Day 6
October 11, Saturday
Thimphu and Wangdiphodrong Bhutan Temperature: Glorious
Druk Hotel and Dragon Nest Resort
Another glorious day where I slept well and got up early as we had an earlier start to go to the weekend market in Thimphu. The market was full was vegetable and meat vendors. The meat was all dried and no wonder it is tough! The vegetables were so fresh and gorgeous! They were also selling incense both in sticks and in its natural form. I was very tempted to buy incense in its natural form but was worried I would get caught by customs in Japan so only bought the stick form. I bought it from a lady who had very little teeth. Kundzong acted as my translator and also helped her calculate how much money I owed. We then went to another vendor who was selling incense for 500 NG and said it was the best. Kunzang got it down to 450NG but I am not thinking straight and am thinking its 100 dollars when in reality its only 10 bucks so didn’t buy it. Stupid me! Anyhow, we walked through the market where I saw the most beautiful veggies and finally saw the pink rice. I wish I could bring some back!
Thimphu Market
Bhutanese Dried Cheese: Its so hard you have to soften it with your saliva in your mouth for quite sometime
Incense in the natural form
I bought incense from this lady
Betel Nuts: It is custom to give a betel nut to a guest but it supposedly has similar effects as a cigarette
Dried beef or yak: Bhutanese do not kill animals so import from India. They do raise chickens for eggs as there is a ban to import chicken due to the Bird Flu scare
Local tomatoes: Probably THE original tomato breed
We then got in the car for our drive to Punakha. It’s the beginning of our journey through central Bhutan and Eastern Bhutan. The drive takes about 3 hours with no stops and goes through the Dochula Pass which lies at an altitude of 3050meters. 30 minutes or so into the ride, we go through an immigration checkpoint where I again have an opportunity to take photos. We see a very cute dog who unfortunately has some kind of eye disease so cannot see. But he does look happy and well fed.
After about another hour or so we finally reach the Dochula pass and get out of the car to the brisk but extremely clean air. Kunzang says this pass is the most beautiful in Bhutan as it is marked by many prayer flags and has an impressive field of 108 chortens called the Druk Wangyal. It was built in 2004 as an initiative of the Queen as a thanksgiving for the victory of Bhutan in the military campaign against the Assam terrorists.
Dochula Pass
At the Dochula pass we had tea and admired the view of the Great Himalayas. The altitude though did affect me as I was just huffing and puffing over 20 flights of stairs.
Tea House at Dochula Pass
View from the Dochula Pass
After the tea, we finished our drive to Punakha and dropped about 1700 meters in altitude. During the ride, we talked to Kunzang about our dogs and how in Japan they dress up their dogs. He was bewildered with our behavior especially when I told him how much I spend on dog grooming and that I have a dog walker. He just could not understand. He did say though as we are rescuing dogs, good things will happen to us. Then all of a sudden, we have to stop because there were VIPs passing us on the street. It was the Queen! She has a palace in Punakha and is probably going back to Thimphu.
We reached Punakha and when we got out of our car I thought we were in So Cal as the weather was exactly the same. Apparently, its warm and dry in fall and winter and starts getting hot humid in spring summer. First thing one notices are the rice paddies. The land is supposedly very fertile. We have lunch at one of the new hotels built by one of the Queen’s relatives. We have another delicious buffet lunch and then head to visit the Punakha Dzong.
Views from the road to Punakha
We stopped for delicious roasted maize
Our Lunch Spot in Punakha
First thing Kunzang tells us is that the village used to be by the Dzong but the govt decided to move the village. So off the people went and moved! The Dzong was built in 1637 by Shabdrung Ngawang Namgyal . He chose the same site where a temple stands that was built by a saint. It still exists and can be seen. It is said that Guru Rimpoche blessed the site. When the Shabdrung arrived, he set up camp and it is said he had a dream where Guru Rimpoche said that this is where to build a Dzong. The Shabdrung had a statue made of bone which appeared miraculously from the vertebra of the founder of the Drukpa school in Tibet. This relic was so sacred that many times Tibet tried to invade. Also, the architect slept by the temple and in his dreams visualized how the Dzong should be built. I have to say it is very beautiful. Also , it sits on a peace of land between two rivers: a female river and male river. The current of the male river is stronger. It is also in Punakha that the Shabdrung died while in meditation.
The Punakha Dzong
God's Flag at Punakha Dzong
Inside the Dzong is a very impressive painting of the life of Buddha. There are also very large and beautiful statues of Guru Rimpoche, the Shabdrung Ngawang Namgyal and of course the past, present and future Buddha.
Entrance to th Dzong
The Bodhi Tree in the Courtyard
After a wonderful tour and information overload, we visited the little temple which reminded me of a Buddhist version of St Chappelle in Paris.
The little temple
It was then time for our last destination which is the Chime Lhakhang temple which means “no dogs” temple and was built by a cousin of the Divine Madman in his honor after he subdued demons that were dogs with his magic thunderbolt of wisdom. A wooden effigy of the the lama’s thunderbolt is preserved there and women go to the temple for fertility problems.
The walk to the temple was glorious as we walked through a small town and then through the rice paddies. The late afternoon sun made us feel like we were walking through golden hills. Once we got to the temple we sat under the Bodhi tree and silently admired the view. We then went inside the small temple and was pleasantly surprised to see the young monks (8-10 years old) lined up and playing like ordinary children. The walls of the temple were decorated with stories about the Divine Madman and his dog. Inside we got blessed by a child monk with a bow, arrow and wooden phallus which represent the Divine Madman. We also rolled dice so our wish would come true. I wished for good health and happiness to Kim, Bill, BB, Jackson, Professor, Skipper and Yuki.
The Walk to the Chime Temple
The temple had wild cacti growing in the garden!
The Chime Temple grounds
The young monks of Chime Temple
The Divine Madman is one of Bhutan’s most famous saints. He felt that the status quo education was stiff so he came up with outrageous and often obscene actions to get people over their preconceptions and open their mind to Buddhism. His sexual exploits are legendary thus the phalli painted on households etc as they represent him and will ward off evil from the homes. The clowns at teschu carry the phalli for the same reason!
A house near Chime Temple
After the tour it was time to go to our hotel in Wangdiphodrang. Our hotel was the Dragon Nest hotel which is on the Punakha river. AGAIN, Lemo outdid herself as the hotel was quaint! We did have issues with the showers but at least we had hot water! Before having dinner, we agreed to meet to do a picture show for Kunzang and Chencho. I think they liked the photo of the abbot the best! We then had dinner with other foreigners and called it a nite.
View from our balcony at Dragon Nest Hotel