Some favorite observations while wandering around Thimphu:
DOGS:
They are everywhere. There are lots of them. They seem to be homeless, but do not fawn or beg. During the day they collapse whenever they happen to be, and they sleep hard.
As dusk falls, they congregate, greeting old friends, and with much fanfare, go rat hunting. They were so noisy throughout the night that our guide asked the hotel staff to chase them away whenever the wild rumpus started, but it's pretty much a Sisyphean task.
TRAFFIC COP:
Where Bhutan's sole traffic light had its brief debut before complaints caused it to be removed, stands a colorful booth manned by a traffic-directing policeman. Armed with a whistle, he performs a endless, graceful ballet of slow, deliberate arm gestures, controlling the flow of cars around the traffic circle.
STREET GAMES
At night the streets come alive with women selling produce on the sidewalks, monks on their cellphones doing their shopping, and young people congregating in western attire.
I stopped in an alley to watch a group of men huddled around a clicking table. The game (carrom)looked to be a combination of pool and foosball. The gameboard was sprinkled with cornstarch to make it slippery, and the players snapped the big disk into the smaller ones, trying to get the little ones of "their" color to ricochet into the corner pockets.
This morning we stopped at the farmers market to see both the local and imported items sold there, but most of us immediately headed across the cantilevered bridge to the handicraft market, instead.
We next stopped at an archery match to observe the national sport of Bhutan. This is some serious skill. Two teams faced off at a distance of 145 meters (more than 1.5 football fields) to shoot at targets so small that they were indiscernable to me from the shooting position. You can see one behind the shooter below. When the target was successfully hit by the opposing team, the archers standing near the target quickly lined up in formation facing said target and executed a chanting dance to honor the shot.
We drove back to Paro for our final two nights in Bhutan. Our hotel here is a bit of a resort, nicely situated along the rushing river with a front row view of the airport runway.
The hotel rooms are spacious and nicely appointed. I find myself running to the window every time I hear jet engines because it is genuinely thrilling to see the planes take off, climb steeply and bank into turns to avoid the mountains.
Paro itself is a small, concentrated town filled with shops selling either handicrafts or groceries and goods to locals. It is a jumping off place for Tiger's Nest hikers, and home to a 17th century Dzong and watchtower.
Paro Dzong
Dishwashing in Paro
Tonight is our briefing for the trek to the Tatkshang Monastery. Everyone hopes for a good night's sleep.
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