A trip to the land of happiness

I love traveling. It not only lifts my spirit, but also enriches me both mentally and physically. Over and above, my hobby of traveling has shaped and broadened my worldview. Out of that urge to explore new horizon, I decided to travel to Bhutan. Bhutan is a small and locked country in the foothills of mighty Himalayas. One can travel to Bhutan by road as well as by air.

The only airport of Bhutan is situated in the beautiful valley of Paro which is about 50 km away from Thimphu, the capital of Bhutan. But I personally prefer train journey that is why, I boarded a train from Guwahati and got down at Hasimara Railway Station, which is nearly railway station to Indo-Bhutan border. From Hasimara I took a taxi and went to Phuentscholing, the border town of Bhutan. After taking permit in the immigration office in Phuentscholing, I started my journey to Thimphu.

Thimphu is not only the capital but also the largest city of the kingdom of Bhutan. It is situated at the western central part of Bhutan. The city is spread out laterally in a north-south direction on the west bank of Wang Chuu river. The culture of Bhutan is fully reflected in Thimphu, be it literature, religion,customs,national dress code, the monestic practices, music, dance or media. Thimphu contains most of the political buildings in Bhutan, including the National Assembly of the newly formed parliamentary democracy and Dechencholing palace, the official residence of the king. Another important landmark of Thimphu is Buddha Dordenma.

 It is a gigantic, meditative statue of lord Buddha that sits overlooking the southern path of Thimphu. At a height of 169 feet, it is the largest Buddha statue in the world. It can be seen from practically anywhere when driving around Thimphu.

After spending a couple of days in Thimphu, I headed for Paro, the 2^nd largest city in Bhutan.It is historic town with many sacred sites. The Dungtse Lhakhang is a 15th century temple situated in Paro. There is a royal palace named Ugyen Peril palace. Member of royal famliy take rest in that palace when passing. About 10 km outside Paro town is the famous Taktshang Hermitage or Tigers’ nest, on the face of a sheer 3281 feet cliff.

This is highly sacred to the Bhutanese people because they believe that Guru Rinpoche , the father of Bhutanese Buddhism  landed here on the back tigress. After visiting Tigers’ nest I started my homeward journey with an enriched mind.

Bhutan is a calm, quiet and happy country. Bhutan measures prosperity by gauging its citizens’ happiness level, not by the GDP(Gross development process).The phrase GNH(Gross national happiness) is a measurment of  collective happiness of the nation. It is a term which was coined by Bhutans’ 4^th dragon king Gigma Singye Wangchuck in 1972.  This is based on the cultural values and the deeply rooted love for humanity and life which us Indians need to learn a lot from.

Abinash Kalita