The day started in Kathmandu packing things and repackaged them and settling up with the hotel. We said our temporary goodbye to Elbrus House, through we will be back there again on our way back through. Great place to stay for any of your budget travelers wishing to spend some time in Nepal.
The commendation was to get to the airport three hours early to check in for Drukair. Which we did. This was important for getting good seat assignments, however it also left us with much time to kill. We found a spot with air conditioning and had a couple of pre flight drinks - a critical element of flying into the mountains. We also saw the airport cat.
We then wandered down and waiting to get on the plane. What you have to understand about this flight is that while it is quite short, Paro is nested in the middle of the mountains and so they have to use visual flight rules to land. When you are on the plane it looks an awful lot like you are going to run into a mountain. But you get to see Everest out the window.
It was very cloudy so we barely saw the mountains, but fingers crossed it will be clearer on the way back. The flight was very smooth and then we landed at the most beautiful airport ever.
We met our guide, Pemba, who is going to be with us for the next two weeks. He is very enthusiastic and informative so I have high hopes. It wa fairly late so we made our way from Paro to Thimpu where we will spend the next couple of days. The drive was so beautiful and green with winding roads. Also there were frequent road safety signs. Some were humerous, some were environmental, some where spiritual. Interestingly all of the signs are in English. I did not get much in the way of pictures on the drive, but hope that in the next few days I can get some good shots of the making architecture and the beautiful houses perched on the hillsides.
The national dish is chilies in cheese. Chilies are a major part of must dishes and as we drive along we passed many houses where people were drying chilies on the roofs. We finally made it to Thimpu, the big city of Bhutan. There are about a hundred thousand people in Thimpu which for a country of only seven hundred thousand is huge. Also the city has grown a lot in the past ten years or so and it has been a challenge. Still when you build a place on the principal of gross national happiness things turn out pretty well.
There is also a strong concern for environmental stewardship in the country. Pemba was telling us about how they are getting less snow than they used to because of global warming and how the government has asked people to paint their roofs green to prevent the city from turning into a heat island.
Tourism is the second biggest industry in Bhutan, but the scale of it is very modest. This year their goal is to have one hundred thousand visitors to Bhutan. This is all stuff we learned on our drive to the hotel.
The hotel is quiet and our room is great. Also after the heat of Kathmandu the cool air of Thimpu is a welcome change.
We had a marvelous dinner of traditional Bhutaneese food including the cheese chili dish. The foods were very fresh tasting and had a very unique spice palate. It is completely different from anything I have had before.
So it was quite the day and it was pretty much all about getting here. Tomorrow we get to start exploring the country.
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