Bhutan Trip Dispatch
May 23, 2008 – A Different World
Dzongs — ancient fortresses that are one of the
trademarks of the architecture of Bhutan
The men were wearing the traditional
dress of Bhutan, a belted robe
called a Go
It’s about 6:00 pm and I am calling you from Paro, at 2800 meters above sea level our gateway to the kingdom of Bhutan. Our BAI group has been transported from one fascinating world to another.
Two days ago we bid farewell to Deke. With our Everest Base Camp trek completed, he was on his way home to see his family in California. Then earlier today we celebrated with Tracy in the lounge at the Yak & Yeti as she began her journey back to Canada.
The remaining members of our group—Doc, Dennis, Carolyn, Ang Temba and I—have set off on our Bhutan adventure. It’s about a fifteen minute flight from Katmandu to Paro. As we came in through the mountains to land in Paro, we looked out the windows of the aircraft at clean, orderly farms with a lot of space between buildings. We could also see dzongs—ancient fortresses that are one of the trademarks of the architecture of Bhutan.
Dennis said our arrival in Paro it felt like landing a jet in Lukla. The Paro landing strip is a little longer than the one at Lukla, and it isn’t as inclined uphill, but it is in a tight mountain valley and we had the feeling we were entering a completely different world.
As we went through customs, Doc commented that Paro has one of the cleanest airports that he had ever seen. We were very pleased to see all the welcoming smiles of the officials at the airport. The men were wearing the traditional dress of Bhutan, a belted robe called a Go. The women were very beautifully dressed, too.
Doc commented that Paro has one of the cleanest
airports that he had ever seen
As we begin to get our bearings in Bhutan, we’ve decided to walk awhile and do some shopping. We will keep all posted on our new adventures.
– Wally
Woman planting the rice on nearby fields