with chillies and fresh cucumber. The Russians insisted on having ema datse – the one with chillies; but the staff say that its not on the menu tonight! The Russians are drinking many toasts as is their tradition, so it will shortly be time to leave. Another full and interesting day - now there are only three left.

Blue Poppy Tours and Treks

Day Nine

Today was a driving day. First stop was Trongsa to see the dzong, stopping for tea at Norling Hotel – good tea and loos! The Dzong is not very accessible, only three courtyards and no interiors. It does have lovely gardens and we showed Kinley the snapdragons! Then we drove over to the River Lodge for lunch – where we stopped on the way to Jakar. Just before we got there we spotted a troop of Rhesus Macaques playing in the trees by the roadside. There were also the lovely yellow billed, blue magpies. After lunch we drove over the pass into a smoke filled valley. There must be forest fires somewhere nearby. It is very sad.
We turned off the main road onto an unmade road to Gantey. Kinley decided to drop us off so we could walk part of the way, which was very pleasant. But we didn’t see too much in the way of wildlife, which was the intention. We met up with the car at the turning to the Goemba, and Tsering drove us along the road to the building. This is in the process of a complete renovation. We could see what a terrible state it must have been in from the untouched buildings round the edge of the courtyard – the monks’ rooms, store rooms and so on. But the main building is well on the way to being finished. Beautiful carving and painting is taking place and by next year (08) it is supposed to be finished – then they will start on the outer buildings.
From here we drove into the magical valley of Phobjikha where the black-necked cranes come to over winter from their breeding grounds in Tibet. They had already left (on March 19th), but we stayed at the rather posh hotel overlooking the valley where they come. This is the Dewachen Hotel, who didn’t have a booking for us – but that was their fault, and they had to find a room for us. Apparently their booking person had not passed notification on to the hotel, so although they didn’t have Blue Poppy’s booking; there was a room for us – and apparently Kinley, too. Tsering got to sleep in the bus of the other hotel guests!
The large twin room has a wood stove that was lit for us when we arrived. We had time to shower and change for dinner, another buffet with the usual fare, including some ema datse – the chillies in cheese sauce, which Alan avoided and I tasted a little of. The Americans and Germans seemed to enjoy it all, too. The lights go out at 9pm as the electricity is provided by a generator, so it’s early to bed. The fire was relit and hot water bottles filled. Sadly, when I was about to get into bed, I found my hotty had leaked, so we had to find someone to change the bed before the lights went out!! The lights eventually died away at 9.30 and we snuggled down to sleep!


Blue Poppy Tours and Treks

Day Eight

We arranged a slightly later start (8.15) and stopped in Jakar for some bottled water (only Nu 15 instead of 25 in the Lodge). We were off to Ura for the third day of the festival. We stopped just before the chorten pass to spot where we had had our picnic yesterday in the binos – Tsering was delighted! When we arrived in Ura there were far fewer tourists and more villagers than on Monday. We found a spot to sit on the wall and had a very good view of proceedings. The Deer dance was about to start as we got settled on the carpet Kinley had borrowed from the lodge. There were some other tourists there from Blue Poppy, but they were also discreet and quiet. The ladies sang a song and danced; and then two people performed a dance behind a curtain in the doorway of the monastery. Occasionally the curtain was held back to give us a glimpse, then halfway through, the monkey and the red ox appeared and came down on to the dance ground, to complete their performance. More ladies danced, then the tea ceremony was announced, which we had attended on Monday. The other group went in to this and really enjoyed it. Then, the big bugles sounded through an upstairs window; and all the animals entered the square to start the Lord and Messengers of Death Dance. This was to go on for over two hours, so after a while, Kinley suggested we went on to the hillside for lunch. This was similar to previous picnics, but somehow the lodge had forgotten to pack the tea bags! So we had tea with tea leaves that Tsering had begged off some local people! As we went back to the festival, the Lord was being trumpeted in with big horns, drums and conch shells. Now a climax was reached as the bad hunter was caught, despite trying to escape, and was brought before the Lord. He was judged to be a real baddie, and eventually was carried off to torment! Now a second man was brought in for judgement. Predictably, he was eventually judged to be good and angels came and took him into the heavenly gate of the monastery. This was almost the end, but as he left, the whole village surged forward and lined up for a blessing from the Lord and the animals; avoiding the red clown who ‘blessed’ the girls and various females with a tap with the phallic symbol he carried! Eventually the band returned and led the remaining performers through the heavenly entrance to the monastery. We decided that that was quite a fitting end, and persuaded the lads it was time to return to Jakar so we could pack up ready for leaving in the morning.
Blue Poppy Tours and Treks

Day Seven

Today we visited an area that even Kinley and Tsering didn’t know. Kinley planned that we should walk up to 4000m for a picnic; but visiting several monasteries on the way. We began with a drive something like a wadi bash to Tharpaling Jangchu Choling. This is a 14th century monastery, the most important of eight founded by Longchen Rabjampa, which has 100 monks, some of whom are meditating in a special building above the temple area. There are eight chortens overlooking the valley, commemorating major deeds in the life of the Sakyamuni Buddha. The assembly hall is on two floors: the lower floor has images of Shantara Kista, Guru Padmakara and King Tisong Detsen; flanked by Longchen Rabjampa and Jigme Longpa. Murals depicting twelve teachers of the Great Perfection, who preceded the Buddha, cover the walls. The upper floor was renovated by the first king and contains the statue of Samantabhadra in union with a consort, flanked by Guru Padmakara and Longchen Rabjampa.
We found a track winding up past the Chodrak Hermitage. This was founded in 1234 by Lorepa next to a cave where Guru Padmakara mediated. It was abandoned due to an invasion of demons, but exorcised and renovated in the 18th century. We walked on up the hillside to the Lorepa Lhakhang. As we approached, we came across a young lad washing clothes. There was a boy monk with him, whom he shooed away. This boy monk is the re-incarnation of the late chief abbot of Bhutan whose body lies unchanged since his death in the Thimpu Dzong. Inside, a monk took us into the two areas, separated by a large chorten. In one, Thukje Lhakhang, is the thousand armed Chenresig; in the other, Lorepa Lhakhang, images of Mahakarunika and Guru Padmakara. By the altar are two stones, one is the footprint of Guru Padmakara and the other is the skull of an angel. The latter, we were able to hold – it is indeed skull shaped, but very heavy.
We clambered further up to the highest Lhakhang on the hillside, Zhambala Lhakhang. Here is a newly built temple with a richly decorated chorten containing the remains of the Lama Nyoshel Khen Rinpoche. A curly haired monk who had just finished his meditation, told Kinley all about it, but the story was lost in translation. There is also an older shrine outside and above this; and a rock with a hole in it can grant people’s aspirations if you know how to read the handful of earth you pick up through it. A senior monk showed us the route up to the summit ridge and off we set in the warm sunshine. Kinley and I spotted a pica hiding under the bushes and the way was covered in familiar flowers and bushes. We got to the ridge (about 4000m), which is covered in prayer flags by 2pm. We picnicked and admired the view through Alan’s binos. Tsering was fascinated and kept spotting places he knew, and we had visited earlier, such as the Jakar Dzong. He also spotted the place where Pema Lingpa was born. We enjoyed seeing many of the snow covered mountains.
We descended down to the car, where Tsering managed to get our flask filled with hot water for tea. We then drove down to the valley and stopped for tea and biscuits at the King’s picnic ground at Hurji. Two men were camped here. It appeared they were travelling all over the country showing a film they had made. Then it was back to the Lodge Rinchenling.

Blue Poppy Tors and Treks

Day Six

Up early and we got away at 7.45 after we had ‘lost’ Tsering for a while! On our way to Ura we had two passes to go over and between the two is a spectacular view of Gankha Punsum, 7541m, the highest unclimbed mountain in the world. We were in luck and had a wonderful view. Even though it is only 48 km it took us about 2hrs to get there. We saw the Lhakhang from the road with the village, just 40 houses, snuggled below it. There is a large square outside the Lhakhang where the dances take place. The festival, or yakchoe takes place over five days, with the three middle days involving spectacular masked dances telling the folk stories of the region. The first and last days see the bringing and returning of the image of Vajrapani from the hillside Geyden Lhakhang to the main lhakhang. There were two covered areas round the square, but these were for the villagers and the VIPs, so not for us. We twice got settled only to be moved on by the man with the whip! But finally, we found a seat on the water trough by some steps into the Lhakhang, with a great view of the proceedings.
First the clowns performed some antics, then the village girls came into the centre and to their own singing, danced a round dance, which went on for ages, with several changes of song. Suddenly, horns sounded and the band playing horns, conch shells, and drums came down from the Lhakhang from the far entrance and paraded around the square, leading in several dancers wearing yellow skirts, brocade tops with criss-crossed braid. They had smudges on their faces and deer-like masks. They danced a swirling dance, stamping their feet, which is to scare off the demons. When they had re-entered the Lhakhang, the ladies came back to ‘fill in’ before the next spectacular dance. The dancers need to change costume, and the ladies’ gentle dancing and singing is a calm interlude between some breathtaking performances. But they were hurried away as the large horns were blown, through the windows of the Lhakhang, and the band, once again, lead in a procession of dancers. This time they were dressed in colourful long, full skirted dresses, but best of all, they had black hats topped off with elaborate decorations. A swirling, colourful dance was performed, with different combinations of dancers twirling forwards and backwards as well as round in a circle. More stamping of feet warded off the demons, with appropriate accompaniment from the band, which was ensconced in a corner of the villagers’ stand. This is the dance that most tour groups come to watch, and there were plenty of them – the Japanese with several cameras round their necks and no qualms about pointing them right in the faces of anyone in national costume or any monk! And predictably loud Americans. When this dance finished and the ladies returned, Kinley suggested that we go and have our picnic up the hill behind the Lhakhang. Tsering was going to take us in the car, but this got inexplicably stuck in a puddle of water – and he didn’t seem to know how to use the 4WD. Just as well, as we found a great spot up the hill among the prayer flags – and it has to be said lots of dried up DS and sheep droppings!! Kinley unpacked two tiffin flasks, and served us rice, beef, beans and spuds. As I was being vegetarian, there was plenty of beef for Kinley and Tsering to have with their rice and chillies. We finished with a cup of tea – then back to watch the next dances. Even though Kinley mentioned I looked a bit pink, I forgot to renew my sunblock. It didn’t seem that hot, but we were at 3100m and there was quite a dusty wind blowing. The Bhutanese were really enjoying the festival, showing off new clothes and the children all had new toys to play with – the top favourites were the cap guns and the plastic cars. Some of them were fascinated by the pictures in our guide book. They knew exactly where Ura was on the map of Bhutan.
The dance we now saw was the animals dance. Each dancer represented a different animal and in turns they proved how they understood religion, dancing in the middle of the circle and round in intricate movements. There were fewer visitors now, and we were glad the very aggressive Japanese woman seemed to have gone away. When the dance was over, I went to look in the temple. A man, one of the village elders, asked if I had come for the greeting – I said no, but he told me that it was open to everyone and that we would be very welcome, so I went and collected Alan. We sat on the floor with several other people (+/- 20) and we had a short talk about the festival from the man and the lama also came and sat in his seat near us. The monks all came in and were served tea and rice, along with visitors to the village – not us! This is all part of the yakchoe in memory of the mendicant monk who visited a woman in the village, when it suffered a plague of leprosy. She had been spinning, but prepared him buckwheat pancakes. When ready, she came in to find that he had gone, but in her basket of wool she found a small statue of Vajrapani. This stayed in her house for three nights, then flew to Geyden. The moment it arrived, a nine-headed snake rose out of the ground and slithered out of the valley; taking the curse of leprosy with it.
Outside again, Kinley wondered if it was time to leave, but Tsering said we should stay and watch the start of the story of the stag and the hunter. So we found a place to sit and watched the story unfold – the hunter’s servant visited the soothsayer, with the help of various clowns – all quite funny! Then the stag and the hunter’s two dogs performed a dance, which ended as they exited into the Lhakhang. But this wasn’t the end of the day – the village elders came into the square and the band struck up a tune which they danced too. Gradually people joined in and we decided to as well. A tricky little step we just mastered as they changed the tune and the rhythm – so there we were all left feet again! It was great fun, but it began to rain, so we quietly left the dance line and made our way to the car. As we set off, there was a terrific hailstorm – low cloud shrouded the mountains, and Tsering had a tricky drive back to Jakar. On the way, we saw a sort of pheasant, one only found in Nepal and Bhutan; a satyr tragopan. This went with the white tailed eagle we saw on the way there. Back at the lodge, we hurriedly showered and changed for dinner at 7.45 – buckwheat noodles, aubergines, bitter gourds, potatoes, beef and rice.

Blue Poppy Tors and Treks

Day Five

A clear and sunny day dawned and breakfast was a busy affair with a large party of Americans/ Canadians occupying a majority of the dining room. We had buckwheat pancakes and honey – all grown or made in the Bumthang Valley. Some conifer branched were smouldering in a wide dish outside and this was in preparation for a wedding due to take place in the altar room, upstairs, during the morning. We think that the couple were European, dressed in Bhutan national dress for the occasion. We were soon off to visit a full collection of temples and monasteries with Kinley and Tsering. The first stop was a very old temple, Jampa Lhakhang, from the 7th century. Tibetan king, Songsten Gampo, was charged with subduing a particularly troublesome demoness by building 108 temples in a day to pin her down. Her left leg was in Bhutan, and two temples were constructed here, this being one of them – the other is Kyichu Lhakhang in Paro. Padmasambhava (Guru Rinpoche) came here on his first visit to Bhutan in 746; a tantric master magician, the Guru meditated in a cave, leaving an imprint of his body in the rock. The temple has been restored and repaired several times; and has acquired a golden roof, courtesy of several penlops of Trongsa. In the main hall are three steps, representing past, present and future. No woman is allowed on these (we are ‘unclean’!!). They believe when the present step sinks to ground level, the gods will become like humans and the world in its present state will end. In the inner area, there is a statue of the Buddha of the future – Jampa, who has his feet on an elephant. It is protected by chain mail made by Pema Lingpa. In an alcove above the entrance is a statue of the Guru, where he mediated, leaving behind a footprint. The walls are covered with murals, some hidden behind light curtains for protection from UV light. There is apparently a lake under the lhakhang, where the Guru hid several terma. A terma is text or artefact hidden by the Guru, some of which have been found by Pema Lingpa, the terton (treasure finder) 1450-1521, reincarnation of the Guru. We walked around the inside of the temple, and received a blessing of holy water. And this was just the first visit of the day!
Just a bit further along the road is the ‘holiest’ monastery, Kurjey Lhakhang. The courtyard is the place where Kings 1, 2, and 3 were cremated; as well as the mother of the third king. Immensely tall prayer flags mark each of these spots. The whole monastery is enclosed with a wall supporting 108 chortens, which was a gift from the present Queen Mother. Three large buildings make up the complex and the first one is the oldest, built in 1652. This is built around a cave where Guru Rinpoche meditated and left his body imprint – kur (body), jey (print). Under the eaves is a carving of a snowlion, a representation of Shelging Kharpo a local demon subdued by the Guru. Inside at the top temple is a representation of the Guru and 8 of his manifestations which guard the meditation cave. We could peep in through a heavily carved, gilded wooden door. Down in the lower hall there is another cave, which local people can try crawling through. A successful manoeuvre means that you have left your sins behind, so our guide, Kinley must be pretty stain free as he does it most times he visits the temple. Over the top of the building we saw an old cypress tree growing out of the rock. They say that this grew from the Guru’s walking stick.
After looking around the courtyard, Tsering drove us down to the river bank and then we walked down to a wobbly bridge, covered in prayer flags. Up the other side, we followed a footpath taking us to Tamshing Goemba, about 20 mins. The Temple of the Good Message was founded by Pema Lingpa in 1501 and they say he built it himself with the help of the khandromas – even the paintings on the inner walls are attributed to him. In the main temple there is a large statue of him which they say was made by the khandromas and had to be finished in one day. As dawn came, they left just as the statue was completed and his eyes are looking skywards watching these angel type beings floating up to the heavens. We walked round the outer corridor of the temple, looking at the wall paintings, and came across the chain mail cloak made by Pema Lingpa. This weighs 25kg and he made it when he was a shepherd to keep warm in the cold nights. If you carry it around the circuit we had just walked, it is considered auspicious. First Kinley, then Alan and I managed this – much to everyone’s surprise. Upstairs we saw pillars that Pema Lingpa had made – to his height, which just about had me ducking, too. The walls here are decorated with 100,000 images of Sakyamuni, the history Buddha.
Now it was time for lunch, and Tsering had brought the van around via the big bridge to collect us and take us back to the Lodge. Here they served us noodles with tomato sauce, corn rice from E Bhutan (with yellow flecks of corn in it), potato datse and asparagus. My right middle finger has been bitten by some fly or other and has decided to swell up. The finger is very stiff and my hand is looking extremely puffy. I am applying lots of Anthisan to treat it. After we had finished lunch, a director of Blue Poppy came to talk to us – he apologised for our not being at the Mountain Lodge, but what you haven’t had, you don’t miss!! It’s OK at Rinchenling. We then left for the last of the temples on the eastern side of the river. Konchogsum Lhakhang was renovated in 1995, but was originally built in the 6th or 7th century. This wasn’t the first renovation as Pema Lingpa also renovated the building in the 15th century. On the floor beside the altar is part of an old bell, which used to be outside. It is made from 10% gold, 20% silver, 50% bronze and 20% tin and they say that when rung it could be heard in Lhasa Tibet. It sat on a stone outside the entrance and apparently the Tibetans tried to steal it, but dropped it and it broke. The missing piece is somewhere in the National Museum, but Kinley says he hasn’t seen it there! There is a white safe to one side, in which are small statues of the three Buddhas that are said to have flown there from E Bhutan. On the altar itself are statues of Nampa Namse with Chenresig to the left and Guru Rinpoche to the right. This is a lovely place and once again we met a family – father, son daughter-in-law with baby, and daughter, who were making a pilgrimage to all the temples in the area.
Our next visit was to Burning Lake, an auspicious place up the Tang Valley. Apparently Pema Lingpa discovered several terma here and performed a miracle by diving into the lake and reappearing quite a long time later, with a butter lamp still burning in his hands. This is where the name comes from. On our way down the river we saw a field full of red billed choughs! And we also passed the Swiss farm where they make a local hard cheese, as well as honey. We did stop and buy some. Our turn into the Tang Valley soon became a dirt track, but shortly Tsering parked and we got out to walk down to Membartsho. There is a wooden bridge across the waterfall and below the bridge is a deep pool in which the ‘enlightened’ may spot the hidden temple where the Guru hid some terma. Across the bridge are strung hundreds of prayer flags and all along the rock walls people have placed lots and lots of tsha-tscha, the tiny clay cone-like sculptures people leave as offerings on behalf of the dead. Just before the bridge is a wooden cupboard looking just like a loo, but inside are three sculptures of Pema Lingpa and his two sons. Behind the shrine is a crawl through cave, which only the virtuous can get through. It is apparently small and very dusty! I could feel I was getting bitten again, so had to leave quite quickly, which is a shame. But I ended up with several more bites that swelled up, even though Kinley squeezed them to get out the poison. As we were visiting Jakar Dzong next, Alan asked if we could go back to Rinchenling for me to take some benadryl tablets. When we came back to the car, Kinley and Tsering insisted that I should go to the hospital, which was on the way back to the Dzong. This we did, and after a bit of a tour of the place we found a nurse on duty who swabbed my fingers with iodine so I look as if I have got war paint on them! At least the others feel reassured! I think they were hoping for more – as there had been ominous discussion about antibiotics and who knows what horrors before we got there.
Jakar Dzong dominates the valley as it is built on a rocky promontory above the town. It is the summer residence of the monks from Trongsa. Its name translates as the castle of the white bird, and comes from the fact that the monks saw a white bird, an egret possibly, rising up into the air and landing on the promontory when they were seeking a place to build their summer residence. The first monastery was built in the 1550s, but the present building dates from 1667. As the monks were not in residence, it was quite deserted, with just a few monks carrying out repairs before the whole group arrives to take up residence for the summer. Nevertheless, it was lovely to see the utze and the views from the top. We walked down to the car and Tsering drove us back to the Lodge – tea in our room, a fire that wouldn’t light, a thunder storm and a power cut; all before dinner at 7.30 – soup, red rice, cabbage and cheese dumplings, beef, spinach datse, mixed veg, roasted baby spuds and mushrooms with angel hair noodles. Dessert was slices of watermelon. We leave for Ura Festival at 7.30 in the morning!

Blue Poppy Tours and Treks

Day Four

This was a driving day as we had to get to Jakar in the Bumthang Valley – about 7hrs driving time. We began with a visit to Punakha market and the colourful local life with their national dress and interesting local produce. To follow was the long climb up to Pele La, the pass guarding the Trongsa valley. On this beautiful clear day we had a great view of the mountains. We had to stop at Wangdi Phodrang to get our passes stamped, so took some photos of the dzong, which we will visit on the way back. There was a crested kingfisher on the electricity cables by the bridge. With the formalities complete, we began the climb up into the mountains. As we got higher, the rhododendrons appeared again; and just before the pass we saw our first yaks and also a fantastic view of the Eastern Himalayas. We wondered if this included Jomulhari, maybe. Pele La (3420m) does not have a view, but we walked up the path by the short bamboo and found the view – and the loo! We drove over the pass and down and down the other side along hillsides covered with red rhododendrons and populated with yaks. Down by the river we found Chendebji Chorten, which is a copy of the huge Swayambhunath in Kathmandu. Our lunch spot was a stone’s throw from here at Urgyen Dorji Tabdea Restaurant. Another buffet with the usual variety of food awaited us and a view of the river and the mountains – it is a lovely spot. After lunch we had to drive on to Trongsa. This town at 2180m has another dzong perched on the cliff side. It keeps appearing and disappearing as you drive along the twisting road, teasing with spectacular views, then hiding until the car rounds a corner and there it is almost touching distance across the valley, only to disappear yet again. We reached the town and parked underneath the palace where the 3rd king was born, and Kinley checked us through another police point. We walked up into the town, looking in vain for a view of the dzong, but it was as illusive as ever. As we walked to the end of the street, we did find it, but the view was so covered with wires, it wasn’t worth taking a photograph. We had passed various hotels, shops and houses all built in the traditional style, and there was a cute child sitting on some steps. I took his photo and he promptly ran down the steps demanding to see it! Then, all his friends appeared out of nowhere, also wanting to see – and to have their photo taken!
Back in the car, Tsering drove us up to Yotangha Pass (3425m) with its chorten and prayer flags; down into the Chhume Valley; and then up to Kiki La (2860m). Just before the last pass, we stopped at a local weaver’s complex, with girls weaving in a shed by the road and plenty of stuff for the tourist to buy – but not us! Over the pass, we descended into the Chokhor Valley and on to Jakar (2580m), our destination. Due to the festival, our original lodgings were full, but we drove a little further on to Rinchenling Lodge. This is owned and run by a Dasho (honorary title bestowed by the king for good works for the national good). He has converted his house into a hotel with one large reception room doubling as sitting and dining room with its enormous wood burning stove. There are several rooms above, including the altar room, as well as on the ground floor, the kitchen and area for the staff, guides and drivers. Our room was in an L-shaped block built at the back containing a dozen or so rooms – all en suite. The room also has a small wood burning stove, which they lit on our arrival as it was a bit chilly. Soon it was very warm in the room and we showered before strolling across the garden to dinner. Outside there is a small garden where lovely blue iris are in bloom. There are also masses of blue iris by the entrance. This was rice, noodles, beef, carrots, nakey, bitter gourd and aubergines. Bodes well for the next few night we are spending here.

Blue Poppy Tors and Treks

Day Three

Our starting time is 8.40 precisely, and we were all ready for the off - bags in the car. Kinley suggested a visit to the weekend market, where all local produce is on sale. We saw beans, asparagus, potatoes, okra, bitter gourd, onions, mangoes, tomatoes, and dried fish; there were herbs as well as dried leaves and spices to burn in the family altar room. Of course, there were piles and piles and piles of various types of chillies. We also saw how the Bhutanese make up their ubiquitous 'chewing tobacco'. This is a piece of areca nut wrapped up in a half betel leaf smeared with lime paste - as in calcium carbonate. This neat parcel is popped in the mouth and chewed, producing the infamous red juice which stains teeth and lips and which is spat out, staining roads and pavements with little red splatters. It is awful for teeth, gums, oesophagus and stomach, but as smoking is banned, it is the local equivalent. Its mildly narcotic effect makes it quite an addiction. On sale were fresh and dried nuts and lots of people were buying including monks. They bought all the separate ingredients as well as ready pasted leaves and chopped up nuts, and ready made parcels. We saw some people buying, then being given a ready bite to sample. Moving on we at last found nakey for sale, looking like thin green beans with curly ends. Then at almost the last corner was a 'local' yak herder with all his yak products. He came from 6 km outside Thimpu - so it must be somewhere in the high mountains as yaks only live above 3500m. On sale here was yak cheese in various forms. There were great slabs of greenish brown stuff as well as the dried variety which comes in small cubes threaded in long strings. He also had something looking rather revolting. This turned out to be dried yak leather - that really is the skin of the yak, air dried and one chews away at this. Some say it lasts well over six years. He also had several yak hair belts. He was a very jolly chap ready to explain everything via Kinley. Then just across the aisle from him we noticed a woman with a Bhutanese dragon-headed lute. This was a quite plain one, so it was easy to see the construction. Tsering held it up for us to photograph. I think the woman was quite bemused at our interest. She told us that she didn't play herself. We got Kinley to buy us some little bananas for our journey, then it was time to leave.
We began the journey to Punakha, stopping first at the checkpoint on the road out of Thimpu. All foreigners need permission to travel and here our permits were checked and stamped. As we waited, there was another couple also waiting who turned out to be Belgians. They had been in Sikkim and were also going to the Ura Festival. He was smoking a pretty revolting pipe, but they were interesting to speak with. Back on the road, we climbed up and up to a pass called Dochu La. (3140m). It was blowing a gale and so cold we had to put our jackets on. 108 chortens were built here in 2005, to help to put at peace the people killed when the Bhutanese army eventually went in and ousted the Assam terrorists who had secret bases in Manas National Park (Dec 2003). It is a very peaceful place, with a hillside next to it, covered in prayer flags. We walked on the paths between the chortens and were rewarded with a tremendous view of Bhutan's Himalaya. We were very lucky as this is usually at its best only in the winter. Back to the car and down the other side - not stopping at the cafe as we still had some distance to travel. We were passing rhododendron and magnolias in flower; and all along we were seeing drongos, bulbuls and shrikes. As we descended it got warmer and warmer. By 12.30 we reached the pretty resort of Meri Puensom about 1350m, just up a hillside outside Punakha. We were shown our room, just down from the main building in a block of rooms with en suite facilities and a lovely balcony looking down towards Punakha. Lunch was served - rice, noodles, pork, chicken, mixed veg, brinjal (aubs) - all very tasty. This over, we were off again to visit Punakha Dzong. This is the second largest dzong and was the seat of government until the mid 50s. We are very lucky to be visiting it now as the jacaranda trees are in bloom. Their pale purple flowers look very picturesque against the white wall of the dzong. Tsering parked the car and we then walked across a temporary bridge slung across the river. Once there had been a box bridge here, but the monsoon flood had washed it away. Nevertheless, it is still attractively festooned with prayer flags. As we looked across at the Dzong, Kinley told us that the Guru Rinpoche had predicted that it would be built by a man named Namgyal in front of a hill shaped like an elephant. And you can see that is so, the dzong becoming the end of the elephant’s trunk. This is also at the point where the Mo Chhu and the Po Chhu meet. Crossing the river, the first building seen is the old 14th century dzong. Then the Zhabdrung Ngawang Namgyal had his vision and the Pungthang Dechen Phodrang (Palace of Great Happiness) was constructed in 1637/8. 600 monks came here to join the Zhabdrung from the Cheri Goemba in the Thimpu valley. Even today, monks 'overwinter' from Thimpu in Punakha Dzong. The day they make the move is officially the start of winter when the men are allowed to cover their legs under their khos, usually with thermal underwear or nowadays sometimes tracky bottoms. The dzong is very large, and we had a steep climb up stone stairs and an almost vertical set of wooden steps to get to the gateway. Our permit was scrutinised and then we were allowed in to the first of three courtyards. This is the largest, with offices down the sides. In the middle are a white chorten and a large shade tree. At the far side is the huge utse whose entrance is in the second courtyard. The second courtyard is surrounded by the monks’ rooms but also has two halls; one is where the first King of Bhutan was presented with the Order of Knight Commander of the Indian Empire by John Claude White in 1905. In the third courtyard we visited a large hall - the hundred pillar hall, which has 54 golden pillars and walls covered with the story of the Buddha’s life. There are three very big statues here, of the Buddha, Guru Rinpoche and the Zhabdrung. As we were about to leave the hall a gong sounded and we saw a monk walking up and down the terrace along the exit wall of the hall, swinging a three line whip. He walked all around the square as the gong continued to sound. Kinley explained that the monks were being called to pray and to have tea. They came running from all sides to gather in the square, waiting for a signal, and then they were allowed to enter the hall opposite the one we had visited. Kinley led us up some stairs and we found ourselves on a landing overlooking the monks who were being served butter tea and rice. They are allowed to add flavouring - usually chilli, but they need to provide this themselves. This was the end of our fascinating visit, so we walked back out again, crossed the bridge, to find Tsering waiting for us. A little way back down the road - even passed the turning for the hotel, we parked the car at the start of a short walk to Chimi Lhakgang. The Lhakhang is across the valley, so we had to walk through the terraced fields to the tiny hamlet of Pana (field), down to Yoaka (in the drain) and up a slope clothed with cactus, to reach it. Built in 1499 by a cousin of Drukpa Kinley, the divine madman, it honours his subduing of the demoness of Dochu La. She had been giving a lot of grief to local citizens and travellers, so the clever Drukpa went to the pass, lay down playing dead, all but his penis which he kept erect. This was his so called 'magic thunderbolt of wisdom'. The demoness was naturally fascinated by this and he was able to subdue her and convert her to Buddhism and charge her with protecting all sentient life. We sat on the bench overlooking a small pond as we waited for a large party of tourists to come out of the small temple. At last we entered the small courtyard and then the equally small temple. It is beautifully decorated with scenes of Drukpa Kinley's life. The main statue is of the lama and his dog, which accompanied him from Tibet. We also saw statues of the Zhabdrung, with his wise man's beard, the historical Buddha, Sakyamani and Chenresig who is the bodhisattva of compassion. This latter is a special guardian of Bhutanese religion. At the side of the altar we saw two phalluses and the lama's bow and arrows in a case. Kinley gave a ten nultrum note and got a roll of three dice to divine an answer to his secret question. Apparently there would be a successful outcome. He has to visit this Lhakhang several times during the year as it is where he got his name and he has a special attachment here. He was, apparently brought up around here. This is a temple many women come to, to ensure fertility. We were given some holy water, but luckily we weren't blessed with either the wooden or metal phallus. As Kinley was describing the wall paintings, the gong sounded and lots of very young monks came rushing in, sitting in rows side on to the altar. They were served tea and a slice or two of bread, while chanting went on. Time for us to leave, and we walked around the outside of the building, noting the prayer wheels and slate carvings. Back at the car, Tsering drove us up to the hotel, and we took tea on the terrace. Then we showered before having dinner with Kinley. On the walk from our room to the main hotel, there are pots full of orchids, some already in flower. One of the staff told us that they are all local species. One of the buffet dishes was fish and chips - small pieces of battered fish with crisps. There was also a tasty mushroom dish with fried cottage cheese squares - looking a bit like tofu.

Blue Poppy Tours and Treks

Day Two

Kinley met us in the lobby at 9am. Today is apparently an auspicious day in the Bhutanese calendar, meaning schools and government offices are closed. It is the anniversary of the death of one of Bhutan's great Lamas. So we adapt our plan, as the museum and the painting school and the government handicraft shop will be closed.
Nevertheless, all the religious sites will be busy with people in their best clothes. Outside we meet our new driver, Tsering. Our first visit is to the Memorial Chorten, where we join the crowds making a clockwise circuit, spinning prayer wheels and mutter to the clack of prayer beads, before going inside and climbing to the first floor. Here are grand views of the city. Reaching up from the ground floor altar is a huge representation of the wrathful Buddha, surrounded by smaller statues. Butter lamps burn in front of it, and murals cover the walls. It was crowded with people all trying to get up and down the same staircase, so as we stopped to try and take a closer look, we tended to cause a traffic jam. Upstairs there was a monk, chanting with the accompaniment of two horns and a drum. All very exciting. On our walk around the outside we were given a paper disc with the photographs of Bhutan's leading lamas. The Bhutanese held the pictures to their foreheads as a kind of blessing. Now we walked back to meet up with Tsering and he drove us off up the hill, really to visit another temple, but it was so busy, they decided to take us right up to the takin reserve above the city.
The takins, Bhutan's national animal and almost only found here, live in a huge fenced area - an 'open' zoo. At one time, the then King thought it would be a good idea to set them free, but instead of heading for the hills, they wandered into town, and they are large animals with horns. The bull we saw was pretty ferocious, too. So they had to round them up and take them back to the enclosure again. The takins are hefty beasts with shaggy coats and horns like wildebeest’s. In the animal book, they are listed as a unique animal - there is just nothing like them. We managed some photos through the fence, then one of the other guides stuffed some herbs through the fence - he called it wormwood (Wormwood, Artemisia Absinthium, common name – Green ginger.). The females and a young one gobbled it up. Then the large male came along at the gallop and chased them away. Kinley led us up round the side of the area, where there is a smaller enclosure which contains some Indian muntjack deer with their lined faces and little horns. Back at the other area, we saw some 'reindeer', one with an amputated half leg. We decided that these could be Indian red deer.
Next we drove up to the Bhutan Telecoms tower. From here there is a great view of Thimpu, and the hillside is covered with hundreds of prayer flags. Hopefully lots of lovely photos.
By now, Changangkha Lhakhang would be quieter, so Tsering drove us down there, and indeed there were fewer cars outside. It is a small temple with teaching facilities for the monks. A small fortress style building, it is built on a promontory, looking down onto Thimpu. We climbed many steps up to the entrance, and walked into the courtyard, then with shoes off, we followed the crowd into a hallway to look through windows into the holy area where scriptures are kept by a manifestation of the compassionate Buddha. Only Buddhist men are allowed in here. But we did receive a few drops of holy water, which we sipped then brushed over our heads. Turning around, we bent our heads to a senior monk sitting in a ceremonial chair, who blessed us. Then we gradually made our way out through the throng, recovered our shoes ready to descend the steps down to the car. It is a lovely building with an immensely tall flagpole with a blue prayer flag.
The last stop before lunch was the Jangsa handmade paper factory. Here they make paper from the white Daphne plant and starch extracted from Hibiscus root. Lovely smooth paper results, which they colour with natural dyes. They also make it with inclusions of local flowers, leaves and grasses. If they use the black Daphne, a much rougher paper is produced. In their little shop we saw some beautiful papers, but it wouldn't really travel, so we bought nice books and some postcards.
We lunched at the Plum Cafe on Thimpu's main street, pausing to quickly photograph the policeman directing traffic from a traditionally decorated gazebo. Lunch was a buffet offering beef and fish curry, potato datse (i.e. in a local cheese sauce), spinach, mixed veg and rice. There was cake and coffee for dessert. Afterwards, I asked one of the ladies about their national dress, the kira, and how it was worn. They were so pleased to explain the wearing of the full kira and the half kira, then proceeded to dress me up over the top of my clothes in a half kira and jacket. Great fun - they were even trying to persuade me to wear it for the afternoon. Alan took photos. Just as all the fun was over; Kinley reappeared for our next event. As all museums were closed, we were a bit at a loose end, but there was an archery competition on at the national ground, so we stopped by to watch these professional archers in the national league. This afternoon was the turn of the traditional bowmen; the others we saw were using 'technical' bows. These competitors were very good with bamboo bows and arrows, hitting the target several times as we watched. There were some wonderful faces in the watching crowd.
Another brainwave of Kinley’s was to visit the Botanical Gardens, a new-ish project on one of the hills above Thimpu. It has very much the beginnings of a lovely spot, though it looked in need of water and some dedicated gardening. It is divided into different areas - rock, flowers, herbal, arboretum etc. and even has a small glass house, with traditionally painted window frames. We found the orchid house, with only a couple of plants in flower - too early for most of them. Apparently 10% of Bhutan's flora is orchids. Then we walked through the arboretum to a view point on a very windy ridge, looking down the Thimpu valley. At last we drove back down the hill and into town. Kinley dropped us at the hotel around 3pm, giving us some time to ourselves. Tea was served in our room (102), and then we went for a stroll around the main streets of Thimpu. We passed the traffic policeman again, and then looked at strange shop signs, bamboo scaffolding around several new buildings, the fascinating artwork on the buildings and lots, lots more. The young men were playing a sort of shuffle board game in the street. We visited Yak Handicrafts and bought some souvenirs.
Back at the Wangchuk, we packed up in anticipation of our moving on tomorrow. We are off to Punakha. Dinner comprised the ever present soup, which was far too spicy for Alan. Then cucumber salad, red rice, butter naan, Bhutan style beef, chicken masala, nakey datse and Chinese veggies. Dessert was fruit salad with tinned cream a la British boarding house. We enjoyed a shared Red Panda, again and finished with tea. Now time to get to sleep before the jet lag strikes.

Blue Poppy Tours and Treks

Day One

After an uneventful flight into Kolkata, we cleared customs and went in search of DrukAir. We were too early, so had to wait to check in for about an hour. We queued up for security, only to be pushed through without it. But when we checked in, Alan went back with one of DrukAir's staff to get the regulation yellow band put round our bags. It was free seating, and as most people had come with the plane from Bangkok, there was no chance of a window seat, or of sitting close to each other. It was pretty cloudy going in, so we didn't miss the chance to see Jomulhari (7329m). Our first sight of Bhutan was the very pretty, traditional style terminal building. We were surprised as many people stopped to take photos, so I did, too. Formalities were soon completed and we found Kinley Dorji waiting for us. We were soon on our way with driver Pema and the first stop was up at a view point overlooking the airport, watching our plane take off again on its way to Katmandu, and the Paro (Ringpung) Dzong. Kinley then took us into town for a cup of tea and biscuits. This was at the cafe in town, but a load of tourists had got there already, so we sat in a back room with a view of the balcony on which they were drying meat and chillies - with accompanying aromas. After using the loos, it was time to make a move. This was out of town and up the mountain to Drukgyel Dzong - a ruined monastery above the village. We were dropped off and walked along a path towards the dzong, and suddenly realized that the men were holding an archery match across the area - shooting arrows at a tiny target 140m away. They play from both ends, leaving a few of the team at either end to watch the target. If one of the team hits the target, the rest of the team performs a song and dance, praising him. This seemed a rare thing, though many arrows were close - only once during the time we watched.
So we walked slowly up to the ruin. This walk gave us breathtaking views of the valley. The dzong dates from the 17th century, but in the early 50s there was a devastating fire and despite some half hearted efforts, restoration has not been undertaken. I climbed up on a bit of outcrop and managed to take some photos looking down on the archers. Not a place for Alan. While we were here, we saw a red minivet, just as we had seen in Assam. We made our way back down to the archers and the car, a Kia Sorrento, and Pema drove us back to the first cafe for lunch. On the way we had our first view of Tiger’s Nest, to which we will walk on the last day of the holiday. For lunch we ate red rice - a truly local dish, aubergine fritters, fish curry, beef curry, mixed veg and ferns. The ferns are like the Canadian fiddleheads we have had, and are called nakey in Bhutan. It was all very good and we finished with mandarins and tea or coffee. Alan needed to change some money, so we parked in town and he and Kinley disappeared onto the bank for a while. Now he could pay Kinley back for our lunchtime drinks.
Our next event was a visit to the Paro Dzong - a fortress type of building overlooking the town. Pema dropped us off and we walked down to the entrance, where there are fabulous murals. One of these depicted the story of the Four Friends; a fable known to all Bhutanese and we will see many representations of it throughout our holidays. We stepped into the courtyard and saw the vastness of the complex with its rows of prayer wheels in the wall. Oriole windows jut from the building and are beautifully painted with patterns, devices, dragons and suchlike. We walked on, then down steps to the next 'layer'. Here we could go into one of the rooms, no shoes, hat or cameras - and look around. Student monks were learning their lines and rehearsing for a ceremony. This included twirling the small yellow umbrella symbol and blowing horns. When we finished looking around, we made our way back out of the dzong, walked down to the river, the Pacchou. In the fields beside us there were brown and yellow bearded iris growing, with great big blooms – almost ‘Chelsea’ like! We crossed the river using the 17th century box bridge, spotting an Indian style truck parked on the other side, with an elephant painted in its side. Pema was waiting at the far side ready to whisk us on to the road to Thimpu. Due to its being upgraded, it is closed between 3pm and 6pm each weekday. The road is not much wider than Sheath Lane with a sandy or gravelly hard-ish shoulder of half a meter or so either side. To avoid oncoming traffic, the drivers politely blow the horn to make sure the other driver has seen them, then each move over a bit and slide passed each other. Overtaking is a similar manoeuvre, only after, the overtaker peeps a thank you to the other vehicle. It all makes for a noisy drive if there's a bit of traffic on the road. Due to the road works, there are lots of Tata trucks on the road billowing smoky exhausts at you. Also there are loads of workers on the road - many Indians and also Nepali refugees, who are breaking rocks and virtually making the road by hand - rather like we saw in Assam. It was hot, busy and noisy, and we were succumbing to jetlag. We arrived at our hotel, the Wangchuk, around 5pm, and tea and biscuits were served. Outside, the entrance is bordered with beds of blue iris. Kinley arranged to meet us at 9am the next morning and left. We showered, shaved etc. and staggered to dinner at 7pm after a short power cut. Dinner was a starter of soup, warmish chicken curry, fried dried fish, poppadoms, veggies, spinach and white rice. This was washed down with a shared large bottle of Red Panda Weiss beer. We finished with a tasty Indian dessert and more tea. Now we are completely knackered and its time for bed.

Blue Poppy Tours and Treks