Random Stuff #2

Because I have writer's block and thus can't seem to write about my incredible week in eastern Bhutan, here are some more random shots:

Yes, this grows like, um, a weed in Bhutan.  In the States, we call it...weed.  

A swallowtail butterfly--they are everywhere, and come in
blue, yellow, white, red. . .The caterpillars REALLY creepy
and poisonous..

Crazy Aussie Bob Chisholm, husband of Andrea, a teacher in Bumthang,
decided he wanted to be the first human to push a bike up the
nearly vertical trail to Tharpaling Monastery at 10,000 feet in
Chamkar, Bumthang.

A typical Bhutanese shop in Phong Me. Here, one can get chips, doma, potatoes,
gum, shampoo, noodles, umbrellas. . .Just about all the basics.
Nearly all shops in Bhutan look like this.  The young woman
was the salesperson, the daughter of the owner.

My dear friend Wangmo weaves, as do many of the women in Bhutan.  Here are three examples of sticks she wound with colored yarn to create a sample pattern for a kira material (some sample material is in the upper part of the picture).  Many women in Bhutan own hand made looms.  Nearly ALL textiles in Bhutan are hand crafted; the rare exceptions are inferior synthetic textiles imported from India or China sold mostly in Thimphu.  The yarns are also made and dyed by hand one step at a time, as they have been for centuries, using local wool and organic dyes.

A beetle.  They grow 'em BIG here.

Spring in Punakha is marked by the blooming of the lavender jacaranda trees;
at the Dzong, they are especially dramatic.

The Bhutan Canada Foundation teachers at our summer retreat at Ugyen Choling, a preserved grand estate in Bumthang where
we began our summer holidays.  Second from left in the back row is Kunzang Choden, the owner of the house (which has been in her family for many generations) and
a highly regarded author, historian and feminist in Bhutan.  Also pictured are BCF staffers and friends.

Tsa tsas (mini-chortens made to create good karma) piled up at
Merab Tsho, or "Burning Lake" in Bumthang.

A few words about Bumthang: The central dzongkhag of Bumthang is often hailed as the most beautiful state in Bhutan, and there are few reasons to dispute this claim (except that after we were in Bumthang, Brick and I went as far east as we could get and visited Merak and Sakteng--arguably more beautiful but in an untamed way. More on that in another post).  We had our summer retreat at the River Lodge in Bumthang, and were treated to hot showers (!!!!), wine, gin and tonics, real beds (!!!!!!) and a field trip to Ugyen Choling in the Tang Valley, a stunning, green, broad valley that encapsulates the Bhutan experience.  I will write more about Bumthang, and in particular the village of Ura, in another post.