Thimphu

Sherab.

National Memorial Chorten.

Candles for the faithful.

A senior with a personal prayer wheel.

The Golden Buddha.

The capital city of Thimphu.

The Himalayas.

Weaving.

Traditional formal dress boots.

I haven't shaved for a while.

Rice paper painting.

The government buildings.

Tankin.

Temples are gathering places, where seniors like to hang out.

Spinning prayer wheels.

Don't we look great?

Monday, April 16^th.

Today we had a tour of Thimphu, Bhutan’s capital city. After our breakfast buffet we loaded up in the van with our diver Sherab and set off. The city is wonderfully located in a lush valley surrounded by towering mountains. One of the world's smallest capitals, at just 100 000 people (there are 700 000 people in the country), it was only a loose collection of separate villages as recently as 1960, when it was decided by King Jigme Darje Wangchuk to move the political base from the ancient capital Punakha - its diminutive size gives it a unique charm and atmosphere, and it claims to be the only capital in the world that does not have traffic lights! The pace of life here is much less frantic and noisy than India. We all commented on how serene it was. Because the city was fairly recently made the capital (1955), there is a lot of new and modern building going on and many of the old buildings have been torn down to make room for more. Chimi lives in a such a building and complained that it too will be replaced. She has that the city is very expensive to live in and an apartment can cost about $200 000 US. She was married, is divorced and has a four year old child who her sister takes care of as she does her guiding job.

The first stop was the National Memorial Chorten built in memory of the third Druk (king) of Bhutan Gyalpo Jigme Dorji Wangchuk, who died in 1972 at the age of 44, by his surviving wife. It is a beautiful white stupa with a temple inside. Unfortunately, Chimi told us that we cannot take photos inside temples in Bhutan ‘when shoes are off, cameras are off’. However, it was beautiful inside. Many people in the city come here before work or at lunch to pray and old people often make a day of it and stay the whole day. They spin prayer wheels, chant and walk in a close-wise direction around the stupa. There is a building beside it full of candles that the faithful can light.

Our next stop was up into the hills to the new large golden Buddha Dordenma which is one of the most beautiful and ornate Buddha statues in the world and has a commanding view of the city. It is immense. There is another beautiful temple inside full of carved golden pillars and thousands of miniature Buddha statues. There is an enormous open area in front that will be used for large religious teachings and lessons when it is completed. The whole complex has been largely funded by Singapore and many of the materials, the granite for the stairs and the teak flooring inside, come from China. From here, off in the distance we could see part of the snow-covered Himalayas. The road up to it is laced with lines of prayer flags like you see in Tibet.

Then we went to a traditional weaving shop where women work on looms to make silk material. We were told that with the more complex patterns a woman could work for a whole day to make just one inch of pattern and it would take months to complete. There was above the shop, of course, a shop where you could buy traditional products, including Gho, the coat men wear, or boots and shoes and other things. Beside that was an artist’s studio with beautiful paintings on a variety of materials, canvass or rice paper, etc.

After that we had a buffet lunch at a local tourist restaurant.

Next we stopped at a view point where we could see over the city and the government buildings and the king’s small palace.

Our next stop was at the large sanctuary that was built after the king made the rare takin mammal, endemic to this region of Bhutan, the national animal of Bhutan in 1985. The takin looks like a cross between a buffalo and a large goat. There were several other animals housed here including the samba deer and the barking deer, which is a small member of the family with a fang and a hoarse call that sounds like a bark, apparently.

Our last stop on the tour was at the 11^th century Changangkha Temple which looms above the city and is traditionally a place where new parents come to receive the names for their new-borns from the deity Tamdrin. The temple had a very old feel to it and as we wandered around we saw people spinning the prayer wheels. Inside the temple are some beautiful old paintings on the walls and a few men were painstakingly restoring some of them and repairing some of the cracks and walls.

Then we returned to our hotel. Will, Nico, Jenn, Judith and I accompanied Chimi to a clothing shop across the street where we tried on some traditional clothing. We had our photo taken as a group and then Will, Nico and I bought ours. It cost $60, and I figure it will be a great housecoat for home or a robe to wear at the cottage to dry off after going in the water or to make Chris laugh. Will wanted to buy one to embrace the culture and is going to wear it for the whole trip so he doesn’t have to do anymore laundry.

Then we went back to relax for an hour before our buffet dinner. The rest of the group loved our Ghos. Then we called it a night.