Bhutan – Day 2 – warm welcome

We were fortunate enough to be invited into the home of a family in Metsina.  We were walking back from Chimi Lhakhang and our path took us through some harvested rice fields and past some farm houses.

We walked alongside the outer walled area surrounding a farm house and our guide said something to the young woman of about 16 years of age on the other side of the wall.  They spoke a few words back and forth and then he looked at us and said that she would be happy for us to go in and see what a typical Bhutanese farm house might look like and to meet the rest of her family.

This would be our first look into the life of the locals and as it turns out, our timing was perfect as she was also in the process of making some rice wine on an open fire.

Many rural homes have 2-3 floors of living space.  The lower level may be used for smaller animals in winter months and equipment.  The second floor is for storage of grains, utensils, etc and the upper level is the kitchen, living room area, bedrooms, and a room set aside for a shrine.  And finally, there is a space between the upper floor and the roof that is open-air that they use for storage and a place to dry crops.

This particular home was 2 storeys and from what we were able to determine, the owners didn’t have a need for keeping animals in the lower level area and so those rooms were rented.  They lived on the second floor.

We passed a sleeping dog and climbed a steep staircase at the side of the house to see a smiling young boy of about 4 years of age at the top, just grinning and smiling at these new guests.

The interior was relatively sparse of furnishings and was very tidy. Their bedrolls had been placed neatly in the corner of the bedroom and they had a TV in the living room area, which is where we found the parents of the girl that we had met outside. 

They were sitting cross-legged on a straw mat and were quite welcoming.  Although, they didn’t speak English, it was obvious that their children could speak it by the way they spoke to our guide.  We had asked questions and before they had a translation, they were already answering.  It seems they were just a bit shy.

When we first arrived, we had seen a very young girl sitting on the mother’s lap.  I might have guessed that she would have been the grandmother to this child, but she explained to Nima, the young girl had been adopted by them.  There was no doubt that this family was willing to open their hearts and home. 

Mark, myself, and our guide Nima were given a small plastic pink bowl filled with warm rice wine fresh from the batch being made.  I think it’s something that would take some time for me to acquire a taste for, but it warmed us up and made my cheeks immediately rosy-red.  (Anyone that knows me, knows that this isn’t surprising!)

 

It is a simple life for these hard-working farming families, but with the land they have, they can grow enough rice and food for their own families and in some cases sell extra at local markets.

This chance introduction was a very special treat for us.

Bhutan – Day 2

Our day began when we were picked up from the hotel and our first stop would be the National Memorial Chorten.  A chorten is basically a Buddhist monument and this case, it was built in 1974 in memory of King Jgme Dorji Wangchuck, the third king of Bhutan.

This is place where many locals come to pay homage and worship.  They walk around the chorten in a clockwise direction, usually 3 times.  There are a number of prayer wheels that they may turn as well.  The ‘om mani padme hum’ (hail to the jewel in the lotus) mantra could be heard being repeated by some of the worshippers.

We still had a long drive ahead of us, so we didn’t stay long.

We began ascending to the Dochu La Pass (3140m elev).  It was a very narrow road with steep cliffs and switchback turns.  We passed one checkpoint as we passed into the next district.  There was a woman selling apples at the roadside and after we stopped and determined the price, we bought a 2kg bag.  What Nima neglected to tell us before we bought the apples was…they might be a bit ‘old’.  He commented on it just as Mark took the first bite – yup, a bit ‘mealy’.  Oh well…lesson learned.

Dochu La pass offered up the most amazingly clear view of the Bhutan Himalayan mountain range.  Apparently, this is quite a rare sight.  We parked here for a short while to take in the sight as well as walk around the collection of 108 chortens that were built in 2003. 

Further up the hill, we walked to a monastery where a Buddhist monk unlocked the doors so that we could go inside (after removing our shoes) and view the interior – beautiful!

A short drive down the other side of the pass, we stopped at the Dochu La Hotel for some tea and biscuits.  It was chilly, but the sunshine made it seem much warmer, so we sat outside…along with our 4 new-found friends (dogs) who decided that biscuit crumbs may be forthcoming.  They didn’t have to wait long. :)

Legend suggests that many believed the area was inhabited by spirits and our next stop was to Chimi Lhakhang (near Metshina) which was built by the ‘Divine Madman’ (Lama Drukpa Kunley) in the 1499 to ward off these spirits, was also built as a celebration of his victory over the demoness of the Dochu La.

There is a storied past to this Divine Madman.  Apparently, he thought the clergy of the day were quite stiff and needed to be more relaxed in their teachings in order to garner the interest of the average person.  So, he used his own way of teaching – often obscene, with sexual innuendo – as a way to get people to throw away their preconceived notions.  Let’s just say that the phallic symbols that can be found painted on the exterior of homes, represented in door handles and carvings – well, it’s not surprising that women and couples will visit this temple to receive a blessing and pray for children.

hmmmm, should I post photos?

We had lunch in Metshina with a beautiful view of the now-harvested rice fields and the Chimi Lhakhang in the distance.  But, we completely missed the Fertility Handicraft emporium on our way back to the vehicle.

Our final stop would be in Punakha to visit the Punakha Dzong, built in 1637. It is an impressive building that housed both government administrative offices as well as a monastery and assembly hall (which contains gold statues and murals depicting the life of Buddha).  Situated between two rivers at the point where they meet, it is built like a fortress – high walls (six storeys) and inner courtyards.  The design apparently came from a dream.  There has been many reconstructions over the years due to fires, flooding, and an earthquake.  But despite the natural disasters, the building remains a significant part of Bhutan’s history and continues to be a used for ceremony and worship.

Off to our hotel – Damchen Resort, which sits alongside the Panachu river. Our room has a beautiful view of the river and the high hills on the opposite bank. 

Unfortunately, our guide did not join us for dinner as he was off to the hospital to visit a friend who suffered a leg injury while playing darts (kind of like the lawn darts that we all used to play many years ago).  Ouch!  And, I wondered why they were banned in Canada!!

Bhutan – Day 1

The flight from Kathmandu to Paro went by far too quickly.  We had a beautiful view of the Himalayan mountain range, including Everest along the way.  Flights in and out of Paro are only allowed during day-light hours due to the location of the airport (a valley).  The view was outstanding.

We were met at the airport by Nima, our guide and Mr. Dowa, our driver.  They had been waiting for quite a long while as they had expected our flight to arrive sooner, but after loading our bags we were each given a ceremonial welcome scarf.

We had a 90 minute drive from Paro to Thimphu ahead of us and because of the delayed flight, our planned afternoon itinerary would have to be postponed and hopefully we would be able to make up some of the time we missed over the next couple of days.

Unfortunately, no cell coverage as we had expected…so no SMS messages.  But, we arrived at our hotel and got settled in after a quick snack.

Since Nima lives in Thimphu with his wife, he would not be joining us for dinner, but he did walk with us into the downtown area where we quickly were able to get our bearings and once we went our separate ways, Mark & I continued to walk around and enjoy the town for an hour or so.

Thimphu is the capital of Bhutan, but the population is only 80,000 approx.  It’s not a large city at all, but Bhutan, as a country, also has a low population – less than a million for the full country. 

To travel from Kathmandu which is a crazy, busy place…to Thimphu…the quietness seemed a little surreal.  The chaos seen on the city streets in Kathmandu would not be seen in Thimphu.  In fact, there are no traffic lights in Thimphu.  During ‘rush hour’, there is one junction where an officer helps direct traffic.

KTM airport - queue after queue!

Gyan told us that we should arrive to the airport approximately 3 hours before our flight to Paro, Bhutan from Kathmandu.  The queue wound its way along the front of the airport and we quickly got in line after making sure we were in the correct one.  It took awhile and despite the wait, we were surprised at how relaxed most people were…none of the pushing, shoving, and complaining that we some times hear when traveling in other places.

After finally getting inside the front doors, we had our bags scanned and we were patted down by security personnel.  Next, we then had to find our way to the check-in counter.  But…there wasn’t one for Royal Bhutan Airlines (Drukair) and after being directed back and forth between check-in areas we found out that the reason we couldn’t locate our counter is that it was shared with another airline and check-in hadn’t opened for our Paro flight. When it did…a mass of people quickly ran into line. 

We ended up being directly in front of a Buddhist monk.  hmmm, wonder what the protocol is with respect to priority check-in for monks.

Once again, a long line to check-in.  During this time we met someone from Bhutan who spoke English and was able to give us a quick language lesson on the basic greetings.  Although we had a phrasebook, it really didn’t help with the phonetics and he was able to clarify some of the sounds.

Bags checked, visa information verified…we now had to go through immigration/passport control.  There were separate lines for foreigners and residents of Nepal.  Once through that line, we were then separated by men and women - another line to get patted down and then directed to a table where our carry-on baggage was checked, boarding passes stamped, and then sent on to the gate/boarding area.

Within a few minutes, the boarding area was overflowing with people.  Three hours ahead of schedule…and as it turns out, we had only 35 minutes to spare in the end.

And then…we sat…waiting…our flight was delayed almost 90 minutes.  We knew this would impact things for the afternoon itinerary in Bhutan, but it was out of our control.  Nothing to worry about.  The monkeys that were hanging around outside the airport windows kept us amused.

Finally, one more line to head off for our flight…we were on our way to Bhutan! I wonder if it will be anything like what we envision it to be.

Street scenes

A few street scenes in Kathmandu that Mark took this afternoon:

Yes, many of these streets are for cars, motorcycles, bicycles, pedestrians.  We’re not sure how they do it…but most are two-way streets as well!

A pashmina by any other name is…

well…maybe a pashmina and maybe not.  This afternoon we learned about pashminas – the wonderfully warm and often times, soft material used for scarves, wraps, and blankets.

So, if the label reads 100% pashmina…that may mean that it is :

a.  100% pashmina

b.  part pashmina and part merino

c.  part pashmina and part silk

d.  or, maybe 100% chance that the logo that reads pashmina is in fact a pashmina logo (but has nothing to do with the material itself)

How do you tell?  By the feel.  But, without the experience of knowing what real pashmina might feel like…you may never know. Real or not, the label will still say 100% pashmina.  So, good luck with that!

The other thing that is a little less than authentic here is the amount of outdoor wear (North Face is the seen most often, Columbia, Mountain Hardwear,etc) that has real-looking logos, but  you can tell by the quality that it isn’t the real thing.  There are a lot of knock-offs here being sold in the Thamel district to trekkers and unsuspecting buyers.  Having said that, the prices reflect the fact for the most part.

Customs, culture, beliefs

Today we were up very early to spend some time visiting two World Heritage Sites in the Kathmandu Valley – one is a Buddhist stupa – Boudhanath, and the second is a Hindu temple - Pashupatinath.

Our plan of arriving early would give us the opportunity to see the Buddhist pilgrims come to receive blessings and worship. 

The weather was quite cold this morning and the early morning fog (which also delayed our flight out of Pokhara yesterday) settled in and wasn’t ready to lift anytime soon.  But, the worshippers came and gave offerings, turned the prayer (mani) wheels, rang bells, and walked around the exterior of the stupa 3 times in a clockwise direction (this is known as Kora).

I could have sat and watched the people for hours. 

Before leaving, we stopped into a small artists’ gallery of Thangka pieces and while our plan had been to only learn about the art form, it wasn’t long before we saw a piece that we thought was so intricate in its design and beautifully coloured, that we decided to make a purchase.

Our next stop was the Pashupatinath.  It sits alongside the sacred Bagmati River and is also a well-known place of worship, but this time for Hindu devotees. 

Monkeys are also abundant in the area and sit ready and waiting for any morsel of food that may have been dropped to the pathway.

Inside the temples, shoes and any leather items are not permitted.  So, belts, wallets, etc. must be left outside before entering.

Pushpati is not only a centre of worship, but it is also a place for ceremonial purposes.  Cremations occur along the river and we bore witness to the the process as these are held in the open air.  Our guide explained the cultural and religious significance to what we were seeing. 

Following our visit to these places of worship, we returned to the Thamel region of Kathmandu and visited the offices of the trekking company we had used for our travel.  Mark was given a Nepali-style hat (Dhaka topi…dhaka refers to the type of fabric and topi is the word for hat) as a gift and we have both been invited to Gyan’s home for dinner the evening we return from Bhutan (before flying back home).  What a special treat that will be.

More to follow…

Happy Holidays

Just to wish everyone a very special holiday today.  We’re enjoying a relaxing day in Pokhara…thinking of everyone.

All our love,  Tammy & Mark

Morning at Annapurna Base Camp

Annapurna Beauty

Well, we  made it to Annapurna Base Camp (ABC), with a side trek to Poon Hill in 8 days.  These mountains are incredibly majestic.  They do remind us of the Rocky Mountains in Western Canada – rugged and snow-capped….but these are so much larger in comparison.

We will update more about the trek itself, but know that we had the most amazing time.  We learned so much from Gyanendra along the way about the history, the culture, the people, the land…he has been a great guide and has become a good friend.

I developed a bit of nausea the morning after our overnight stay at Annapurna Base Camp (similar to how I felt summiting Kilimanjaro), so I know that my body reacts to altitude with this side effect.  No headaches for either of us and Mark handled the changes in altitude without any problems at all.  As such, the day of trekking following made it a bit slow-going for me until about noon,when I took some stomach-settling meds and shortly thereafter I was back in stride.

Trekking with Mark is like trying to keep up with Usain Bolt.  He’s an Energizer Bunny that keeps going and going.  Thankfully, he was quite happy to go at my speed. 

Still, the guide said that we were very fast compared to the majority of trekkers and some of the teahouse owners were often surprised when we arrived at the end of each day and heard where we had trekked from that morning.  In one case, we arrived more than 4 hours ahead of the previous group that Gyanendra had taken along the same route in one day.