Nov 12, 2012 - Lighting Butter Lamps, Chele La Pass, and The National Sport of Bhutan

Nov 12 (Mon.) Bhutan Day 6 Lighting Butter Lamps, Chele La Pass, and The National Sport of Bhutan This morning we were well rested from our climb to the Tiger's Nest and had no more climbing scheduled on foot. After breakfast, we drove the short distance to a temple where we were blessed by a monk and later, lighted butter lamps. Bhutan has become more safety conscious in recent years after many disastrous fires started by these traditional 108 butter lamps that have destroyed temples. Now there are just a few lamps inside the temple and...

Nov 11, 2012 - Paro and Tiger's Nest Monastery

Nov 11 (Sun) Bhutan Day 5 Paro and Tiger's Nest Monastery Today is the day we made the 5 mile round trip up the mountain to the most famous Temple in Bhutan, The Tiger's Nest. Guru Rinpoche was an actual historical figure, from the 8th century and is credited with bringing Buddhism to Bhutan. He was transported to the cliffside site on the back of a flying tiger, where a monastery was later built - thus the name. It was a short drive from our hotel (where we could see the monastery from our room). There were a lot of people at the base in...

Nov 10, 2012 - Back over the pass and to Paro

Nov 10 (Sat.) Bhutan Day 4 Back over the pass and to Paro As we sat down to breakfast, the morning fog above the mountains cleared just enough to see the orb of the rising sun. Our first stop was to the fortress, Punkha Dzong, which is both a monastery and a national government office. Because of the mild temperatures, this is the site of the winter palace. Our guide had to put on his administrative sash when entering this structure. However, it was Saturday and there were no government workers on site since they have the weekend off. For...

Nov 2, 2012 - Leaving Bhutan - fabulous take-off from Paro

Worth taking a few snaps was our take-off from Paro. An exhilarating circuitous climb out of Paro valley - we also managed to catch a brief (hazy) glimpse of Kathamndu about an hour later. We flew over Nepal for most of the way to Delhi where we were greeted with thick fog and a weird, orange sun. Namaste, India.

Nov 1, 2012 - Tiger's Nest

Takstang Pelphung, known as Tiger's Nest. A truly stunning place, the almost vertical uphill trek for two hours is definitely worth it. According to legend the originator of the spread of Buddhism across the Himalayas, Guru Padmasambhava, flew here in the 8th century on the back of a tigress to subdue negative influences. One of his students, Pelgyi Senge, meditated in a cave here for 3 months, a Stupa at the cave holds his mortal remains. In 1692 the two-levelled Temple here today was built by one of a long-line of continuing reincarnates...

Oct 31, 2012 - Paro's Kichu Lhakhang Temple and back to the Dzong for another visit

The first four pics in this group are from a charming Temple known as Kichu Lhakhang, one of Bhutan's oldest built in the 7th century and located within Paro itself. An extremely dark and tiny Temple, the 1400 year-old murals inside are fantastically preserved. From photo #5 we're back up at Paro's majestic Dzong (main Temple), this time we're able to gain entry and explore the inner sanctums of Bhutanese monk life. I've mentioned before that photography inside the temples themselves is not permitted, and having seen the magnificence of...

Oct 31, 2012 - Chelala - highest pass in the mountains above Paro

Firstly, a few pics from one of our early morning strolls nearby the Hotel. Afterwards we took the opportunity to drive to Chelala (at least Yum Raj did, anyway!). Chelala is the highest road pass in Bhutan at just under 4000m. 35kms and about an hour later from Paro, all uphill. Despite the altitude we enjoyed a beautiful clear, warm and still visit to the pass. Made all the more mysterious and beautiful with its abundance of prayer flags - some for good luck, some for the memory of relatives. To top it off, the mountain and valley vistas...

Oct 31, 2012 - Now to Paro - summer capital of Bhutan

After a wonderful couple of days in Thimphu we head back to Paro to explore the country's summer capital. Much smaller in size and population, spread along a stunning rice terraced valley. Along with the rice we see several apple orchards emerging, an industry now bringing in more income than rice, and we're told that Tasmanian horticulturalists have been sharing the knowledge with the Bhutanese to farm apple varieties suitable and sensitive to this region's ecology and climate. Paro is home to the famous Tiger's Nest Temple, the dizzying...

Oct 8, 2009 - Visit Punakha Dzong, drive to Paro

08-10-09 In the morning we pay a visit to Punakha Dzong built in 1637 on a sand bank at the confluence of the rivers Mochu and Phochu, this sacred dzong was the seat of Bhutanese government until 1960 and is a fine example of Bhutanese monastic architecture with squat rectangular buildings made up of two or more tiered levels crowned by a tower and small golden spire above. Continuing west we take an afternoon drive to Paro. (Approx. 5 hours.) 09-10-09 To the east of Paro, high above the town stands Ta Dzong, one of Bhutan’s most imposing...

May 28, 2009 - Journey from Paro, Bhutan to Agra, India

It is around 9 p.m. in Agra, India. I am sitting on the rooftop restaurant bar of the Taj Plaza, the hotel where we are staying here in Agra, drinking a Kingfisher beer. We ate dinner here on the terrace and watched the sun set over the eastern side of the Taj Mahal, India’s most prominent landmark and one of the most recognizable structures in the world. It is warm out, yet comfortable. The day has been a long one, so I expect tonight to be an early night. After breakfast at 6:30 a.m. at our hotel in Paro, Bhutan this morning, our guide...

May 27, 2009 - Hike to Tiger’s Nest Monastery & Visit to Paro

I initially woke up at around 5 a.m. this morning. When I first looked outside, I saw primarily gray skies with a couple of scattered blue patches in the distance. By around 7 a.m., however, the sky had become increasingly blue and clear. After 2 days of bad weather, we again had good weather. After breakfast, we drove outside of Paro to a trailhead on the side of a mountain. From here we would be hiking up to the Taktshang Goemba, translated into English as the Tiger's Nest Monastery. The Tiger's Nest, a beautiful Buddhist monastery...

Jan 2, 2009 - Why I came to Bhutan - the Tiger's Lair

HIGHLIGHTS • Taktsang Monastery – the Tiger’s Lair DETAIL We leave Thimphu and head back to the first place I stayed – Paro. It’s the second largest city in Bhutan – 36,000 and has the country’s only airport. Its only about an hour drive on a good road but very twisty and turny. After checking in its time for the ‘Tiger’s Lair’, a monastery perched on the side of a cliff 900 metres above the valley. Buddha flew here on the back of his consort who had manifested into a flying tigress. I don’t want either: mouth to mouth, carried down in a...