BCF Summer Retreat and Tharpa Ling

At the very start of our summer holidays, Bhutan Canada Foundation hosted a three day retreat for all of us teachers at the River Lodge in Chamkar, just 40 minutes up the road for us. For some of the others this was at least one days travel, if not more, and many of the teachers we hadn’t seen since early February when we all went our separate ways.

To say I was excited to see them all is an understatement! And Remy had been saying for two weeks ‘I can’t wait any wonger!’. The first evening of our get together was a big party, catered beautifully by the River Lodge girls (on another post I will show you how to make ‘puta’ buckwheat noodles that Yeshi taught me before everyone arrived). But the host with the most was Mark, a friend who has lived on and off in Bhutan for 20 something years since his days as a volunteer teacher in the far east. He arrived with Nancy, the BCF director with a fridge full of imported wine and spirits, cheese and salami and crackers, coffee and bagels – you can’t imagine!

The first of us to arrive - the Chisholms and Colin and Lee with his puppy Chiang-Lu.

 

 

 

 

We danced and enjoyed ourselves til late, but were up early and in my case a bit worse for wear for the trip to Tang Valley. We have done this trip a couple of times already but as it is some of the most beautiful scenery in Bhutan we happily went again, first stopping at Membartsho and then continuing on up the valley to Ugyen Choling Palace.

Senge meditating at Membartsho.

Some of us walked part of the way to Ugyen Choling and Sarah had a go at helping a family with their threshing!

Ashi Kunzang Choden, who grew up in this former palace spoke to us of the history of the place and afterwards hosted an amazing buffet lunch of Bhutanese favourite dishes. It was so satisfying to sit on the rustic fence with our far-flung friends enjoying such a delicious feast and awesome view. Thank you BCF for arranging to bring us all together and giving us the opportunity to have such a lovely day!
 

 

 

Our retreat was over in a flash and we were all in a flurry to head in different directions across the country. Those who live west travelled east, those who live east travelled west as we did. But before leaving we enjoyed a couple of days locally to show our friends the beauty of Bumthang.

Our first adventure was to Tharpa Ling Monastery, about 40 mins from Chumey, high on a mountainside. We hadn’t been there before and had been waiting for an opportunity like this to go with a group of friends. Our friend Senge-la – a British BCF teacher and ordained Buddhist monk planned to go there to stay for a few days of his holiday so it was nice to accompany him and wish him well.

Bob, Senge, Sarah, Matt and Lucy approached Tharpa Ling from the Chamkar side and trekked up the hill, while Heather, her husband Rob who was visiting from Canada, Xavier, Remy and I took a taxi from Chumey. Bob was crazy enough to carry his bike up the mountain with help from Matt as he was looking forward to the 14km downhill ride on the other side. I know for sure that Sarah thought he was absolutely crazy to attempt it, and even Bob had moments of wondering what he’d got himself into.

The roof of Tharpa Ling as we climbed higher on the hill.

Heather and the boys walking.

Wild Asters growing by the path.

Rob very kindly carried Remy most of the way.

 

 

As they ascended one side of the mountain, we were also climbing the 30 minutes or so above Tharpa Ling to the crest of the mountain, Remy riding on Rob’s shoulders, and can you believe that at the very moment we peered over the peak, there was Bob, Senge, Matt, Lucy and Sarah arriving at the same time! So perfect! Bob was exhilarated after the climb with his bike, and we were both keen to see the view down the other side of the mountain – we could see all the way down to Chamkar and they were looking down on the monastery.

He felt pretty good to have made it to the top!

Senge played around offering Bob a prayer flag like a sacred white scarf.

Matt built up a sweat helping carry Bob's bike to the top!

Sarah, Matt and Remy at the top.

This walk was good training for Xavier for climbing Taktsang the following week.

View from the top down to Chamkar.


 

We had a picnic under the prayer flags at the top of the mountain below a shrine and then continued down to look at the monastery and leave Senge at his new home for the start of his holiday.

Xavier walking back with Lucy.

 

 

Feeling Like a Princess in Paro

After a couple of days in Thimphu, we were ready to join our friend Heather in Paro, so together with Arwen, another Aussie teacher, we drove our little van the hour distance to Paro. This is where Bhutan’s international airport is, and was the first glimpse we had of Bhutan when we arrived in January.

Heather met us at the bridge that crosses the river to Paro Dzong, so we walked up the long and winding cobblestone path to see this majestic administrative centre and monastery high on the hill overlooking the entire Paro valley. Inside we visited the temple and some monks were selling blessing strings and amulets. Bob chose a ‘phurba’ – dagger and I chose a ‘dorji jaram’ – double thunderbolt – both blessed with all sorts of good luck to overcome obstacles and live a long healthy life.

 

 

 

Arwen, Heather and Bob admiring the view from the Dzong.

 

 

After the Dzong, we went into Paro town and found a cafe for tea and cake which had al fresco seating overlooking the playground – pretty cool. We sat in the afternoon sunshine while the kids enjoyed a play.

Xavier made us laugh by misreading the sign 'Take-away Bacteria'.

 

Alphabet pictures surrounded the playground.

Hanging out at Paro playground.

 

Heather had stayed the previous night at Gangtey Palace Hotel and she and Arwen decided to stay there again for a special treat. We were undecided so took the girls there and once we saw this beautiful place it only took a moment to decide we would splash out a bit too on the opportunity to stay at this restored Bhutanese home, tastefully decorated with potted plants, statues, artwork and historical artefacts.  

Paro Dzong features on the 10 ngultrum note.

 

 

 

Gardens alive with colourful flowers surrounding a large chorten overlooked the Paro valley and across to the Paro Dzong which caught the last of the day’s sunshine. A sense of peace and calm surrounded me as I sat on a bench looking over the valley while the boys played hide and seek among the gardens. A precious moment to catch my breath and relax.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

We arranged to have dinner at 7pm and were served a meal that included typical Bhutanese fare, bland and toned down for tourist tastes, so I ordered some ezay (chilli salsa) to liven it up a bit. This is what happens after living here for six months!

The boys loved the idea of 'topping and tailing' on this cute improvised bed!

 

If you look closely you can see the Dzong through the window - a room with an awesome view.

 

The experience of staying in Gangtey Palace made our Paro stay so much richer – seeing that magical view across to the Dzong as the sun set, I felt like a princess, and could imagine that if you had limited time in Bhutan as most tourists do, just a day spent here would fulfil your dreams of the mystical land of Bhutan.

Tiger's Nest

Paro is the gateway for Bhutan and where we first arrived in January. That day we ate lunch in town and then swiftly travelled to Thimphu an hour away, and were left with only a fleeting glimpse of the city.

 

This time we chose to stay in Paro for two nights mainly so that we could tackle Bhutan’s most famous tourist destination – Taktsang or Tiger’s Nest, so named because Guru Rinpoche flew here on the back of a tigress to subdue a local demon. Afterwards he meditated for three months in a small cave in the rock face. It felt to me that a year in Bhutan would not have been complete without reaching the monastery perched high on a sheer mountain side in deep forest, but perhaps I didn’t clearly think through how we would get there with two little kids.

When we arrived at the base of the climb we looked up and were amazed at the sight of the monastery high above us, clouds blowing past.

We're going to climb up there?!?!?!

Luckily our friend Heather joined us and she had already done the walk twice this year, so it was like having a guide. Having said that, she steered us up a very steep path, away from the obvious route to the top, and for a while I was wondering if we were really going in the right direction. We could see nothing but thick forest and occasional paintings on rocks, no view above us to show us where we were headed.

Where are you taking us Heather???

The boys break into spontaneous 'Om Mani Padme Hums' when they see the prayer written on rocks!

Beautiful wildflowers were all along the way.

 

 

Eventually after a hard two-hour uphill walk, we reached the Tiger’s Nest Cafeteria which Heather told us was 2/3 of the way to the top.

Butterlamp near the cafeteria.

We pushed on, still not seeing the million-dollar view of Taktsang which was hidden behind clouds. Light rain added to the slushy mud trail, and Xavier got quite grumpy, but ultimately he managed to keep on walking all the way to the top. It was too far for Remy, even though we plied him with treats, so Bob found a way to carry him on his back inside his backpack so he was hands-free.

 

Lichen hanging eerily from trees.

 

 

 

Finally as we were drawing closer and closer to the Monastery, the clouds cleared momentarily and we could see how far we had climbed and how close we were to the monastery, but we didn’t realise that the last part of the walk is arguably the hardest.

Family snap as we catch our first glimpse of Taktsang. Xavier was in a bad mood after the hard climb and wouldn't smile!

Seven hundred steps descend the rocky mountainside, and fortunately metal railings keep walkers safe as long as you stay on the path. We heard of a sad story of a tourist falling to her death this year from somewhere on this hike and with this in mind we were extra careful, but it seems that if you stay on the path and have favourable weather conditions you would be fine, even with children.

Steep stairs and a beautiful view far down to Paro.

Just before you reach the monastery there is a dramatic waterfall flowing down the vertical mountain and spraying water vapour all around as you cross a little bridge and then walk up to the monastery complex.

Lucky for us, it was a special occasion and the monks had just finished a puja (ceremony) where an enormous amount of tsog (offerings) had been blessed and were now being given out to visitors. The kids were encouraged to take handfuls of chocolates, chips, biscuits and lollies and of course they were more than willing – Xavier thought it was better than heaven!

 

 

We had only half an hour to see the various temples before they close up at 1pm for a lunch break. This was enough time though to see the temples, which were beautiful and inspiring. It was fascinating to walk from one to the other up steep concrete and stone stairs as clouds circled us. As the monks closed up for lunch we sat at the entrance to the monastery and broke open our picnic supplies, savouring for us at least, the once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to be in this amazing place that few ever get the chance to see. Heather on the other hand has now visited three times and plans to come two more times with visitors later in the year.

Leaving the monastery means ascending those seven hundred steps before meeting the slushy mud path all the way back down the mountain. Remy was tired and it was my turn to carry him up – good exercise!

 

We had clear views of Taktsang all the way down and were amazed where we had just been.

With regular stops and lots of encouragement we made it down to the cafeteria where we waited out a rain shower inside with tea and biscuits. It took us about three hours of slow walking and plenty of rest stops to reach the top and the same to return. I didn’t feel like the walk was particularly hard, but we did take it at an easy pace. I would think that anyone with moderate fitness would be able to make the climb, and a child of 5 or more with lots of breaks and encouragement.

Nearly all the way down - Taktsang is high on the hill and you can see the Cafeteria in among the trees.

 

As we came to the clearing at the bottom of the climb where we began in the morning, we looked up and felt a real sense of achievement. We were so proud of Xavier for being able to walk up and down by himself – it shows how much he has grown up in the past six months. He felt strong and proud of himself too – an enormous achievement in his life, and an opportunity to learn that although there were moments when he’d had enough and wasn’t enjoying himself, the reward of completing the hike was worth it all.

 

 

What an achievement for a five year old kid!

 

We returned tired, but exhilarated, to our hotel Pegyel, which had a swimming pool. We had decided to stay there thinking how good it would be to have a swim after the trek. By the time we arrived, although it had been a warm afternoon, the sun had set and the water was too cool for me. Bob and Heather were both brave enough for a quick dip though with some hardy locals who don’t mind swimming in conditions that I consider wintery!

 



View from the car as we left Taktsang - if you look closely far up on the hill was where we were!

 

 



Beautiful view from our hotel room window.

 

The boys fell asleep on the drive home, so we tucked them in for an early night and while they slept in our room we enjoyed a simple room-service Indian meal with Heather and planned our trip back to Thimphu the next day.

While we were walking, Xavier had reminded us that Taktsang is in the book we have at home in Australia called ‘1000 Places To See Before You Die’, so at the end of this day we were feeling pretty happy to have crossed at least one off!