Mark, on the way up to some temple outside of Thimphu whose name I’ve already forgotten. (There are a lot of temples in Bhutan, a lot.) His knee is still painful, but there’s no indication he’s doing any harm by being active so he’s going to hike as much as he reasonably can.
Now we’re getting adventurous. Bhutan – the Kingdom of Bhutan, to be precise – is one of the most remote places on earth. Nestled between China and India in the eastern Himalayas, Bhutan is a country of fewer than 800,000 people where by government decree 60 percent of the country must remain forested and more than 40 percent is designated as national park and reserves. It’s the last remaining Buddhist kingdom and only transitioned from an absolute monarchy to a constitutional monarchy in 2008 (a good year for politics overall). There are no traffic lights in the country, the sale of cigarettes is prohibited, the value of happiness is celebrated by measuring Gross National Happiness, low-end backpacker tourism is banned, and giant penises are painted on houses as symbols of fertility. What’s not to like about this place?
You see signs all over emphasizing happiness
They tried traffic lights a few years ago but no one liked them. So they tore them down and returned to traffic cops like this guy at the busiest intersection in the country. In most intersections, though, happy drivers just let each other go through as necessary.
So here we are, our 36th country in the two-plus years we’ve been on this adventure, and overall my 84th country (Mark’s 87th). We spent two nights in Thimphu, the tiny capital city. Amusingly, our lodge was immediately next door to a gated, walled, secure compound where the retired ex-king’s four wives live. So much to untangle in those last few words! Here’s what I know. Jigme Singye Wangchuck was the fourth king of Bhutan, ruling from 1972 until 2006. In that year he abdicated in favor of his son, the current king. So there is both a king and a former king. (I assumed the former king retired because he was so old, but I was wrong. Jigme was born four weeks after I was so he retired at the age of 50, which seems kind of young to walk away from the crown.) While the current king has merely one wife, the former king is married to four women … all of whom are sisters … whose brother was prime minister under the former king … and all of whom live in a compound several miles from the retired king.
Wouldn’t you love to see a reality show with that as the premise??
So that’s the start of our two-week Bhutan adventure. After two nights in Thimphu we’re making four three night stops in other parts of the country. Then, having run out of money, we’re leaving. We expect to hike, hike, and hike some more. Stay tuned.
Jim hiking
Mark hiking. You’ll notice the “Use Me” trash can to his left. There were lots of those all along the trail and there was, as far as I could tell, no litter on the trail. None. Interestingly, I also noticed (before I’d learned of the ban on cigarettes) that there are no cigarette butts on the sidewalks or streets of Thimphu. It’s a remarkable and beautiful thing to see.
Mark climbing, climbing, climbing
The view
Archery is Bhutan’s national sport, and I spent 15 minutes on one walk through town watching a bunch of guys practice at the national archery stadium. I was stunned by the distance they were shooting; the target had to be 100 yards or more away. As for the attire, that’s the traditional Bhutan dress and it’s worn by lots and lots of people everywhere (while lots of other people wear western clothes). A sign at the entrance to the archery stadium says that as archery is the national sport, you must wear the national dress to practice here.
And here it is, the entrance to the home of the four sisters who are married to one former king. Must be some interesting dynamics in there.