Blogs from Thimphu, Bhutan, Asia - page 6

You may or may not have been wondering what I’ve been up to lately. Am I settling into my routine in Bhutan? What kind of magical things are happening in the Land of the Peaceful Dragon? At the end of 2007 I was at the Tarayana Winter workshop in Samtse. The workshop was a training for the Tarayana school clubs from every region of Bhutan. Each participating school sent one teacher and one student. It was an opportunity for Tarayana to get feedback from the clubs on perceptions and implementation of Tarayana projects. It was also an opportunity for the Tarayana Secretariat to clarify the organization’s philosophy and mission. The workshop was designed to teach leadership skills and implement a service project. The leadership skills included Leadership: Decision making assistance, Communication: Mediation and conflict resolution, Effective ... read more

Dochu La: After a dinner at our house with friends Chodra and Yangchan, the offer was extended to drive us to Dochu La the next day. Dochu La took about one hour to get to. It is an area with 108 chortens, white stone monuments, surrounded by prayer flags. They were built recently, 2005, as atonement for the loss of life during the flushing out of Assamese militants in S. Bhutan. 108 is also the number of beads on the Bhutanese rosary. Dochu La was beautiful. It lies at the top of a mountain in between Thimphu and Punakha. There is a good view of Punakha and the surrounding mountains and valleys. On the way back from Dochu La we stopped at Yangchan’s aunts house in a tiny village along the way. Yangchan is from Tibet ... read more

Two days after arriving in the beautifully isolated and majestic Buddhist Kingdom of Bhutan, I set out on what would be my final Himalayan trekking adventure of 2007. What I didn’t know when I started the 14-day Laya - Ghasa Hot Springs trek was that it would turn out to be most challenging and difficult journey of all. Not difficult in terms of the distance we covered, passes crossed, or general altitude during the trek, but difficult in terms of one word: cold. Mid-October to early-December offers some of the most stunning views in the Himalayas because the summer monsoon weather is passed and the skies are usually crystal clear. But no cloud cover also equals no earthly insulation from the frigid temperatures that are common in high elevations in these mountains. So while during the ... read more

So, one of the most noticeable things here in Thimphu are the dogs. Dogs are EVERYWHERE. If they are not owned by a family, they live in packs and have there own territories. Many choose to live near the garbage dumps in order to get food. There are about 10-15 puppies and dogs that live up the road from us. I have been very intimidated by them all since I got here but I have slowly started to realize that they are more afraid of me than I am of them. People here can be quite cruel to the dogs by kicking them or throwing things at them. When I hear them barking viciously they are barking at each other. Maybe a dog walked into their territory or a dog is taking some food from them. ... read more

Many things in Bhutan were beautiful, except the weather - we had a lot of cloud on the days when we were supposed to see the 'most beautiful mountain in the world' (according to our Guide), and other big mountains and the like - I am beginning to think I'm jinxed about seeing views from high places! (maybe I shouldn't book the flight around Everest...) It is the complete opposite to Ladakh in that it is very green everywhere - and we found out why as it rained on many nights, but luckily only a few times during the day. However, many things are similar to Ladakh, but with a Bhutanese slant. It is also a very Bhuddist country, and the Dzongs (monasteries) are similar in style with thick, slanted outer walls, but they have large ... read more