For a couple who haven't celebrated Xmas in a number of years, Bhutan is the place to be. There's not a hint of Santa Claus to be found anywhere and that's surprisingly refreshing- even their new year is on a different date so there's no sense that a holiday season and inexplicable shopping frenzy is underway in much of the rest of the world.We were in Paro for two reasons. First the only international airport in Bhutan is in Paro so if we wanted ...

After dodging our way through a few more neighborhoods of Jen N's phallic symbols we arrived in Trongsa and immediately headed to the Dzong to take in the opening day of the .... Festival. Since it was a rare winter festival, there were very few tourists, and because of the Blessing taking place in Punakha there weren't all that many locals attending so it felt like we had the place to ourselves. There is no doubt, however, that this festival was for the ...

To get to our next destination in Bhutan, Punakha, we had to do another of those multi hour drives along twisting mountain roads that all too often leave you dangling on the edge of a steep drop because the road is just barely wide enough for one vehicle- and then of course along comes another vehicle heading in the other direction (somebody has to back up to a wider spot in the road!). We even came across a relatively serious accident and apparently in Bhutan, ...

We've left the smallest Asian country and arrived in, arguably, the most hidden Asian country- because of a limited number of colours, I suspect that Deb P's crayon atlas doesn't even include Bhutan. Until recently, the tiny Kingdom of Bhutan remained tucked away in total isolation from the rest of the world. That segregation has helped to preserve its deep Buddhist traditions, and pristine landscapes. Some fun facts about Bhutan:* It's one of 43 ...