Paro, Bhutan

We took a six-day trip to Bhutan over the Chinese New Year.  Bhutan is not one of the easiest places to visit and requires a certain amount of planning.  We started planning for this trip about a year ago and were excited to be finally going.  

Bhutan is nestled in the eastern region of the Himalayas.  It is a small country roughly the size of Switzerland and is fondly referred to as Druk Yul (Land of the Thunder Dragon) by the Bhutanese.  Bhutan has up to now remained a country where age old customs and traditions still play a part of the everyday lives of people, even though modernisation, development and global influence are being felt more and more.  

On the world front, Bhutan is perhaps better known as the place with the happiest people in the world and where Gross National Happiness is deemed more important than Gross National Product!  Based on our experience, we found that the people definitely live up to their reputation.  We met some of the nicest, most humble and happiest people we have ever met during our travels.

During our week of travels through Western Bhutan we got to lean about the people, the culture and the history, and we got to see unique Bhutanese architecture and beautiful scenery.  

We flew into Paro International Airport, the only international airport in Bhutan.  Flying into Paro was pretty stunning, as we flew amongst the Himalaya mountains and landed in the beautiful Paro Valley.   

Uma Paro by COMO

With tourism limited, there are only a few well-known hotel chains in Bhutan, but for us there was only one choice, COMO.  David worked for COMO years ago in London and we both love this brand.  We have stayed with them in Bali and also in the Maldives, so we were expecting a beautiful hotel and impeccable service.  Uma Paro did not disappoint and we had a fantastic stay here and at its sister hotel Uma Punakha by COMO.  

One of the things we love about COMO is the understated elegance and simplicity, and this brand has a very holistic/healthy approach to everything from the spa services to the cuisine served in their restaurants.  

COMO arranged all our transport and sightseeing, and we were assigned with the same driver and tour guide for the entire week, so we didn't have to worry about anything. 

Uma Paro by COMO is located at the top of a hill that overlooks the beautiful Paro Valley. 

We were fortunate in that we got upgraded to a suite that had the most amazing panoramic views of the valley.

Bukhari Restaurant at Uma Paro by COMO

One of the things we were looking forward to was all the amazing food.  In addition to their regular menu, COMO also offers COMO Shambala, which is their signature healthy cuisine menu.  This menu has a selection of healthy options like cold-pressed fruit and vegetable juices, fresh salads and a variety of other healthy options.  We enjoyed these healthy options in addition to Western, Indian and Bhutanese food.  

Uma Paro has its own vegetable garden and greenhouse and we got to enjoy some of the organic produce.  Farming is one of Bhutan's main revenue sources and farming is not only done in a sustainable way, but most of it is organic.  In fact our guide was telling us that Bhutan is aiming to be 100% organic by 2020!  

Town of Paro

The town of Paro lies on the banks of the Paro Chhu (a river of Western Bhutan).  The main street that runs through Paro was only built in 1985 and it is lined with colourfully painted wooden shop fronts with distinct Bhutanese architecture.  We spent an afternoon strolling this street and visiting the shops.

Kyichu Lhakhang

Situated a short drive from Paro, this is one of Bhutan's oldest, most venerated and beautiful temples.  This temple dates back to AD 659, with additional buildings and a golden roof added in 1839.  This temple has a magical orange tree that bears fruit all year round.  We can attest to this, as the orange tree had oranges.
Like all the other temples in Bhutan, this one is lined on the outside with spinning prayer wheels.  These prayer wheels are ubiquitous in Bhutan and they are filled with printed prayers that are "activated" when the wheel is turned in a clockwise direction.

Taktshang Goemba

Also known as Tiger's Nest Monastery, this monastery is perched on the side of a cliff at a height of 900 metres (3000 feet) above the Paro Valley.  
According to legend, this cliffside is where Guru Rinpoche (Padmasambhava) landed on the back of a flying tigress, bringing Buddhism to Bhutan from Tibet.

The only way up to this monastery is to hike, or ride a horse half way up and then hike the rest of the way up.  David did the full hike, accompanied by our tour guide and it took them 2 hours to get to the monastery.  He said the hike up was challenging, but it was harder on the knees coming down.  It was really steep at some places, with lots of steps, but the monastery and the views from the top were worth the steep climb.

Hot Stone Bath 

After the gruelling hike up Tiger Nest Monastery and down, David enjoyed a Traditional Bhutanese hot stone bath.   This bath is considered a form of Bhutanese traditional medicine, where water is mixed with local Artemisia leaves and then heated with fire-roasted river stones.  The hot stones are placed in a separate chamber that is connected to the bath, so there is no fear of getting burnt.  That said, the water was really hot when David got in and he had to cool it down with cold water.  It was a great way to relax and soothe tired muscles.

Paro Dzong

This Dzong (fortress that houses both the monastic body and district government offices, including the local courts) is one of Bhutan's most impressive and well-known dzongs.

This beautiful Dzong which is the finest example of Bhutanese architecture, is situated on a steep hillside and is visible throughout the valley.  We stopped to take photos at the bottom of the hill, before driving up to the entrance at the top where we got amazing panoramic views of the Paro Valley.

We walked around the dzong and the monastic quarter that is home to about 200 monks.  After our visit to the dzong, we ascended on the path next to the dzong, finally arriving at the traditional wooden covered bridge called Nyamai Zam, which spans the Paro Chhu.  

Archery Competition

On our last day in Paro, our driver, Gopal and our tour guide, Tsewang took us to watch a local archery competition.  Both had been with us since we arrived in Bhutan and we really enjoyed their company.  Gopal's great driving skills got us safely around despite some of the poor road conditions and Tsewang was the best guide we have ever had!   He was so genuine and knowledgeable, and we learned so much from him about the Bhutanese culture, history and people.

The archery competition was unlike the one we watched in Punakha in that these men were using compound bows and arrows as opposed to wooden ones.  While we were enjoying the competition, ladies from the local community came over and offered us tea and cookies.  We were so touched by this gesture from these complete strangers.  Another testament to how wonderful the Bhutanese people are.  Bhutan is a great country with amazing people. 

Thimphu, Bhutan

We travelled from Paro to Thimphu, the capital of Bhutan.  Thimphu is located approximately 65 kms from Paro and it took us about an hour to get there.  The road from Paro to Thimphu is good, so the drive was pleasant.  

Chain-link bridge

Travelling from Paro to the capital Thimphu, we stopped at an iron chain bridge.  This bridge was reconstructed in 2005 using some of the original chain links used by Thangtong Gyalpo, a Tibetan saint and engineer who build 108 bridges in Tibet and Bhutan around 1433 to link the provinces of Bhutan before roads had been built.

Thimphu

Thimphu is the capital of Bhutan and it is Bhutan's centre of government, religion and commerce.  It is a bustling town on the banks of the Thimphu Chhu in the Thimphu valley.  It is home to the Bhutanese Royal Family and Bhutan's only golf course (9-hole golf course).  

We spent a few hours in Thimphu on our way to and from Punakha visiting the various sights.

Buddha Dordenma Statue

One of the highlights in Thimphu was a visit to the beautiful Buddha Dordenma Statue.  This statue was recently erected and it is perched high up on a mountain at the entrance to the Thimphu valley.  

This impressive 50 metre (164 feet) tall statue will eventually house several chapels and over 125,000 smaller Buddha statues. 

A paved road was especially built so that people can access the Buddha Dordenma easily and this paved road also enabled us to get amazing views of Thimphu.

Bhutanese meal

We had a great Bhutanese meal in Thimphu that consisted of Bhutanese staples like red rice, ema datse (Bhutan's national dish consisting of chillies as a vegetable with cheese sauce), kewa datse (potatoes with cheese sauce) and locally grown vegetables. 

Chillies are extremely popular in Bhutan and Bhutanese love chillies so much that it is not uncommon to find dishes that are made entirely of chillies, accompanied by chilli-infused condiments.

We also got to try Butter tea (sud-ja), a very popular tea that is made by boiling tea leaves in water and then adding butter and salt.  Needless to say, it didn't taste like tea as we know it, but more like a buttery soup!  That said, our guide mentioned that sugary tea is becoming popular, especially now that sugar is being brought in from India, whereas before it just wasn't available.  

National Memorial Chorten

This large chorten is one of the most visible religious structures in Thimphu.  It was built in 1974 by the mother of the third king, His Majesty Jigme Dorji Wangchuk in memory of her son.  

For many Bhutanese it is the focus of their daily worship.  This chorten is decorated with many mandalas, statues and a shrine dedicated to the king.  

This was another highlight of our visit to Thimphu, as it gave us a tiny insight into Bhutanese life and customs.  Throughout the day people (young and old) walk around the chorten (always in a clockwise direction), turning their prayer wheels and reciting prayers and mantras.  

Our guide mentioned that for many of the elderly people living in Thimphu, this is where they spend a great deal of their time.  To us it looked like the perfect gathering place for them to pray together and enjoy each others' company.  It was also really wonderful to see the majority of people dressed in their traditional dress with men wearing ghos and women wearing kiras.  Best of all, people were so friendly and it was not uncommon to have even a very old person smile at us.  

Tashi Chhoe Dzong

Also known as "Fortress of the Glorious Religion", this Dzong that is situated in the Thimphu valley is really spectacular.  This Dzong was the site of the formal coronation of the 5th king in 2008 and hosts the city's biggest annual festivities called the Tsechu festivities.  This Dzong houses both monks and civil officials, and it also houses the secretariat, the throne room, the offices of the king and the ministries of home affairs and finance.  

On the day we visited we were very fortunate because the the Chief Abbott (head of the monastery) was in the building to lead a prayer meeting.  While on his way to the prayer hall, he gave us a blessing (unfortunately we were not allowed to take any photos of him).  Our guide told that we were very lucky, as the Chief Abbott is not always present and these blessings can't be scheduled.  He also told us that some people can wait days for the Chief Abbott to appear and give blessings.  Needless to day we felt very fortunate to have been at the right place and at the right time.