Amended 7-Sep-2009.
Bhutan is called the 'Land of the Thunder Dragon', because thunder was supposed to be made by a dragon in the sky. After being here a few hours, I'm inclined to call it 'Land of Dreams' because it's such an improbable place - the sort of place you might imagine in a dream.
The welcome at the Amankora Lodge was very warm, the facilities in my large room excellent and I instantly felt at home as part of the 'Amankora Family'. After a wash and change, I set off with my guide and driver to explore the district.
By this time, the weather was rather cold and raining. We went first to the National Memorial Chorten, which is a regular place of worship for large numbers of Bhutan people. I was particularly impressed by the building with a number of large prayer wheels. People were walking from wheel to wheel (always in a clockwise direction) spinning each wheel in turn. A number of elderly people were sitting by one chosen wheel, spinning it intermittently, praying with their 'rosary' of 108 beads, talking to other people or eating and drinking. My guide explained that there are a number of 'regulars' who will bring a packed lunch and spend all day here.
Then we drove a short distance to a weaving factory. Here a number of women and men were working at hand looms producing the colourful and sometimes complex patterns of the materials used both for everyday and special occasions. Upstairs, the owner of the factory was himself weaving a new pattern he had developed before putting it into production.
Next, we went to a paper making factory. The plant material used for the process only grows at particular altitudes and doesn't look very promising to start with. A number of women in an open shed were twisting thin strips of the materials into 'strings' about 3 feet long, prior to the material being boiled for 12 hours and soaked in wooden water tanks for a further six hours. Inside the workshop an electrically-powered machine is used to convert the material into paper pulp, looking a bit like cold porridge. This pulp is put in a sink with some sort of binder or glue and a skilled lady was dipping the paper-making frame into the sink to collect a little of the pulp which she spread across the frame. This process was repeated a number of times until she was happy with the result and then, with a series of deft movements, the new paper on its 'screen' was lifted out, transferred to the pile of sheets already produced and the screen put back in the frame to repeat the process for the next sheet. Every minute or so, a new sheet is produced. Nearby, there's a press used to squeeze excess water from a large pile of these sheets. A man was then transferring these sheets to a drying frame, heated so as to drive out the final moisture. A few strokes with a handbrush would produce the surface finish he wanted. I was very impressed with the sheer productivity of this small factory.
Next, we called at an Artist's Workshop where copies of the very intricate temple-style plaintings are produced. These are popular with foreigners for decorating houses. We'd seen the weaving of cloth for the female national garment, the 'Kira' but at the Artist's Workshop we saw antique 'Kira' for sale. These are also popular with foreigners as wall hangings.
We then drove back to the town (it's hard to call Thimphu a city) and parked near the Farmer's Centenary Market. I wanted to study the modern pedestrian footbridge over the river. Although modern, it's built in the traditional cantilever design with a massive stone entrance lodge on each bank. Of course, the bridge itself is covered with strings of coloured prayer flags. Then I walked round the Centenary Market, built to celebrate one hundred years of the monarchy in Bhutan a few years ago. It's a bit like a council market in England - properly built stalls in durable materials with a good roof and excellent electric lighting - but, like the British version, seems to lose some of the excitement of a disorganised, scruffy market.
Our last visit of the day was one of the most moving. We called at the Nunnery where about thirty shaven-headed women and girls commit themselves to a religious life. In the ante-chamber to the main temple, the nuns were reading and chanting to the accompaniment of drum, cymbals and two of the long, straight temple horns. With bare feet we entered the temple and prostrated ourselves three times to the main altar. This involves palms together first above the head, then to the throat and finally to the heart before getting on all fours and touching the floor with the forehead. I explained that I was happy to do this out of respect, but not out of belief. Oddly enough, I've not experienced the expected joint pains from this "bowing and scraping". With the chanting and haunting music in the background, it was quite an electrifying experience.
Finally, we drove the short distance back to the Thimphu Lodge. A nice touch in my bedroom was a present of a locally produced book - 'Dawa' - the story of a stray dog in Bhutan. Dinner, and then to bed to prepare for more adventures the next day.
