DAY 11, APRIL 1, ON TO PARO

ON TO PARO

Lucky to have a perfect day,
To Paro we made our way.
No way could our spirits sag.
At the summit we hung our flag.
There at Dochula it will stay.

Pleasant were our stops, --
Right nice photo ops.
Good it was to see 'um --
The old things in the museum
And the snowy mountain tops.

The Watch Tower was top rung.
Likewise the Castle Rinpung.
The rehearsal dance was interesting.
Likewise the instruments with strings
And the songs by the ladies sung.

BUDDHISM
This life is temporary.
Only a short time here we terry.
Pray for every living being
Ere the judge you're seeing.
Some realms are pretty scary.

Pray that your next life
With trouble will not be rife.
Be you monk or farmer,
It's important to have good karma
And to heed the Wheel of Life.

Follow the eight-fold path
And you may escape the judge's wrath.
This point should be stressed:
The judge is not the least impressed
If you've cut a giant swath.

There'll be a period of transition
Ere you assume your new position.
Some places you might go to
When the judge is through with you
Are a whole lot like perdition.

If you're a Pollyanna,
You might expect Nirvana.
But I really do believe
It's right hard to achieve
No matter how much you wanna.

The weather was perfect, clear as a bell, and comfortable was the temperature in the fresh air. And the scenery was gorgeous.

We set out at 8:30 on what was to be a big day, retracing our steps, driving back over the Dochula Pass to Thimphu, then on past the airport (which has two flights in and out each day), and on to Paro, which is about the same altitude as Thimphu (~7600 feet). Along the way we had several stops to take pictures – of the general mountain scenery with terraced fields; in one instance of a group of half a dozen or so yaks; at the higher elevations, of the distant snow-covered mountains (which we couldn't see earlier because of the weather); and at the provincial check point with the apple-and-oriental-pear stand next to it.

Maybe it was because I had a better seat this time (we rotate) or maybe because we made more stops that I remained comfortable this time. Nor did Helen get carsick.

Dorji had purchased a long Buddhist flag for us, bearing all the Buddhist colors since it represents all of us. At the summit, Dorji used everyone's camera to take a group picture of all of us side-be-side holding the flag. Then we (actually John Sollid and John Stewart because they are tall) fastened the flag to a tree branch on one end and to another flag on the other end. So our flag will forever remain among the myriad of flags up there. Dorji said the thing to do is to get your flag blessed by a monk first rather than just put it up as-purchased, but I don't think he had the opportunity to do that.

We had lunch at the Hotel Jigmeling in Paro. And it was a good lunch. Eggplant again, a little different than yesterday's. And for dessert, deep fried slices of pears. Dessert is usually a tangerine; in one instance it was chunks of watermelon. Meals are almost always picked up from a buffet line. As you enter the buffet line, a waiter hands you your (clean) plate after wiping it with a (clean) napkin.

Next we visited the National Museum. The extensive collection of antiquities in the museum is interesting and impressive. The cylindrical, seven-floor building the museum is housed in is very interesting. It was built in the 17th century as a watchtower to overlook and protect the Rinpung Dzong below it (also built in the 17th century for protection, like the other dzongs). The building had decayed almost beyond saving, when the third king in 1968 had the fortuitous brainstorm to restore it to house the National Museum.

From the museum we moved toward the castle. On our way we stopped for quite a while to watch what to me was the highlight of the day. It was a group practicing outdoors to perform in an upcoming festival. They were not in festival clothing. Seven men and seven women were doing a type of folk dance. Four musicians provided the music – a simple little flute about the size of a piccolo; a Bhutanese lute, played by plucking like a guitar; the oriental string-and-bow instrument; and a long, flat stringed instrument played with little hammers. And there was a chorus of about half a dozen ladies singing. The dancers and the singers appeared to me to be college age.

Dorji gave us a tour inside the dzong (fortress or castle, which is also a temple, housing monks). This time we did not go in the altar room. Standing beside its depiction on a mural, Dorji gave us a detailed explanation of the Wheel of Life. This has to do with the several places you might be next sent after your life as a human, and what would happen to you there, and where you might go on from there. There is a judgement -- a judge who weighs your sins against your good deeds.

Then we had an hour to check out the short main street of Paro before moving on to our hotel.

This is a very nice, small hotel (only ten rooms) with a rustic flavor in a country/farm setting. It is owned by the same people who own our travel company (Overseas Adventure Travel). Everywhere we've been, our hotel rooms have been spacious and cheery. In getting to the hotel, we walked about a quarter mile from the bus on a dirt trail through the fields while our bags were brought with a farming implement – a rototiller-looking-rig-with-trailer.

Again there is no possibility of getting on the Internet with my own computer. The hotel has just one computer, which you can use for free. It wasn't in great demand. It works, and yet I have been unable in two tries to log onto AOL.


The currency in Nepal is the Ngultrum or Nu. It has the same exchange rate as the Inidan Rupee, namely about 2 U.S. pennies each. Rupees can be used in Bhutan, but the Nu cannot be used in India. I haven't seen any Nu coins at all; even a single Nu is a paper note.

The children all wear uniforms to school, and the uniforms are of the traditional costume.

If we're close up, before taking someone's photo, we always ask them if it's OK. At first I was timid to ask, but I've gotten over that. The answer is almost always positive; I've only had one negative response. Then we almost always show the “victim(s)” the picture on our digital camera screens, and they delight in seeing themselves that way – especially the younger ones.

It seems to me I don't see many older citizens – let's say 55 and over – out on the streets. Dorji says the elders tend to either stay at home or spend their days in temples.

I had read that Bhutan would be very expensive. In my experience here, the opposite is true.

Bernie :-)