Lunch date in Thimphu

Sunday 11^th March

Creativity with bottle tops

I was very much looking forward to seeing Zangmo again and had asked the hotel proprietor, Kezang, to assist me with organizing a seat in a shared taxi to Thimphu.  He was very helpful and had requested that when there was a car with 3 people it should come and pick me up – around 8am.  About 8:20, I went to find him to check that the driver in question had not forgotten and had left without me.  No, there were just not enough people to leave yet!  Kezang offered to take me to the taxi rank, and I thought maybe that would be a good idea.  

As we were going down to the main road below the hotel, I commented that it seemed that I had missed the bus, which had just passed, and he inquired if I would like to catch the bus.  Given the lack of passengers for a share taxi, it seemed like a good option, so he chased it and flagged it down, procuring me a seat and advising me of the price.

Magnolia flowers like an untidy flock of birds

The road between Thimphu and Lobesa really is so much improved and in seat 1A I was in relative comfort on the bus:  a 2 hour journey for the princely sum of 75Nu – about $1.50.

The bus stopped at Thinleygang for breakfast and I admired the creative use of bottle tops to create colourful signs – a good example of reusing waste.  Half an hour later, the bus stopped again for a toilet stop – al fresco, of course.

I was able to relax and take in the scenery: roadside vegetable vendors with their rickety wooden stalls sheltered with the ubiquitous blue tarpaulins, along with the similarly sheltered makeshift cam

Prayer flags across the road and valleys

ps of the road workers.  These are mainly Indians, on temporary stays, and their children, in the main, do not attend school.  Although some of the bigger contractors, in the main centres, do provide some child care facilities.

Also walking along the side of the road were those going about their normal rural business, carrying gigantic handwoven baskets on their backs or swinging huge lethal looking blades that would be the envy of Crocodile Dundee.

We passed some other vehicles, including outbound buses headed across the country to destinations familiar from previous time in Bhutan. 

The chaos of the bus station does not reflect in a picture

The hills were misty, and somewhat mysterious.  The road, although vastly improved, shows evidence of landslides and undermining and subsidence in places.  There were the routine other hazards to avoid, including one dog suckling a puppy in the middle of the road.  As we entered the Royal Botanical Point on the way to Dochula, we passed a few monkeys – a sight that has ceased to excite me much after living with a very close troop in Dharamsala!

The roadside scenery continued to offer small streams in narrow ravines, some driving water prayer wheels and often notices by these forbidding the washing of cars.  We wove our way into and out of the side valleys as we  climbed towards the pass.  Prayer flags, of course, regularly adorned auspicious places.

Clocktower Square all dressed up for rally prize presentations

There were small purple – mauve flowers along the roadside of the higher parts of the route – I have no idea what they are but they are attractive.  There were also pink blossoms in bare trees – possibly peach trees and white magnolia flowers, perched like an untidy flock of birds in their trees.  We passed a few yak (or yakow – a bit difficult to tell at the distance)  As we reached the pass and the bus circled the 108 chortens, built to mark the loss of Bhutanese life in a border conflict a few decades previously, at least one of the older ladies in the bus had her hands together in prayer.  Unfortunately it was too misty to see the fabulous mountain views that this pass offers on a fine day.

With Zangmo's brother Tashi

The bus stopped at the immigration point for me to have my papers stamped and we proceeded, past a particularly colourful crematorium – cremation here is on open fire – and past people cultivating their fields in neat furrows, ready for planting as the rains start.

I reached Thimphu in very good time and was able to do Joan’s shopping and find that I could not do mine as well as visit the Ambient Café -  I was more interested in their toilet facilities than their cakes and coffee, but purchased some cake for a treat for that evening.

With Zangmo's son, Tenzin

I was drawn to the clocktower square by music and assumed that it might be a “voice of Bhutan” event, postponed from the previous week, but it turned out to be the presentations from an IndoBhutan car rally but I stayed to listen to the music and watch the formal arrival of the Speaker to the event.

With Zangmo at the restaurant

Zangmo eventually called to say they had arrived and minutes later we connected in the general vicinity of Clocktower Square with big hugs.  She was accompanied by her husband, her brother and her son and it was SOOO lovely to see them all, especially Zango. 

We went to a suitable location for lunch -  an “international 5 star restaurant” joked Zangmo and she ordered a good local lunch which we enjoyed with much conversation and taking of photos.

After lunch we drove to Buddha point and then to view Tashicoedzong before they dropped me back at the bus station to find a share taxi to Lobesa. 

Best friends at Buddha Point!

Upon our arrival at the bus station we were besieged by a crowd of noisy met – each soliciting passengers for his own taxi.  Zangmo came with me to one car to ensure that there were in fact 3 other passengers ready to leave and that the fare was only the standard 300Nu.  We bade affectionate farewells and I squished into the back seat with 2 others – these tiny taxis really are only 4-adult cars, not the 5 (including the driver) that they are licensed to transport.

The return was cool and misty and once back at the Lobesa taxi rank, I waved of the offer of more taxis and brought some fruit and vegetables from the market to accompany my leftover 3 hard boiled breakfast eggs to make an adequate dinner.

Tashicoedzong

I touched base with Joan to hand over her new wonju and she filled me in on her day and meeting with Ann and Moraine, the 2 BCF teachers in Thimphu, who’ve had a miserable first week in their school. While I’m sorry she had to manage that on her own, I’m rather glad I did not have to endure it…

The rest of my evening was spent preparing for class 5 English lessons.

It had been a delightful day.