And it's not just because of the lack of a need for a visa, the acceptance of the Indian rupee as legal tender and the forthcoming discounts at shops in Paro and Thimphu. But the sheer tranquility offered by the rich biodiversity hotspot (home to 770 bird species and 5,400 species of plants) helps to gain mental equilibrium. The ecoregion, dotted with chortens, dzongs, monasteries and lhakhangs, really lives up to the international acclaim for its high gross national happiness.
India shining
For a country whose roads are built by the Indian contract labor, whose royal military service is trained by the Indian army, that which relies on the Indian Airforce for air assistance and whose national dish of Ema datschi is cooked in hugely imported Indian cheese, the Bhutanese warmth for Indians is palpable. An incident at a handicraft shop in Thimphu speaks for itself. One Indian tourist, part of Doe's Eco Tours, inquired into the seemingly Indian designs on the Bhutanese Kira (national dress). "Bharat se bahut kuch lete hain... Indian beer aur Indian TV serial, dono bahut acche hain..." said the shop owner taking a small break from the Ekta Kapoor fare on his small screen.
In fact, every shop has an overt dual charge system, the inexpensive slot for Indians and the high-end rates for Americans or Europeans (paying 200$ tariff per day).
A courteous culture
Generally speaking, the Bhutanese are mild-mannered and soft-spoken. The Buddhist religious influence also reflects in their day-today conduct of life. The pace of life is relaxed and retains peculiar old world innocence. Petty thieving, pick pocketing, cheating, bribery are the vices that have not yet touched the local Bhutan population (670,000). Tourist guides do not demand exorbitant tips, hotel staff does not mislead and no driver honks on the road, however bad the jam. Incidentally, Thimphu is the only world capital with no traffic signals. The traffic policeman in the main square is therefore a sight to watch. Another sight that epitomises Bhutan's quiet is its only international airport at Paro. It is built on a plot (smaller than Shivaji Park) located in the deep Paro valley, surrounded by peaks as high as 18,000 feet. It is considered one of the world's most enigmatic airports as flights at Paro are allowed only under visual meteorological conditions and are restricted to daylight hours.
The Bhutanese identity
The Bhutanese law requires all Bhutanese citizens to wear the national dress in public areas and as formal wear - that is the kneelength robe for men (gho) and the ankle-length keera for women. Social status and ranking determine the texture, colors, and embellishments that go with the garments. Multiple-coloured scarves and shawls are also barometers of social standing. For Indians, the Bhutanese culture, cuisine, music and couture seems an extension of India's North-Eastern states. The keera, for instance, goes very close to the unstitched robes draped by Khasi, Garo and Jaintia women in Meghalaya. Parts of Paro can easily pass off as those in Shillong or Aizwal. However, for those unexposed to the oriental cultures, Bhutan's physical features stand out as plain exotic, specially elements like the flying phallus symbols hung on house doors that signify fertility. As Doreen D'Sa, regularly operating Bhutan tours over last ten years, remarks, "Bhutan is pristine and unlike other harried holiday spots. And yet it is only in the last five years that Indians have put Bhutan on their tourist map. Usually, the Japanese and the Europeans and of course, the Americans chose Bhutan." In 2010, over 27,196 tourists world visited Bhutan.
A role model in conservation
The Bhutanese respect for nature translates in effective efforts twoards ecological conservation. The kingdom has protected over 65 percent of the land area under forest cover. It has designated more than a quarter of its territory as national parks, reserves and other protected areas. Their effort to protect its national animal - Takin - is also exemplary. The love for its botanical reserves is seen in the prompt upkeep of an amazing variety of magnolias, rhododendrons, the primulus, the blue poppies and other epiphytic orchids. Bhutan is a naturalist's delight.
Bhutan cares for its history too, as is evident in the Paro Museum, the National Library and the Folk Heritage Museum, Thimphu. Bhutan's philatelic collection impressively traces the history of India-Bhutan relations. The stamps of Mahatma Gandhi are telling.
The must-sees
There are many must-sees in Bhutan, specially the less-visited Central Bhutan's Bumthang valley. But for those restricting themselves to Western Bhutan, two places of worship stand out vividly: the Punakha dzong and the Taktsang monastery. The Punakha Dzong, built at the confluence of the Pho Chu and Mo Chu rivers in 1637, has been damaged by four fires, an earthquake, and flood water. But the Dzong has been fully restored to its original glory and has a compelling presence. Before Thimphu, Punakha was the capital of Bhutan.
The trek to Taktsang is a spiritual experience in itself. The monastery is located 10 kms to the north of Paro and hangs on a rugged precipitous cliff about 900 metres (3,000 ft) above the valley. It is said that Guru Rinpoche, the father of the Bhutanese sect of Mahayana Buddhism, arrived in Paro Valley more than a millennium ago on the back of a legendary tigress. He meditated for three months in a cave where a monastery was later built and called Taktsang Lhakhang or Tiger's Nest.
Visitors to Paro reach the monastery by ascending either on foot (around 3000 ft) or on horseback for about three hours to Tiger's Nest. The clear view of Mount Jhomolhari is a once-in-a-lifetime gain of the trek.
But more than reaching the top, it is the trek that is spiritually electrifying... a personal victory.
Sumedha Raikar-Mhatre leisure.mirror@indiatimes.com
Anda sedang membaca artikel tentang
Bhutan is 'destination happiness'
Dengan url
http://masalahurat.blogspot.com/2013/02/bhutan-is-destination-happiness.html
Anda boleh menyebar luaskannya atau mengcopy paste-nya
Bhutan is 'destination happiness'
namun jangan lupa untuk meletakkan link
Bhutan is 'destination happiness'
sebagai sumbernya
0 komentar:
Posting Komentar