 |
The Paro airport runway and Paro dzong (fortress) in the background, |
| framed by the ubiquitous prayer flags. |
 |
| Paro valley with rice fields below |
From Barbara Crosette's book, So Close to Heaven: One
by one, all the Himalayan Buddhist Kingdoms except Bhutan have been gobbled up
by bigger powers.
Until the 1960’s, Bhutan lived a medieval existence with no
roads, no postal service, no telephones, no national currency or monetary
economy, no village schools, hospitals, airports or towns of any size.
Visitors to this Kingdom of about 700,000 people will find a Buddhist peace untarnished by
commercialism and artifice. …tolerance, equanimity, good humor and the generosity of
Himalayan Buddhist culture shine through.
Bhutan now has had a modern capital, Thimpu, which had one
traffic light -- but it was removed
because it considered impersonal. A
police officer in a little house in the middle of the intersection directs
traffic.
 |
| Archery - the national sport |
 |
| A forest preserve at Dorchu La pass |
 |
| The 108 stupas at Dorch La Pass (10,000 feet) |
 |
| A gang of guides. Our guide Tandin is the 4th from the left, with our driver Sagay on his left. |
 |
| From Dorchu La, a glimpse of the sacred peak of Jhomolhari near the Tibet Border. |
 |
| Children that called out "one photo!" to us as we walked by. (I'm tickling them) |
 |
| The pass between Paro and the Haa valley (and prayer wheel) |
 |
| It was cold at Chele La Pass, the highest point, in the morning as we set off for our two hour walk to get to Kila Nunnery |
|
|
|  |
| Our destination, Kila Nunnery, was established as a meditation site in the 9th century. Young nuns greeted and spoke with us. We made a donation for the nunnery to buy school books for the nuns, ages 8 -85, who chose to spend their lives there. |  |
|
|
 |
| The dzong in Haa Valley |
 |
| Temple entry way inside a Dzong |
 |
| A nun rings the gong at the nunnery | | | | |
|
|
A walk to the mountain top nunnery at Punakha
 |
| Nuns making dough sculptures for the temple altars |
 |
| Destination: the Tiger's Nest Monastery (circled - a 2 hour walk ahead) |
 |
| And closer still (but down and then up again - many steps) |
 |
| Getting closer to Tiger's Nest (seen above the prayer wheels) |
 |
| Almost there |
 |
| And closer - from a small building with butter lamps |
 |
| At Tiger's Nest - a man reads the prayers. |
| | |  |
| A shop in Haa Town |
|
|
|
 |
| In Punakha |
 |
| Chilies, a national staple |
 |
| The delicious clean air, the wind, the colors, the mountains, waterfalls, kind smiles. I hope to return. |
