Buddhist worshippers don’t have to fend off tourists

In Bhutan’s capital Thimphu, the locals have the holy sites almost to themselves.
What you see at the city’s National Memorial Chorten, for instance, is devout Buddhists going round and round the holy stupa, but hardly any tourists.
It’s the beginning of the tourist season in Bhutan, but so far the number of foreigners visiting this remote [...]

Of monks and masks

Witnessing a tsechu in Bhutan is an experience that is hard to describe and impossible to forget.
A tsechu is a three or four day religious festival and the highlight of the Buddhist year. It consists mainly of sacred dances, performed by monks in fantastic costumes and masks.

For non-Buddhists, the stories told in the dances and [...]

Window shopping

Many shops in Bhutan aren’t actually stores you can go into.
They are basically just store windows.
You do your shopping from the outside and tell the shopkeeper inside what you want.
And to make things easier for children or smaller Bhutanese, there is usually a little stepladder in front of the shop window
You’ll often also [...]

Miss Bhutan 2008

The Miss Bhutan 2008 Beauty Pageant this weekend was the first beauty pageant I’ve attended. And it was probably the last.
The evening didn’t get off to a good start, so maybe that’s partly to blame for my dissatisfaction with the whole event.
The contest was due to begin at six p.m. But as we entered the [...]

When will the officer turn green?

Thimphu is the world’s only capital city without a single stop light.
Downtown traffic in Thimphu usually isn’t too bad. But in recent years, the number of new cars has increased. So you’re liable to see a rush-hour traffic jam even here.
Nevertheless, the 70 000 citizens of this Himalayan capital don’t want any traffic lights on [...]

Where monks go shopping

This week, you can see even more Buddhist monks on the streets of Thimphu than usual. The city is bathed in the saffron red color of their robes.
The Buddhist monks and nuns have come to town for the Tshechu, a four-day religious festival. It’s the highlight of the social year and always takes place [...]

The Divine Madman’s phallus

WARNING: If you feel offended by the folkloristic depiction of male genitalia, do not continue reading this article and do not look at the pictures.

Okay, now that we’ve got that out of the way, let’s take a closer look at the significance of the phallus in Bhutanese folklore and legend.
Among the many weird and wonderful [...]

Life is good for animals in Bhutan

Most Bhutanese are devout Buddhists. And one of the cornerstones of Buddhism is that it’s wrong to kill animals because they are part of the divine creation.
Unfortunately, most Bhutanese also like eating meat. And that opens up a dilemma: if you want to eat meat, you have to slaughter animals.
But what can you do as a [...]

The hidden restaurants of Thimphu

There are a lot of good restaurants in Bhutan’s capital Thimphu.
For non-locals, the question is just how to find them.
At home in Europe, I’m used to most restaurants being on the ground floor, usually with an illuminated sign and a welcoming doorway.
They’re easy to find, vying for my attention (and my money, of course).
Not so [...]

Blood, blood everywhere!

When you walk through downtown Thimphu, you’re liable to think that someone just got mugged on the street or lost his front teeth in a fight.
Everywhere you go, you see red spots that look like blood.
They’re on the streets and sidewalks, but also on the walls of houses. And they don’t look pretty.
But the [...]