Category: Bhutan

  • Tiger’s Nest

    On the last day of our Bhutan tour, we returned to Paro where Bob took the challenge to hike part way to the Tiger’s Nest Monastery. Tiger’s Nest Monastery or Taktsang Palphug Monastery is what most people associate with Bhutan. It is the monastery that you see in pictures, clinging…

  • Thimphu

    Thimphu is the capital of Bhutan and its largest city. It is situated on the Raidak River at an altitude varying from 7,375 ft.to 8,688 ft. Thimphu became the capital of Bhutan in 1961 during the reign of the third Druk Gyalpo (Dragon King), Jigme Dorji Wangchuck. Before that, the capital…

  • Dances of Bhutan

    Dances are vital to the religious and social life of Bhutan.   They are performed at their festivals or Tshechus and portray spiritual teachings, tell stories of their history, and honor their deities. We were fortunate to be there during the king’s birthday celebration and saw some of the dances performed by…

  • Wangdu Phodrang

    Wangdue Phodrang is a town and capital on the way to Gangtey and is the last town before entering central Bhutan from the Punakha valley. It is a small town with a prominent landmark, the Wangdue Phodrang Dzong which sits on a small hill. The Dzong was built in 1639…

  • Punakha

    There’s only one main highway in Bhutan. It is two lanes, narrow, and very windy, running from west to east toconnect all of the country’s major cities, including Paro, Thimphu, and Punakha. Between the cities it goes through beautiful forested country at times and rice paddies at other times. Often…

  • Bhutan

    The Bhutanese architectural style is evident here at the airport.

  • Paro

    Paro is known as the Gateway to Bhutan. Not far from the airport sits the Rinpung Dzong or Paro Dzong, a fortress monastery that watches over the Paro Valley. It is the religious and administrative center of the region.  While the word “Dzong” means fortress, each dzong includes a Buddhist monastery, which…