Heading East, deeper into Bhutan
Trip Start
Oct 27, 2008
1
13
Trip End
Nov 21, 2008
Wangduephodrang, Bhutan
Saturday, November 8, 2008
Our first stop along the way was the stunning Dochula Pass, a collection of 108 stone chortens (monuments) dedicated by an early queen of Bhutan. The pass marked the point of crossing over the first of 3 mountain ranges we would cover today, and offered a stunning view of the snowcapped Himalayas all the way to the Chinese border, including the 7,200m giant that was Bhutan;s highest mountain.
Our next stop was a town in a lovely tropical valley called Lobesa, where we had lunch after visiting the temple of the 'divine madman', a favourite local saint known for his crazy antics and promiscuity. In honour of him, locals paint phalluses on their houses to promote fertility. Interesting paintings....very um, interesting,....
Continuing up the mountainside once again, our next stop would be at Wangdue, staying at an awesome resort hotel built alongside a whitewater river. The resort was a welcome site, and was beautiful. Our stay would be short, but it was enough to catch a much appreciated hot shower and sort through the dozens of photos taken along the route from Thimphu. The scenery along the way was priceless - people tending rice fields, herds of Yaks and goats, children playing along the sides of the road, shop owners tending their wares of vegetables, textiles, etc. It is an incredibly authentic place, genuinely interesting and full of colour and texture. I have a tone of amazing photos that Ill have to post once I get home.
The evening highlight included an adventure trip out of the resort and into the streets of Wangdue, to find som elocal food. We walked along the dirt roadside in complete darkness (no streetlights here), peering into the wooden shaks that lined the roadway. This is how shops appear here, with theor owners waiting patiently for a customer or some other distraction.
We eventually settled on a nicely stocked shop and made our way inside. There we found some interesting potato chips that were labelled as "green" flavour - surely a winner, and some cheese puffs. Upom determing that these would go good with beer, we scooped up an armful and made out way back to the relative luxury of the hotel to enjoy our nightcap.
Tomorrow would be another long journey by car, further and deeper into central Bhutan, further and further away from any sense of western influence.
