Prayer flags, which are seen everywhere all over the country, fly in the wind on a local bridge.
This week’s Travel Tuesday destination, as requested: Thimphu, Bhutan. Traveled in April 2013: visiting friends Emily and Matt!
While a more in depth post on Bhutan is certainly in the works, Matt put in a facebook request for a Bhutan feature on Travel Tuesday. 🙂 (As a side note, if you have a place you’d like to see, let me know!)
I am incredibly fortunate to have amazing friends who happen to love travel just as much as I do. As undergrads in college, I give Emily full credit for making me realize studying abroad for a whole year was even an option to be considered. While I went to the land of sangria and tapas in Spain, Emily headed more off the beaten path to Senegal. That’s just the kind of awesome girl she is. When she and her new husband, Matt, announced they’d be moving to the tiny Himalayan kingdom of Bhutan for the year so Matt could complete his dissertation research, I wasn’t the least surprised.
Now, as you may or may not realize, Bhutan is not the easiest country to visit or to get to. It only very recently opened to tourism, and you have to pay a tax of $250 a day to visit with a hired guide. However, as Em and Matt were residents for the year, they were allotted a certain number of guest visas that allowed people to bypass the tax. As I have a tendency to visit people in far flung places, I immediately called dibs on one of these fancy visas, and they were gracious enough to let me come!
I feel incredibly fortunate to have had the chance to visit this fascinating country, most definitely a once in a lifetime kind of opportunity.
More photos to come, but here’s a glimpse into the city of Thimphu, where I spent the majority of my time while I stayed with Emily and Matt who were working at the local university.
The town chorten. You must walk around an auspicious number of times clockwise to earn merit.
Chiles dry in the sun. The traditional Bhutanese dish Ema Datse (chiles with cheese) is incredibly spicy!
Local street, complete with a monk.
The largest Buddha in the world is being constructed high above the city.
More on the way from Bhutan in the weeks to come!
