June 23

Good morning from Thimphu, Bhutan! Our hotel is in the city center and we are loving this quaint capital city of 90,000. We were woken this morning by a sunrise over Buddha on the hill, the sound of birds chirping and....a pack of barking dogs marking their territory on the streets below.

Yesterday was another early wake up call, as we had a 6:30am flight to Paro. The flight into Paro was as astonishing as we had heard. Upon descent, Everest could be seen in the distance and as we approached Paro, we dipped down eye level with green, lush mountains. We wove in and out of mountains and at times, it seemed a wing could tickle the mountainside. It was beautiful and exhilarating and the reward for landing was exiting the plane onto the tarmac in front of an ornate, traditional Bhutanese style airport where tourists hung around taking pictures. Upon exiting the airport, we were greeted by our tour guide and escorted to a blue and white coaster van that seats exactly 20 people. Our students helped toss our luggage onto the roof where the driver and guide tied them down... all in the traditional gho dress.

Our guide, Nangay, demonstrating how to don the national dress.

We had a full day of sightseeing, starting first with the oldest bridge in Bhutan which dates back to the 15 century. This chain suspension bridge was in use up until only 6 months ago but due to safety, we were only able to look at it from afar and enjoy the new, more secure suspension bridge. After a delicious lunch and a quick check-in at the hotel in Thimphu, we traveled  to Tashichhodzong, or the fortress of bliss - a government building and sacred space where monks reside. The massive white buildings with ornate paint, beg a sense of awe and reflection. The most amazing part...we were some of the only tourists. One of the monks offered us a sweet, milky lentil soup that was left over from their ceremony. We turned prayer beads, explored and learned about Bhuddism, the King and the rich history. 

Group photo of the suspension bridge.  The original is on the right the usable on the left.

From there we traveled to the National Memorial Stupa, the new 8th wonder of the world-the largest sitting Buddha in the world, a farmer’s market and an archery match. Archery is the national sport of Bhutan. The field is the size of 1.5 soccer fields and the target is no larger than a watermelon. The players heckle each other, dance when someone hits the target and get incredibly close to the flying arrows. We could have stayed and watched for hours! 

The effects of jet lag are still hitting us but we remain in good spirits...sometimes too good of spirits on our tiny bus... teenagers are SO loud when they’re belting out “Our Heart Will Go On”! We have another full day today and will update soon! 
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