Of penises and cheese.

Yes, this posting is about penises and cheese. How are they related? Well, they're both iconic symbols of Bhutan.

Let's start with the penis first. *wink*

The last one. Kyichu Lhakhang.

Ithink this is my shortest blog posting....ever! Why? Because of all things, my camera battery died after two photos and for whatever reason, my spare battery was not charged AND I didn't bring my camcorder, which serves as a backup camera.  Unbelievable!  I'm usually so well prepared, I couldn't believe I was in this predicament.  I was kicking myself the whole time I was inside the temple *slightly pissed off at myself*.

Clinging to the edge. Taktsang Dzong.

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ndoubtedly, today's hike to Taktsang Monastery was the highlight of my trip to Bhutan! Taktsang Dzong is commonly known as Tiger's Nest and it is only accessible by foot.

The Indomitable Merle Ellis.

Up until this trip, I had been telling all my friends that I won't let up on travelling to remote countries until I'm 75 years old because I had set that as the bar for when I will have to retire my adventurous spirit.  I had even been joking with my friend Lei that that's when we'll go on a cruise together and that will be my first cruise....ever!

Rinpung Dzong.

I'm officially dzonged out and as beautiful as Rinpung Dzong is, I'm saving my last bit of interest in the monasteries for Tiger's Nest which we get to visit tomorrow.  At least that's what I thought before I visited Rinpung Dzong.

From the National Museum of Bhutan, we took a very short ride down the hill to Rinpung Dzong. 

Far more modest in size and decoration than the Punakha Dzong, Rinpung Dzong is still quite impressive.

A tour through time. The National Museum of Bhutan.

 

The National Museum of Bhutan is housed in a circular building that was once the watchtower for Rinpung Dzong. The museum was started in 1968 with a modest collection of Bhutanese heritage treasures.  Over the years and after several renovations, the museum has accumulated objects from different parts of the country and is today a storehouse of Bhutan's cultural and traditional treasures. The gallery has over thirteen galleries located on 5 floors.

Paro!

We arrived into Paro just before lunch time today. Paro is another quiet little town nestled in the mountains.  We will be spending one night here.  This afternoon, we went to see the National Museum of Bhutan and the Rinpung Dzong, otherwise known simply as the Paro Dzong.  Tomorrow will be the highlight of our visit to Paro as we will be hiking up to the famous Tiger's Nest Monastery!! 

Road trippin' through Bhutan.

Considering there's only one aiport in the entire country and there's no railsystem, it's not surprising that we spent a lot of time on the road going places.

Bhutan is a mountain kingdom so I wasn't surprised to see hilly landscapes dotted with small villages. What was a surprise, especially when we first drove through the countryside, were how all the buildings were decorated in traditional Bhutanese style.

Gho, baby, gho!

I live in a country that is truly a cultural melting pot.  We have people from all over the world living in the US.  I even work for a multinational, multicultural instititution.  But, when in the US, do as the Americans do so even though we're all from different heritage backgrounds, everyone pretty much dresses "American" and that would be jeans, t-shirts, sweat pants, shorts, etc.  A common uniform that can now be found in other parts of the world - part of the spread of the Western world.

How do you say......?

My morning started with breakfast under the gazebo and a lesson in basic Dzongkha from Tenzing.

Dzongkha is the national language of Bhutan. The word "dzongkha" means the language (kha) spoken in the dzong....dzong being the fortress-like monasteries that are found throughout Bhutan.

Wangdue Phodrang Dzong.

We ended our day of sightseeing in Punakha with a visit to the Wangdue Phodrang dzong.

From the road below, I could see the the dramatic structure of the dzong which is actually three separate narrow structures that follow the contours of the ridge that it's perched on.  At the base of the hill, a river snakes through the landscape.

To the Temple of the Divine Madman.

Our morning in Punakha continued with a visit to Chimi Lhakhang, a monastery dedicated to Lama Drukpa Kuenley who is affectionately known, in this part of the world, as the Divine Madman.  I love that moniker!

Lama Drukpa Kuenley was an acclaimed Buddhist master and in some sense, a cultural icon, who lived in Bhutan in the 15th century who is mostly remembered for his unconventional and at times outrageous methods of teachings....usually with strong sexual overtones and inclinations that were in complete disregard of the social norms of his time.

The spectacular Punakha Dzong.

The highlight of my day today was visiting the Punakha Dzong ("zong") which is undoubtedly the most spectacular of all the Bhuddist monasteris in Bhutan.  I was excited to finally be able to see this magnificent landmark that I had seen countless images of when I was doing the pre-trip research for this trip.  By the way, it's the rooftops of the Punakha Dzong that I used as the background image for the banner for this blog.

Bull's eye!

Archery is Bhutan's national sport. While the rest of us were at the bank, in Thimphu, exchanging money or at the post office maiing off postcards, Paul had made is way down to a nearby field to watch a group of men having a friendly archery competition. The rest of us eventually met up with Paul and we found ourselves completely entertained on the field in front of us.

In memoriam. Dochula Pass.

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e made a brief stop at Dochula Pass on our way from Thimphu to Punakha. Situated at an elevation of about 3100m, Dochula pass is high enough where on a clear day you can see a beautiful panoramic view of the mighty Himalayas.

Today was not our day for a view of the majestic mountains as it was cloudy and dreary.

Off to the nunnery.

No, I didn't join a nunnery while I was in Bhutan but I did get to visit one!

After our time at the Motithang Takin Preserve, it seemed like the van was heading back towards town center. I think I must have been half asleep this morning because, again, I had no idea where we were going except that we would be seeing some nuns.  So I asked Tenzing and he told that we would be visiting a nunnery but before we got there, we would have one more view to take in.

Taking in the takin.

I guess every country has a national animal and for Bhutan, it's the takin ("tah-kin"). In my pre-trip research, I had come across mention of an animal named the takin but I knew absolutely nothing about it other than that.

From the Gagyel Lhendup Weaving Center, we headed somewhere into the outskirts of Thimphu. I had no idea where were going except that we would be seeing takin.

The art of weaving.

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fter we left the National Memorial Chorten, we headed over to the Gagyel Lhendup Weaving Center. After having seen weavers in Darjeeling and Gangtok, I have to admit that I was not too keen to visit yet another weaving factory. But my attitude is always to keep an open mind and I was so glad that I did because Bhutanese weaving is truly a work of skill and art.

There were about 8 women weavers, sitting on the floor,  in a small room that was dimly lit by natural light.  I don't remember seeing any overhead lights.

Thimphu. The National Memorial Chorten.

Oh no, I got up a bit late this morning. I scurried down to breakfast and quickly gulped down breakfast. By the time I finished, I only a couple of minutes to get back to my room and grab my bags to meet up with the gang. I hate being late but damn, I would have been on time had this sight of chilies drying on a building rooftop had not distracted me. I'm blaming it all on the chilies :-)

Today was our only day in Thimphu. By nightfall, we'd be in Punakha but until then, we had a long day of touring ahead of us starting with a visit to the National Memorial Chorten which is located not even a 10 minute drive away from the hotel.

First experience in Thimpu. The central market.

Go figure :-) The first sight I get to see in Thimphu is the city's central market. But just so you know, I did not deliberately plan to do this.

We arrived into Thimphu at around 4pm today.  Though Thimphu is located only 170km from Phuentsholing, it pretty much took us all day to get here as the mountain roads are very narrow and winding.

A quick pit stop. Rinchending Goenpa.

Sunshine! I woke up to the sight of the bright shining sun! After days of being in dreary India, it was nice to finally see some blue sky.

No breakfast for me as I thoroughly stuffed my face at dinner last night and I've done nothing since then but sleep.

Bhutan at last! Phuentsholing.

Standing on the Bhutan side of the gate.  India is on the other side!

We finally arrived into Bhutan today!


Phuentsholing is a border town in southern Bhutan that is just a stone's throw away from Jaigaon.  After we *exited* India, we drove thte short distance to the Bhutan checkpost.  There, Sanjeev had to get our entry permits stamped in our passports so we could cross under the border gate!

Through the Dooars.

Another long road trip today.

Destination?  Bhutan!!

We woke up bright and early in Kalimpong. Sanjeev had told us that although the driving distance to Phuentsholing, Bhutan is only 185 km, the roads were really bad and so it would take us more time than we would expect it to under *ordinary* road conditions.

The market....Kalimpong style.

When everyone had emerged from Mangal Dham temple, Sanjeev suggested that we walk back to the hotel which was just a short distance away. The drivers would take us to the center of town and from there, our walking route would take us through the market.

The temple that South Beach Barbie built. Mangal Dham.

The next stop on our Kalimpong tour itinerary was a Hindu temple - Mangal Dham.

To reach the temple, we had to drive to the chaotic streets of town. Ugh.

For the children. Lucia King Orphanage.

After we left Dr. Graham's school, we headed for an orphanage which turned out to be one of the *homes* in Dr. Graham's homes. I can't remember exactly but I think the orphanage was named after its largest donor, Lucia King.

A woman named Janet came out to greet us with white scarves. We entered into the orphanage and she gave us a tour of the place which provides food, shelter and education to both orphaned as well as underprivileged children. This particular home houses about 20 children and most are under the age of 10. The children are segregated into groups identified by color. We entered the Blue room and were greeted by multiple sets of inquisitive eyes all peering at us from above their crib railings. It was nap time but having visitors around gave the children an excuse to stay awake just a bit longer :-)

For the children. Dr. Graham's Homes.

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he first destination on our Kalimpong tour agenda was a visit to a place known as Dr. Graham's Homes.

Dr Graham's Homes is a co-educational institution providing education and support, for impoverished and deprived children in Kalimpong. 

Kalimpong!

Our journey today took us from Gangtok to Kalimpong. Our trusty drivers and their cars were already waiting for us as we finished up breakfast this morning.  Rhonda, Mike and I only had a few minutes to gulp down our breakfast as we had just returned from our early morning trip to Tashi View Point to catch a sunrise view of Mt. Kanchenjunga. After breakfast, I quickly headed up to my room and brought my luggage down.

The majestic Kanchenjunga.

I woke up to a knock on the door this morning. It was Rhonda and it was barely 5:30a. She had looked out the window and seen clear skies so it was a thumbs up to try and get an early morning view of Mt. Kanchenjunga.  Standing at 8586 m  (28,169 ft ), Kanchenjunga is the third tallest mountain in the world!

Five minutes I was down in the lobby. Rhonda had already scoped out the taxi situation and apparently, none of the ones at the taxi stand that we had been to yesterday morning were willing to take us. Still not quite understanding what all the traffic rules are in Sikkim but they are quite strict and everyone obeys them.

Gangtok: Weavers, tea, tea, statue & dinner.

The last destination on our tour agenda of Gangtok - was a visit to the so-called *cottage industries*. Of course, the driver knew exactly where to drop us off. We followed his directions and found ourselves standing in front of some buildings. Signs above the doors indicated what was inside. First stop was the store. I should have taken a clue from the items that were being sold. (nothing impressive as far as I was concerned) as to what types of *industries* i.e., handicrafts we would see.

Gangtok: Flower Exhibition Hall.

Next stop on our Gangtok sightseeing hall was the Flower Exhibition Hall.  The name should have been a clue to me of what we were in for but my brain was just not engaged at that moment.

We arrived at the exhibition hall and it looked like a conservatory of sorts.

Gangtok Ropeway. Cruisin' above the street.

On our way to Ganesh Tok, Merle had spotted a cable car and when we found out that we could actually ride it, we all agreed to add that to our agenda. We asked the driver to take us there and so he did.

For 60 rupees each, we would get a roundtrip ride on the cable car which is officially known as the Gangtok Ropeway. There are three cable car stations. One at the top of the hill, one in the middle and one at the bottom. We got on at the middle section. When the car arrived, there were already quite a few people on board. We wanted to wait for another car to come along but we got waved to board and so we squished in with crowd of Indian tourists. Merle and Mike made their way to the front of the car and I stayed at the back.

Gangtok: Enchey Monastery.

More driving on the windy roads of Gangtok - downhill, uphill, around hill. We were on our way to Enchey Monastery.  Again, another long driveway separated us from the main monastery complex. This one was a gentle uphill slope so we strolled.

Along the way, I came across two young monks with small pieces of paper. They were leaning against a concrete wall, facing each other. Curious about what they were doing, I walked up to them and asked. One replied that they were wrestling.

Gangtok: Ganesh Tok.

Ganesh Tok is a very small Hindu temple located high up on a hill that offers a great bird's eye view of Gangtok.    On a cloud free day, which unfortnately today is not, you're suppose to be able to see Mt. Kanchenjunga.

Going to Ganesh Tok was the cab driver's idea so as we drove towards it, I was hoping it would be worth our while.

Gangtok: Namgyal Institute of Tibetology.

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t's our first full day in Gangtok and it promises to be an activity filled one!

I woke up well before the alarm went off and the first thing that I did when I got out of bed was to throw open the curtains.  I gasped at the sight.  A sunny day showcasing beautiful green mountains of the lower part of the Himalayan range and and the far, far distance,  snow capped mountains.  I wondered if one of those snow covered peaks was the famed Kanchenjunga, the third tallest mountain in the world.  It's suppose to be visible from Gangtok on a clear day. Oh I do hope we do get to see it on this trip.

Roadtrip to Sikkim.

Today's road trip destination was Gangtok, Sikkim. It was going to be a long travel day so Sanjeev got us all up and out early. Sanjeev loves to have us woken up at least two hours before departure time. Of course, I only need a few minutes to get ready, repack and bag and gulp down a bite so I set my alarm for just under an hour before departure time. Hey, I'm on vacation and every now and again I want to enjoy my sleep :-)

We headed out after breakfast, back down the road that we had driven into Darjeeling on just a few days ago.  The landscape was shrouded in fog.

A monastery, a garden, and a cup of tea.

From Tiger Hill Station, we drove to the Yiga Chongling Monastery which is a Tibetan monastery for monks of the Yellow Hat sect.

I have to admit that after having seen Bhuddist monasteries in Tibet as well as in Mongolia, the thought of seeing yet another monastery is well, ho hum. They all start to look and feel the same after a while - even the crimson robed monks begin to all look the same.

One thing for certain though. Tibetan monasteries in India are no where as grand or as well kept as the ones inside Tibet. Yiga Chongling is a pretty modest monastery in both scale and decoration.

You know you're in India when.

You walk into your hotel bathroom (which is not in 5 star hotel) and you find mothballs in the sink. The first time I saw this was in my hotel in Delhi and my first reaction was *WTF*??

It didn't take me but a second to figure out that they were there to remove unpleasant odors.

But I'm not a person who likes artificial scents wafting through the air....I can't even stand the smell of air fresheners or potpourri so you can imagine how unbearable the strong scent of naphthalene which is the primary chemical ingredient in mothballs.

I grew up with  mother who loved to store all our woolen sweaters in drawers where she had thrown in a mothball or two for added protection against moths.  While it was nice to not have holes in my sweaters, I never like the stench of the naphthalene.

So, when I saw and smelt the little mothballs at the bottom of the sink, all I wanted to do was flush them down the toilet but so far I have managed to resist the urge. I thought it was just a Delhi thing until I arrived into my hotel room in Darjeeling and found mothballs here as well. There's no escaping them :-( Please let there not be mothballs in any other bathroom on this trip.

Chug-a-chug, toot, toot! Darjeeling Toy Train.

After breakfast, we had about an hour to kill before we had to meet up again at 9:30a to catch our ride to the train station where we were scheduled to catch the 10:50a Darjeeling Himalayan Railway train which is better known by its nickname, the Darjeeling Toy Train.  I love riding the rails!!

Before heading out, I decided to catch a few minutes of sleep and woke up after everyone else had already gotten into their cars for the ride to the station! I must have been more tired than I thought :-)

The plan was to do a roundtrip ride on the Toy Train to the neighboring town of Ghum and back. It's a 7km ride each way and the total round trip would take just under 2 hours. It's a slow train :-)

Darjeeling at last.

Ican't believe I've only been in India for 4 days.....seems much longer as every day has been filled with a variety of activities. Today was no different.

I skipped breakfast this morning, opting instead to enjoy a bit more sleep. The cool night temperature in Darjeeling makes for a really enjoyable night of snoozing :-)

The first thing on our agenda this morning was to go on a tour of the Happy Valley Tea factory. Darjeeling is, of course, world famous for its tea and it happens to be my favorite black tea! 

We all got out and started walking down a hill that wound its way through hills of tea plants. There was a small group of women picking tea.   Each woman had an umbrella tucked into their basket.  I have a feeling it rains a lot here!

The trip begins!

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oday is travel day and our destination is Darjeeling, the famed Indian hill station known for tea and the Toy Train.  Can't wait to get there!

The group gathered in the hotel lobby at 7:30a. I was so stuffed from the night before that I skipped breakfast so I was able to enjoy a bit more sleep.

Sanjeev had arranged for a 25 seater van to take us and our luggage to the domestic airport for our short hour and half long flight to Bagdogra. From there, we would transfer into three 4x4 vehicles for the remainder of the overland journey to Darjeeling and then eventually to Bhutan via Sikkim. Though located only about 100km from Bagdogra, the drive to Darjeeling would take us upwards of 3 hours depending on road conditions. I love road trips so long rides don't bother me at all.

Meeting the gang.

Igot back from my cooking class with Jyoti just in time to meet up with my fellow tour mates and our leader, Sanjeev Gurung.

Sanjeev was in the lobby and he quickly figured out I was one of his charges. Following his instructions, I headed up to a room on the 4th floor. There were already 3 people there.

I don't quite remember everyone's names at the moment but it's a small group and so I'm sure I will get to know them all in the days to come.

Looks like we have 3 couples - one from Canada and two from Australia. A pair of older women from Australia, whom I am guessing are in their late 60's/early 70's, who are friends travelling together. An older gentlemen who is also from Australia and around the same age as the two women. And then there's me :-)

Our guide, Sanjeev, is Nepali by heritage but Indian by birth. He seems very quiet and shy - I think that's a cultural thing as most Nepalis I've met seem to be that way.

Sanjeev briefed us on our trip and then filled in all the requisite paper work. After we were done, Sanjeev took us to a nearby restaurant where we enjoyed a lovely meal and started to get to know each other better. Every seems very nice and I'm looking to travelling with them for the next 3 weeks!

It's late now and we have an early morning start so I'm off to sleep. So excited to finally get going on this trip!

Cooking with Jyoti.

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oday is my cooking class with Jyoti Agarwal. I found Jyoti on the internet when I Googled "cooking class Delhi" months ago.  We exchanged emails to work out the details of the two cooking classes that I would take with Jyoti. As the date of my departure to India neared, I followed up with confirmation emails to Jyoti to make sure she had not forgotten about me and to also affirm that I was indeed serious about taking cooking lessons from her.

Yesterday, I spoke with her on the phone to firm up our plans. Today, our day will start at 11:30 and we agreed that I would go to her house. I had Ruby arrange for the driver to show up at the hotel at 10:30am as she estimated it would take about an hour to get to Jyoti's.

I'm back in Delhi!

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arrived into Delhi last night. Smooth flight. Luckily, the screaming twins who were seated behind me quieted down once sleep time rolled around. I've never heard two children scream as much as these two!

As I disembarked the plane, I found myself entering into a spanking new airport terminal. My Indian friends had told me about the new airport which was just opened a few months back. It's as beautiful as any other modern city airport.....a very dramatic change from the airport terminal that I walked through just three years ago.

The artwork inside the airport is wonderful.  These oversized metallic sculptures of mudrās were above the wall where the immigration officers sit.  Nice to have something to interesting to look at while you're standing in line.

Time flies.....

The past several weeks have been focused on the trip to Mali and Senegal. I only returned home this past Sunday and already, in a few short hours, I will be on plane headed for Delhi, India. I can't believe how quickly time has flown by as it was truly months ago that I planned this trip. Seems like just yesterday that I decided a trip to Bhutan was going to be on this year's travel agenda.

With my adventures in Mali still fresh in my mind, I have to admit that it's been a bit of struggle to focus my thoughts on India and Bhutan.  It hasn't helped that I left Africa with a bit of a headcold and I'm still fighting it.

But, thanks to a slew of last minute things that needed to be done, which included buying a new video camcorder to replace the one that died in Mali, and only three days to get everything done in, I had no choice but to fully engage my thoughts and energies on this trip.  Head cold or not, I've spent my free time over the past couple of days trying to wrap up loose ends before I leave. 

I've now just got a few things to wrap at work before heading home at lunch time to catch the shuttle van to the airport and then I'll be off on my next great adventure......counting down the minutes to go!!!

Memories of Mali and Senegal.

Me, a goat, and the Grand Mosque in Djenné, a UNESCO World Heritage Site.

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ometimes opportunities come up that you just can't turn down. For the globetrotter in me, that opportunity came in the form of work assignment in IMF office in Bamako,Mali. Of course, I can't go to just Bamako so I decided to stay back for a week and travel through the country. I have to admit that I knew nothing about Mali except that Timbuktu is there. So, I started my reading and as I got to learning about the country, I decided that a visit to Mali would not be complete unless I did a trip through Dogon country. But Mali is not on the typical tourist map so finding a guide was a challenge but my persistence paid off!

On the way back to Bamako. San, Sevare and Ségou.

The Grand Mosque in San.

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ur road trip back to Bamako would take us through the towns of Sevare, Ségou and San.  First stop was the town of Sevare for lunch at a Seneglese restaurant.  Tall had called the restaurant earlier that morning to arrange for a meal of ceebu jen (cheh-boo jen) which is a dish of fish and rice. It's Senegal's national dish and if cooked the *right* way, takes several hours to make so you have to call ahead.