April 29 Day 73
We got up early to get ready for our hike to Tiger's Nest Monastery. This is the most photogenic place in Bhutan and was intentionally the last big visit of our trip. It was about a 20 minute drive to the crowded parking lot and a 2 hour hike each way. We went really slowly because of the altitude. The path was wide but very crowded with hikers. We occasionally had to move off to the side as people taking horses came by and riderless horses came down.
At the bottom of the hill it was too misty to catch a glimpse of the monastery but as we headed up the hill we could see it from time to time. There was a teahouse halfway up that gave us the first really good view but we didn't pause for long (about as long as the line to the women's washroom). Meg made a bunch of friends on the way up, particularly amongst those who were going slowly but steadily, her chosen pace as well.
As we got close to the top we could see buildings above us and at the second viewpoint the lookout was crowded with selfie takers. We needn't have worried, for at this point we were almost directly across from the monastery and so great viewpoints became abundent and Richen showed his usual ability to pick great spots to take out picture from.
The whole thing burned down about 10 years ago from a butter lamp accident and only one statue remained. They rebuilt the whole thing and improved the steps, as before they were so dangerous only a few people could actually visit the monastery. The place still has an ancient feel to it, with lots of ups and downs and spectacular views of the countryside over every railing.
We saw several temple areas, one in which monks were performing a ceremony but the sheer number of people rendered the small rooms very claustrophobic. From the outside, the place was fascinating as mountain outcrops were integrated into the temple and nooks and crannies were everywhere with bits of the temple sticking out above you where ever you looked.
We lit a butter lamp for good luck (ours didn't burn anything down) and I had trouble finding a shoe. Meg and Rinchen had started this brother/sister thing of trying to fool each other. It got to the point where both of them had to raise their hand when they were telling a joke. Rinchen had taken one of my shoes and it was lost until a passing monks took my missing one and a pair of someone else's and slid them down a rock. At least I didn't have to go down the mountain in my socks.
On the way back Meg and our Bhutanese friends decided to pick up garbage on our way down, leading to some perilous hanging over safety railings to get a stray juice box. The mist had lifted and we often paused to look back at what has to be one of eh world's most beautiful temples.
We had lunch at the teahouse with the sort of bland vegetarian dishes that vindicate carnivores. Fortunately, Bhutanese hot sauce can make even the most tasteless food catch your attention.
On the way down Meg decided to get way ahead of the rest of us and met a Vietnamese woman who had studied in Toronto for a month. There were no horses (they stop selling tickets up at 1 pm) but the path was smooth and dusty in areas so we had to be a bit careful not to twist an ankle.
On the drive back we went through our list of errands and Rinchen said he would try to change our Thai money and get stamps for posting our postcards. That gave us some time off in our room to prepare for leaving the next day.
We only could get one night in our palace hotel and our new one had less character but was more modern, with the best wifi we had all week. The staff was a little disorganized, though, as our welcome tea never did show up.
Rinchen met us at 6 to take us to our farmhouse experience and had a surprise. Bhutan allows you to put your own pictures onto stamps and had made a page of them from a picture he took of us. He had e-mailed the picture to his wife in Thimpu, she had printed out the page and he had been waiting at the taxi stand for them to be delivered. Very cool. Anyone who got a Bhutanese postcard from us, check it out.
Our Thai money had been changed but there was a miscount so we would get he balance of teh rupees the next day. This wasn't a problem, as we had enough to cover our farmhouse trip.
The whole farmhouse experience seems to be a going concern in Paro. On our way to the monastery I noticed many roadside signs advertising farmhouse homestays with genuine food. The one we went to was building a new wing and had a busload of tourists just leaving.
We had a quick look around the outside of the farmhouse before getting ready for our hot stone bath. This is where river stones are heated in a fire of aromatic wood and herbs, quickly cleaned off and then used to create hot baths for people to soak in. The guy with the stones walks us and down the central core of the structure with bathing rooms on either side. He knocks and asks if you want stones to heat up the water (or cold water to cool it down) and if you say yes he outs the stones in a slot from the central core that connects to the wooden tubs in the bathing rooms.
We had a room with two tubs with herbs floating in the water. I took the hotter one after Meg complained about it and soaked for half an hour, with my bad knees submerged in the water to take full advantage of its healing power. I was fine the whole time with water hot enough to make the non-submerged part of me sweat like I was in a sauna. Meg asked for a new rock and had to evacuate early as the water can get uncomfortable quite quickly.
We dried off and felt completely relaxed as we toured the main farmhouse. The ground floor was used for animal shelter, the main floor had storage and bedrooms. The third story was an open area under the roof used for basement-type storage (and had a great view) but the second story is where we settled.
We met our host who had excellent English. We chatted for awhile and then Rinchen and Meg brought out their magic puzzles for the group to try figuring out. Dinner was excellent and we finally got to try chili cheese, the Bhutanese national dish. It's essentially dried chili peppers cooked in cheese. They're a bit much to gobble down straight but if you cut them up and use them as a condiment for other dishes, yum!
After dinner we toured the rest of the farmhouse and saw a house temple that was worthy of public one, with large Buddha figures and a painted wall. Richen explained that this family was quite wealthy and most families and smaller shrines. I guess that the farmhouse thing is doing well.
On the way back we found a tourist shop willing to give us money for a Visa charge an so got some cash before heading to bed. Rinchen gave us both gifts, both of us getting yaks' wool scarves and Meg with earrings and me with a brass figurine. A very nice ending to an excellent day.
I credit the hot stone bath for barely being able to keep my eyes open after getting into bed and having a solid sleep.
We got up early to get ready for our hike to Tiger's Nest Monastery. This is the most photogenic place in Bhutan and was intentionally the last big visit of our trip. It was about a 20 minute drive to the crowded parking lot and a 2 hour hike each way. We went really slowly because of the altitude. The path was wide but very crowded with hikers. We occasionally had to move off to the side as people taking horses came by and riderless horses came down.
At the bottom of the hill it was too misty to catch a glimpse of the monastery but as we headed up the hill we could see it from time to time. There was a teahouse halfway up that gave us the first really good view but we didn't pause for long (about as long as the line to the women's washroom). Meg made a bunch of friends on the way up, particularly amongst those who were going slowly but steadily, her chosen pace as well.
As we got close to the top we could see buildings above us and at the second viewpoint the lookout was crowded with selfie takers. We needn't have worried, for at this point we were almost directly across from the monastery and so great viewpoints became abundent and Richen showed his usual ability to pick great spots to take out picture from.
The whole thing burned down about 10 years ago from a butter lamp accident and only one statue remained. They rebuilt the whole thing and improved the steps, as before they were so dangerous only a few people could actually visit the monastery. The place still has an ancient feel to it, with lots of ups and downs and spectacular views of the countryside over every railing.
We saw several temple areas, one in which monks were performing a ceremony but the sheer number of people rendered the small rooms very claustrophobic. From the outside, the place was fascinating as mountain outcrops were integrated into the temple and nooks and crannies were everywhere with bits of the temple sticking out above you where ever you looked.
We lit a butter lamp for good luck (ours didn't burn anything down) and I had trouble finding a shoe. Meg and Rinchen had started this brother/sister thing of trying to fool each other. It got to the point where both of them had to raise their hand when they were telling a joke. Rinchen had taken one of my shoes and it was lost until a passing monks took my missing one and a pair of someone else's and slid them down a rock. At least I didn't have to go down the mountain in my socks.
On the way back Meg and our Bhutanese friends decided to pick up garbage on our way down, leading to some perilous hanging over safety railings to get a stray juice box. The mist had lifted and we often paused to look back at what has to be one of eh world's most beautiful temples.
We had lunch at the teahouse with the sort of bland vegetarian dishes that vindicate carnivores. Fortunately, Bhutanese hot sauce can make even the most tasteless food catch your attention.
On the way down Meg decided to get way ahead of the rest of us and met a Vietnamese woman who had studied in Toronto for a month. There were no horses (they stop selling tickets up at 1 pm) but the path was smooth and dusty in areas so we had to be a bit careful not to twist an ankle.
On the drive back we went through our list of errands and Rinchen said he would try to change our Thai money and get stamps for posting our postcards. That gave us some time off in our room to prepare for leaving the next day.
We only could get one night in our palace hotel and our new one had less character but was more modern, with the best wifi we had all week. The staff was a little disorganized, though, as our welcome tea never did show up.
Rinchen met us at 6 to take us to our farmhouse experience and had a surprise. Bhutan allows you to put your own pictures onto stamps and had made a page of them from a picture he took of us. He had e-mailed the picture to his wife in Thimpu, she had printed out the page and he had been waiting at the taxi stand for them to be delivered. Very cool. Anyone who got a Bhutanese postcard from us, check it out.
Our Thai money had been changed but there was a miscount so we would get he balance of teh rupees the next day. This wasn't a problem, as we had enough to cover our farmhouse trip.
The whole farmhouse experience seems to be a going concern in Paro. On our way to the monastery I noticed many roadside signs advertising farmhouse homestays with genuine food. The one we went to was building a new wing and had a busload of tourists just leaving.
We had a quick look around the outside of the farmhouse before getting ready for our hot stone bath. This is where river stones are heated in a fire of aromatic wood and herbs, quickly cleaned off and then used to create hot baths for people to soak in. The guy with the stones walks us and down the central core of the structure with bathing rooms on either side. He knocks and asks if you want stones to heat up the water (or cold water to cool it down) and if you say yes he outs the stones in a slot from the central core that connects to the wooden tubs in the bathing rooms.
We had a room with two tubs with herbs floating in the water. I took the hotter one after Meg complained about it and soaked for half an hour, with my bad knees submerged in the water to take full advantage of its healing power. I was fine the whole time with water hot enough to make the non-submerged part of me sweat like I was in a sauna. Meg asked for a new rock and had to evacuate early as the water can get uncomfortable quite quickly.
We dried off and felt completely relaxed as we toured the main farmhouse. The ground floor was used for animal shelter, the main floor had storage and bedrooms. The third story was an open area under the roof used for basement-type storage (and had a great view) but the second story is where we settled.
We met our host who had excellent English. We chatted for awhile and then Rinchen and Meg brought out their magic puzzles for the group to try figuring out. Dinner was excellent and we finally got to try chili cheese, the Bhutanese national dish. It's essentially dried chili peppers cooked in cheese. They're a bit much to gobble down straight but if you cut them up and use them as a condiment for other dishes, yum!
After dinner we toured the rest of the farmhouse and saw a house temple that was worthy of public one, with large Buddha figures and a painted wall. Richen explained that this family was quite wealthy and most families and smaller shrines. I guess that the farmhouse thing is doing well.
On the way back we found a tourist shop willing to give us money for a Visa charge an so got some cash before heading to bed. Rinchen gave us both gifts, both of us getting yaks' wool scarves and Meg with earrings and me with a brass figurine. A very nice ending to an excellent day.
I credit the hot stone bath for barely being able to keep my eyes open after getting into bed and having a solid sleep.
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| Tiger's Nest Monastery from down the hill... |
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| ...and after two hours of hiking |
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| The hot stone bath setup. Rocks are on the other side of the wall, just knock for fresh ones! |
This is a great description of your Bhutan adventure. I see a budding new career as a travel writer. Meanwhile the new map in my head is a section of west Montreal where I've been helping someone move in to a retirement residence. Not as exotic as Bhutan, but simpler to navigate and lots of great food. Happy trails to you both
ReplyDeleteI love Montreal and I think you'd find something to like in Bhutan. Hope to see you in the fall!
DeleteReally enjoying reading about Bhutan!
ReplyDelete