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By Karen Rusiniak - MTS Sales.
I had never been to the Himalayan region and couldn't wait to explore Bhutan. Bhutan is one of the last of the kingdoms on earth, the people there are deeply spiritual, and this trek would take me to Cholmohari Base Camp - one of the most sacred places in Bhutan...all of which intrigued me. |
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Our first view of Bhutan was from the plane and, if you are lucky with the weather like we were, you can see several of the highest peaks of the world just before landing. Here is a photo of Kangchenjunga, the third highest peak in the world. We were also able to just make out Everest and Makalu, the first and seventh highest peaks in the world. What a great way to start our trip! |
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Here is a trivia question for you. What country has no traffic lights? If you guessed Bhutan, you would be correct. Here is the busiest intersection in Thimpu and it only has one policeman directing the flow of traffic. |
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We visit many monasteries in Bhutan, which are called dzongs. They were originally built as fortresses and now serve as religious outposts for monks and as administrative offices. This one is the Paro Dzong, which is best known internationally as the location where scenes from the movie "The Little Buddha" were filmed. |
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Bhutan is a country of farmers, as 95% of the population would be considered subsistence farmers. Depending on what time of the fall you go, you will see various activities in the fields. For instance, on an early trip you will see the rice fields and the beginning of the rice harvest. Later on, the harvest continues and you will see the planting of the winter wheat. Even later, the winter wheat fields are green and you will see women winnowing the grain. |
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One of the first things that will strike you upon arrival in Bhutan is the highly stylized, colorful, intricate paintings on the houses and other buildings. Here is a picture that indicates this is a home of a wealthy person. The rat has jewels coming out of his mouth. |
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Taktsang Monastery, perched near the top of a 4,000-foot precipice, is considered the most sacred monastery in all of Bhutan. Within it is the sacred cave where Guru Padmasambhava, also known as Guru Rimpoche, is said to have meditated. He was the founder of Tibetan Buddhism. You will learn a lot about this major world religion on this trip. We do a hike to a viewpoint of this monastery that serves as a conditioning hike for our big trek. |
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We start our nine-day trek and this idyllic scene of a typical Bhutanese valley is what you will see. No wonder some have labeled Bhutan the last Shangri-la. I enjoyed learning the progression of forest trees from blue pine and oaks to red birch, then finally larch and juniper. The beginning of this trek is arguably through some of the most beautiful forests in the world. |
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Because the latitude of Bhutan is roughly that of Miami, the tree line extends to about 13,000'. This is our second camp at about 11,900' and we got our first view of the most sacred mountain in Bhutan, Chomolhari, which houses the female Goddess and towers at a height of 23,997' over us.
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