Bhutan – The Land of the Thunder Dragon

The territory of Bhutan is the land of Buddhist culture and surprises that makes it a special place for the tourists. Here, buying cigarettes is illegal, men dress in a tunic at work, huge defensive pillars appear on the walls of the houses, and maintenance of happiness is more important than the maintenance of the economic growth. Truly Amazing!

Apart from just being the territory of saints and hermits, now a days, I found monks recording old Buddhist texts in computers. Demanding a minimum of $200 per day, Bhutan is certainly one of the expensive countries for holiday, but all-inclusive where you can plan for your own route.

Bhutan Tourist Attractions

Thimpu

This is the capital of Bhutan located in a sylvan valley on the bank of the Thimpu River and the home of the Bhutanese culture. A striking feature of this city is that it is the only capital with no traffic lights in the world. Another surprise on your way! Here, we visited the Trashi Chhoe Dzong (the fortress of Glorious Religion), the Simtokha Dzong, the Stupa of paintings and statues, the Memorial Chorten, the School of Arts and Crafts, the weekend market, the Changlimithang Stadium, and the National Institute of Traditional Medicine.

Trashi Chhoe Dzong is the secretariat edifice holding the main government departments, Ministries, the National Assembly Hall, the King’s office, and the Throne room. There is a two-storey tall statue of Lord Buddha, wall paintings of 12 stages of Buddhahood, and columns of Kanju and Tenju signifying primacy of religion in the National Assembly Hall. In the courtyard, the yearly Thimphu Festival is held. In the tall fortress-like temple in the core of two courtyards lies the two largest Thankas in the Uchi that can been seen after every 25 years.

Simtokha Dzong is on a heavy ridge at 8 km from Thimphu built in 1627 by the first king of Bhutan. It is famous for its good frescoes and slate carvings. It offers Rigney School for Dzongkha and monastic studies.

Paro

This is the scenic town in west on the river of the same name offering wooded villages and historic buildings. Here, we explored the Rimpung Dzong or Paro Dzong on a hillside, the Ta dzong – an ancient watchtower and the home of the National Museum and nearby Philatellic Gallery, the famous Taktshang Monastery (Tiger’s Nest), the holy temple of Kyichu Iyakhang at 8 km, and Thongdroel.

The National Museum was formerly a white and brown disc fortress built in 1657. The museum exhibits the collection of old coins, stamps, birds, mammals, the robes of the Bhutanese during different era. History, archery weapons, brass and copper house wares, artifacts, and a portion of moon’s surface carried by Neil Armstrong in 1969.

The Philatellic Gallery near the museum offers vast varieties of stamps including the steel stamps, first three-dimensional stamps, silk stamps with religious motifs, gold embossed coin stamps, and talking stamps singing the Bhutan’s national anthem. Despite all these being the production of Bhutan, there is no postal system and runners bring messages on foot.

The Taktsang Monastery is the most sacred spot for the Bhutanese people that they visit the at least once in their lifetime. Located at 80 km on the edge of a cliff, this monastery is surrounded by the cave where Guru Rimpoche and then his follower Dubthak Singye meditated. This journey is challenging, spiritual, tiresome, and stimulating. It is believed that Guru Padmasambhava came here over a million years ago on tiger’s back from Tibet and mediated in the cave for two months.

Bumthang

This is the spiritual land of Bhutan that is home to most old and precious Buddhist sites – vital dzongs, temples, and palaces. Worth visiting places here are the Wangdichholing Palace – the home of the former king Ugyen Wangchuk, the temple of Jambey Lhakang, the holy cave of Kurjey Lhakang, and Jakar – the largest dzong in Bhutan.

According to the legend, the great Buddhist teacher Pemalingpa was a blacksmith who was guided by spiritual forces to find spiritual riches at the base of a burning lake. On one night, the Daklinis or female heavenly spirits exposed how to preach those found treasures. In addition, when he started preaching, flowers were thrown from the sky that disappeared into light.

Phobjika

This is a glacial valley that has been reserved as a conservation area. It is located on the frontiers of the Black Mountain National Park – the most vital wildlife conserve in the nation. Here, you will find in winter only with permission the scarce, extinct black-necked cranes that are of great significance in the legends of Bhutan. In addition, the barking deer, boars, leopards, Himalayan black bears, and red foxes can also be spotted here. If you go further, the Satkeng Wildlife Sanctuary is just close by that can be visited without any efforts. You can explore the wild east of the nation from a few popular tourist destinations – Punakha, Trashigang, Wangdue Phodrang, and Gangtey Gompa.

Mongar

Located to the southwest of Tashigang, this is the second largest town in the eastern Bhutan. This is the modern town that offers new dzongs built in 1930 inlaid with the traditional architectural pattern. Do visit the site of the Kurichu Hydroelectric project that when completed will provide the output of 60 megawatts of hydroelectricity. Other attractions in little Mongar are handful of beautiful shops and the Mongar Dzong.

Best Time to Visit

The preferable time for touring trekking throughout the country is autumn that is from late September to late November when sky is mostly clear. The next ideal time is during spring that is from March to May.

Accommodations

In Thimphu:

• Druk Hotel (A)
• Hotel Riverview (A)
• Yeedzin Guest House (B)
• Hotel Taktshang (B)

In Paro:

• Olathang Hotel (A)
• Kyichu Resorts (A)
• Tiger’s Nest Resorts (B)

In Bumthang:

• Wangdicholing Guest House (A)
• Karma Tobden Mountain Lodge(C)
• Sherubling Lodge (B)

In Mongar:

The Motel Shongar