Bhutan – Day 1

First full day in Bhutan was spent walking and travelling around the area from Paro, the only airport and Thimpu, the capital city.’

There are no references to assist in the describing Bhutan.  For the chaos of Nepal it was easy to think of ‘.   ‘Slum Dog Millionaire’ or ‘Last Exotic Marigold. Michael Palins trip through the Himalayas there has been little chance for the outside world to see over the mountains into this tiny country, but that was the attraction.  

Where as other places in what we in the west refer to as the developing world, have been hit by technology and ‘progress’ in blunderbuss style, with some succeeding while others just seam to sink under the impact, Bhutan appears to have succeeded in filtering ‘progress’ and leaving much of the destruction outside its mountain ranges.

So the first impression, at least is a country where tradition , co-exists with the infiltration of technology.  Most people still where traditional costume for example, and yet you will often see young monks pull iPhones from beneath their red robes. 

The scenery is just stunning.  The Paro runway is above 2000m, before you even start climbing it puts you at over twice the height of Scafell Pike.

Dropped casually on the tops of surrounding mountains Dzongs, monasteries, are built away from the distractions of ordinary life.  If you are prepared to hike up you will be, if not welcomed, quietly accepted in.

Buddhism is not so much a religion here, we were told by our guide, as a way of life.   The brilliant colours of  Stupas and Buddha’s, all shapes and sizes, decorate life like perpetual Christmas without the glitzy commercialism.  More pictures will follow.