Day 2 in Bhutan = flexibility

Since most of our group was "stupid tired" from the night before and days of minimal sleep....everyone was hungry for a leisurely breakfast this morning.

We were expecting to do a pretty vigorous 90 minute hike up to Tango Goemba Monastery, but after our tour guide assessed our group of 14 passengers, 1 who never showed so now we are 13 with limited mobility for several....he decided to alter our day and exclude another HIKE to see another MONASTERY. I'm not sure if it was the canes or the back braces sported by a few in our group or just the tired looks on some of the faces, but what ever it was brought on a new and varied itinerary for today.

Instead we started out our day with some of the activities that we actually on yesterdays itinerary. First stop to the Buddha Dordenma Project which means Bhutan will have the the largest and tallest statue of Lord Buddha. They hope the 169ft bronze Buddha will become the eight wonder of the world. Eventually it will contain over 100,000 eight-inch and 25,000 twelve-inch smaller statues of copper, guild-guilded gold and other materials. The back hillside will be a complete mandala representing the Buddha field or Pureland.

Then off to the National Textile Academy to see the young students learning techniques of fabric design, textiles, and museum studies. Another quick stop to visit National Institute for Arts and Crafts that offers a six year course on Bhutan's traditional arts that includes painting, wood carving, embroidery and statue making. Judging by the scenery, the Stuppas, the Monasteries....these are all important cultural treasures that need to be preserved.

Next was a visit to the local vegetable and fruit market and across the river a very colorful wooden bridge loaded with the colorful prayer flags to the craft market and center. Mo and Augie found a few treasures and purchased more T-Shirts for the World Famous Quilt....project and a hat for Augie that sported the National Motto on the brim....."Gross National Happiness". We saw lots of different rice products at the market and probably this is where they purchased our morning cereal that we ate for breakfast.

One of our last stops before lunch was a 10 minute trek up to Bhutan Takin Preserve. The Takins is the national animal of Bhutan which is believed to only exist in Bhutan. It is believed to be a bit of a mythical creature created by the "mad Buddha" and looks like a cross between a goat and a moose. Back to center of town for a buffet of Bhutanese food, odd mixes of minced beef, cabbage, chili and cheese dishes....enough to get full.

Lunch was followed by a quick visit to Folk Heritage Museum- a three storied rammed mud and timber building which is a replica of a century old traditional farmhouse. This is much like the hillside country dwellers of today. Simple, practical, and several signs of viral living. Some of our group opted to remain in town to shop and check out local culture and some went back to hotel Migmar to catch up on loss sleep. I think the altitude has zapped some of energy, others just run short on sightseeing. Only Piero Salussolia who joined us today of our group actually hired a car and driver to complete the originally planed hike to visit Tango Goemba Monastery.

Tonight we will meet up at 6 PM to head off to a culture dinner show which is a new addition to our original itinerary plan. Go with the flow as they say in Bhutan....do you really think you can be a Buddhist? Flexibility is always a good attribute for traveling with a group.

Mary Ann Mari