INTO THE TANG VALLEY

27th Apr 2026 

Mountain view to the north of Bhutan

The mountain Gangkhar Peunsum is the highest mountain in Bhutan. It is on the border with Tibet and stands at 24,836 ft. It is the highest unclimbed mountain in the world. Four failed attempts were made in 1985/86. Subsequently Bhutan put a ban on all mountaineering on 'spiritual' grounds. Or maybe because they just don't want the hassle of rescuing stranded mountaineers! It will, as things stand, remain unclimbed.

On Monday morning we set off on another hike starting by crossing the Chamkhar Chhu river somewhere in the north of the Tang valley. These 'hikes' are getting longer and more arduous. This one covered, at a guess, about 6 miles over some steep up and downhill tracks and took about 4 hours.

Left: These flimsy looking swaying suspension bridges were a common means of crossing the rivers.

Right: Rhododendrons, amongst other flowering trees and shrubs, feature largely on the hillsides. There were large areas of them in the distance.

Left: We kept stopping when someone spotted a bird in a tree. Kingfishers were common down by the rivers.

Right: .....and Dave spent some time focusing his long lens on the 'tufted thingummy tit'. or whatever it was, hiding in a tree 50 yards away.

Still no sign of the reputed snow leopards, tigers, red pandas, deer or wild boar etc. or any other four legged wild creatures for that matter (I think someone saw a squirrel). Maybe they live higher up and/or avoid humans.

Left: There were some good views down to the valley below.

Right: ....and another.

The going included some steep climbs and descents up and down often very narrow tracks. I failed to get a photo to show this as it was exhausting enough just trying to keep up! I seemed to manage OK but one or two of the others were beginning to struggle at times. Sonam always led the way and Tensin brought up the stragglers in the rear.

Right: : Having a breather in a sheltered spot. The weather had been warmish today and no rain. So far.

Left: We ended up at about 1.15pm at a Nunnery (female monastery). Similar build to the others. Left: The entrance to the temple here.

There were no nuns present (or they were hiding). 

Right: The courtyard at the nunnery featuring the absent nuns. None! Out shopping perhaps?

Left: Then on with a quick drive to the nearby Ogyen Chuling Palace. This privately owned manor, farm buildings and museum originate from the 14th century and the present buildings and homestead from 1898. We had a decent lunch in the farmhouse.

The museum is on four floors. We were given a comprehensive briefing on it by the lady proprietress....too comprehensive perhaps. The stairs between the floors were almost vertical very old (18th century?) ladders. They would certainly fall foul of all the 'elf 'n safety' regulations in UK. The many museum exhibits featured all areas of mainly 18th/19th century life. They included domestic appliances, agricultural equipment, weapons, musical instruments etc.etc. Right: Some domestic stuff.

Left: Some long horns. Similar instruments feature in the noise played in the temples.

Right: A notice explains the horns.

Left: There were many such 'notices'. This one explains the significance of mythical serpents and water spirits. Throughout this country and the Buddhist religion in general there is a plethora of weird and wonderful myths, fables and legends concerning odd creatures (and people). To be honest, I rather lost track!

Right: A 'black faced' clown on display (with another willy). I believe these black faces, masks, can also depict 'wrathful deities'. Masks and costumes feature largely in meaningful ceremonies and dances.

That was all for the day. We were then taken to a Homestay somewhere in the area (I was rather lost by now) which was to be our home for the next two nights. The Homestay is basically a private farmhouse where they provide bedrooms and a dining/sitting room. Some bedrooms had shared bathrooms. For some reason I had the luxury of a double 'en-suite' room to myself. Our hosts prepared good buffet meals and were most charming and helpful. As per most days we all assembled before supper for a briefing by Sonam on the next day's activities and program.

.....and we are not even halfway through this tour!

ONWARDS TO JAKAR

 26th Apr 2026

Inside a typical Buddhist temple in Bhutan

Onwards the next morning on a long mountainous minibus journey to, eventually, Jakar in the Bumthang District. We surmounted four high passes over 10,000ft amsl en-route; Lonala, Pelela, Yongtougla and Kikila and passed the town of Trongsa. More up and down and hairpin bends all skilfully negotiated by our indefatigable driver Tensin. Below: some views on the way.

Left: A typical valley and there were yaks and cows dotted around in the fields below. In fact the cows, of various colour and description, were everywhere (including in the forests and on the streets in towns and villages) and frequently on the roads at all altitudes. They had owners, often elderly women it seemed, who somehow managed to wander about to round them up. I rather forgot to take pics of the cows. There was an awful lot of cow dung around.

Right: Although I did get some photos of yaks. We passed this couple on the road. I believe they are used as pack animals and their abundant wool is used in clothing. Warm furry 'yackets' perhaps?

Left: Another different coloured hairy yak.

We passed this large solar panel array (right). As well as solar power Bhutan is blessed with many large glacial rivers which provide a substantial amount of hydro-electricity. In fact hydro-electricity is one of their chief and financially rewarding exports to India. 

Left: There was much agriculture in the countryside. The main crops were rice, wheat, potatoes and other vegetables and spices such as chilli. The chilli being encountered in the previously mentioned and notoriously breath-taking 'chilli cheese' served at most meals.

Right: A typical Bhutanese dog. They seemed to spend all day comatose and all night barking. I'm not sure what use they were put to and didn't appear to be pets. Maybe they guarded the livestock and crops at night (hence knackered by morning) from marauding packs of wild boar which, I was told, caused much damage. The locals spend a lot of time and effort building wire fences (sometimes electrified) and walls to protect their crops from these swine. 

We stopped for a coffee and break at the Willing Waterfall café. There was a decent waterfall....

Right: ....and a café with a wool and weaving shop attached; The Chumey Yathra Weaving Centre. The proprietress gave us a long and detailed lecture and demo on how various dyes were produced and how the weaving worked. I became rather baffled by the complexity of it all.

Then over the Kikila pass into the district of Bumthang where we stopped, near Jakar, at a 'homestay' house for lunch. I was rather disoriented as to exactly where we were. Left: Our lunch.

A cup of tea after lunch  which, as always,  featured a drop of saki. Those hats? They are traditional and more often have conical tops. Not much good in a wind.

Right: A traditional conical Bhutanese hat.

After lunch we adjourned to the garden where we were introduced to two of Bhutan's major sports; archery and darts. The normal archery ranges are about 145 metres long and the darts range is up to about 35 metres. We were playing on a much reduced distance (it was just an intro!). As it happens Sonam was, some time ago, in the Bhutan National Archery team which won the silver medal in a championship competition in Thailand.

Left: Sonam showed us how to do it. The range was only about 15 metres.

We each had three arrows to fire. Full of confidence, I took aim and missed every time. I nearly scored with my final shot. I don't think the others did any better! See below my pathetic efforts.

We then tried the darts. These are not like darts in a British pub. They are much larger and weigh a couple of pounds. Again, over a short distance, about 10 metres, we all missed the target. More practice needed.

Then on by bus and a short (by previous standards) hike to the Kurjey Monastery (right) built in the 17th century and further added on to in the 20th century. This is one of Bhutan's most sacred pilgrimage sites. It is famous for containing a rock cave where Guru Rinpoche (the legendary 8th century reincarnation of Buddha) meditated leaving an imprint of his body. As you shall discover he spent an awful lot of his life meditating. It also serves as the final resting place for Bhutan's first three kings.

It contains three interconnecting temples. We visited two of them. It was Sunday and the monks were celebrating their Sunday Thanksgiving ritual. I snuck a couple of illegal photos. 

Left: Sitting uncomfortably on the floor again.

Right: There was a constant murmur of monks chanting prayers. Interestingly the chief monk sitting on the chair led the prayers and chanted in a very weird low pitched growling voice. Apparently it takes a lot of practice to use your voice in this way. It sounded very eery and supernatural.

Left: The wall surrounding this compound had 108 small stupas/chortens on it. That magic number '108' again. You might just make them out of you enlarge this photo.

We had not yet had our fill of monasteries! As an afterthought we were taken to another, even older, but smaller, 15th century monastery nearby (which seemed devoid of monks) but contained some highly regarded and treasured murals painted by a famous artist in the 15th century (forgotten who). Unfortunately these wall paintings were very faded and peeling and apparently could not be restored.

That was it for the day. Phew, a long distance had been covered and so now to our hotel, outside Jakar, for supper and the night. This was the Mountain Resort Hotel complex (right) and it was again a very comfortable hostelry with impeccable service.

PS. Just a mention of the weather in these parts. It is very variable, as you might expect in mountainous terrain. It ranged from blue skies and moderately warm, to low cloud and hazy, to rain showers and quite chilly at altitude. There was also the frequent rumbling of thunder (that Thunder Dragon again) and occasional hail storms. The paths got quite muddy at times and we always carried a waterproof jacket. So far we had not experienced any prolonged bad weather.

....and we have only completed day 5!

BUILDING DECORATION IN BHUTAN

I mentioned in the previous blog that I never discovered how buildings in Bhutan were so beautifully and ornately decorated. So, I consulted a friend of mine who heads the renowned OMPITA research organisation. This was his reply which you might find interesting. I certainly did: 

Dear Uncle Matt,

I dusted off the OMPITA Crystal Ball and asked it how on earth the vast quantities of exquisite and intricate carvings that abound on almost every building in Bhutan are achieved.  It gave a very interesting and informative response:

They are achieved through Parzo, Bhutan’s traditional carving craft, and Shingzo, its equally ancient woodworking tradition — both of which rely on hand tools, apprenticeship lineages, and nail‑free timber construction. The sheer quantity and refinement you see on Bhutanese buildings comes from a system where entire teams of specialist carvers work for months or years on a single structure, using techniques that have changed remarkably little since the 7th–17th centuries.

What actually produces all those intricate carvings?

1. Parzo — the carving discipline

Parzo is one of Bhutan’s Zorig Chusum (the 13 traditional arts). It covers carving in wood, stone, and slate, but wood dominates architecture. Carvers produce:

• Window frames (rabsel)
• Cornices and brackets
• Door surrounds and lintels
• Dragons, lotus scrolls, cloud motifs, auspicious symbols

These motifs are overwhelmingly Buddhist in meaning, and carving is considered a devotional act.

2. Shingzo — the structural woodworking

Shingzo is the carpentry tradition that builds the timber skeleton of dzongs, temples, and houses. Its defining feature: no nails. Instead, builders use:

• Interlocking mortise‑and‑tenon joints
• Wooden pegs and wedges
• Gravity and compression

This creates frames that last centuries and provide the carved surfaces Parzo embellishes.

How the carving is physically done

3. Hand‑tool carving

Despite modern tools existing, traditional carvers still rely on:

• Chisels of varying widths
• Mallets
• Fine knives
• Hand‑drills for piercing patterns

Each piece is carved from local woods — walnut, cypress, pine, blue pine — chosen for grain and durability.

4. Team‑based production

Large buildings (dzongs, monasteries) require teams of master carvers and apprentices working simultaneously. During the great dzong‑building era of the 17th century, hundreds of craftsmen were mobilised for years at a time. The same model continues today for restorations.

5. Apprenticeship lineages

Skills are transmitted through:

• Family lines
• Monastic workshops
• The National Institute of Zorig Chusum (Thimphu), which trains new generations in traditional methods

This ensures stylistic continuity across centuries.

Why there are so many carvings on every building

6. Religious symbolism

Carving is not decorative “flourish” — it is religious protection, invoking auspiciousness and warding off misfortune. Thus even modest farmhouses have carved windows and cornices.

7. State‑driven architectural tradition

Bhutan’s major building phases — especially under Zhabdrung Ngawang Namgyal — institutionalised carved architecture. Dzongs set the aesthetic template for the entire country.

8. Abundant timber

With forests covering ~71% of Bhutan, high‑quality carving wood has always been plentiful, enabling large‑scale decorative work.

🧩 The result

A Bhutanese building is essentially a collaboration between carpenters and carvers, where:

• Shingzo creates the structural timber frame
• Parzo overlays it with symbolic, intricate, hand‑carved ornament
• Teams of artisans work in parallel
• Techniques remain medieval in method but astonishingly refined

This is why even a small village house in Bhutan can look like a piece of sacred art.

Left: Talking of houses, private houses have green roofs, whereas  Government/Official buildings have red roofs (better to target them!?). The roofs are universally made from corrugated iron. As a form of 'eco-preservation' they do not use slate or timber. Most houses appear to have a raised ventilated section to allow fresh air circulation in the loft areas where vegetables are stored.

Right: These single white, yellow, red and blue prayer flags are flown on the roofs. These are to 'catch the wind and carry prayers, mantras and goodwill out into the world'. They are replaced every year with great ceremony. Anything for a party!

AROUND GANGTEY

 25th Apr 2026

The temple in the courtyard of the Gangtey Monastery

After a lack of sleep due to the thunderstorm and another decent breakfast at the Hotel Dewachen we were taken to the Gangtey Monastery. This 15th century monastery is the largest in Bhutan and host to the biggest festival in Bhutan held on 11th November. It is inhabited by about 80 monks from the age of 6yrs old upwards. These monasteries are where they get their education and is a fairly brutal and spartan life with physical punishments if they don't learn their 'religious' prayers in a timely manner!

Left: As with all such establishments (and even private homes) it boasts amazingly elaborate carved decoration. I never discovered how they did it. 

Right: The monk's very basic (4 to a room) quarters on two levels. The child monks are not allowed to go home and are separated from their parents for the period of their education. They don't have to stay being a monk in later years if they don't want to.

Left: Rotating prayer wheels down the side of the temple.

Right: As with our visits to other 'religious' buildings it was again 'no shoes - no photos' inside the temple. Again, there were highly elaborate statues, decorations artefacts, murals, candles etc. on display. Sonam explained in great detail  all the confusing myths and legends that go with them. Right: Child monks clearing weeds from the courtyard.

After this is it was off on another 'hike' around the Phobjika valley. This was considerably longer than the previous and we walked for about 4 hours up and down some muddy tracks. We are 'in training' for some more arduous treks I feel.

One of our group, Dave, lugged this large camera around on all these walks. Most cumbersome I would have thought. We stopped occasionally when someone spotted a bird or flower of interest. Sonam was an expert on the local flora and fauna, as were a couple of those in the group, and the stops involved Dave taking a long time to conscientiously  focus with a 3 foot long lens on a sparrow sized bird in a distant tree to get a good photo. I must confess that I am not that interested to learn that the tiny bird just visible in a tree is a 'yellow spotted oomegooly warbler', or whatever. I subscribe to the 'Geordie Book of Bords (birds)' which maintains that there are only four types of bird, namely: 'Spuggies' (sparrows) which are all little birds, 'Craas' (crows) which are all the black larger ones, Seagulls (self-explanatory) and 'Shitehawks' which covers all the rest. Simple.

Left: A view of the large glacial Phobjika valley.

Right: Sonam posing at a viewpoint. So far, we have seen no sign of any of the larger exotic four legged animals mentioned in the previous blog, although there were signs of trees scraped by wild boars, apparently.

Left: A photo of a hovering 'shitehawk' taken with my puny phone camera.

Right: More prayer flags en-route which show the 'mantras' written on them.

Left: ....and these were some of the other types of prayer flags. Prayer flags everywhere!

Right: An 'interesting' flower?

Left: We stopped at an isolated  and basic looking farmhouse (and even that had elaborate decorations around the windows) where we were, surprisingly, invited in. There were raggy looking cows in the back yard. It was inhabited by two elderly ladies (sisters). They generously brewed us some tea and were maybe glad of the company! 

As I discovered it is the custom in people's homes also to offer a small glass of Bhutan saki (brewed from wheat) either before or after meals, or both. It tastes fine and is probably very alcoholic. It is also the case that in all these houses, and indeed when sitting in a temple, that there are no chairs! One is obliged to sit on the floor where there might by a rug or, if lucky, a cushion. My joints are beginning to creak and it is not very comfortable.

Left: There was a welcome shack at the end. 

Right: ...and another stupa/chorten nearby.

Left: Next on to lunch at another 'homestay' where we were given a generous meal of rice and much  else on a self serve basis, plus the mandatory saki. Perhaps that is why they sit on the floor? A feature on all these buffet selections is the infamous Bhutan 'Chilli Cheese'. I tried it...once. Nearly blew my head off!

Below: It was in a room to the side of this house that we witnessed these two monks 'chanting mantras' non-stop. Apparently they stay here for 40 days and nights doing this and have a large stack of 'mantras' to get through. I'm not sure what their hours of 'work' are, but presumably they must sleep at some point. Quite extraordinary! I wonder what they do in their spare time. Karaoke?

We were not done for the day by any means. The next venue (left) was the 'Black Necked Crane Education Centre'. This bird is somewhat endangered and much protected in Bhutan. In the old days they were shot for food. If you did that here now you could expect a lengthy jail sentence. They spend the summer in Tibet and emigrate to the Probjika Valley for the winter where, on average, about 500 arrive. They had all returned to Tibet by this time of year.

We were treated to a documentary film about them and, to be frank, I was rather sleepy by now (too much saki?) and missed some of it. Right: They keep an elderly couple of the birds in a 'sanctuary' after they were injured and rescued. I think one of them is missing a leg.

Back to the hotel briefly and then, at 6.30pm, we were off again to the Gangtey Shedra, which is a Buddhist monastic college near the Gangtey Monastery. Left:  Here the monks (the Shedra is home to approximately 300 of them who study Bhutan's 'living spiritual heritage') ranging in age from 10yrs old upwards, gather for evening prayer rituals complete with rhythmic chanting plus horns and drum accompaniment. Left: In what was a unique concession, we were allowed to use cameras in here! We were again sitting on the floor. The chanting monks had cushions to sit on and the chief monk was seated in a throne-like chair. Lucky them.

Below: Part of the prayer meeting. We left to go back for supper at 8.00pm.

Coincidently, at the time of writing this (16th May) I discovered that some of the postcards I posted in Thimphu on 24th April had actually arrived in UK! These were the ones with my ugly personalised stamp on them. The ones that had arrived had 50 Nu stamps on them (about 40p UK). The others had stamps ranging from 30 to 40 Nu....I was told at the Thimphu post-office that those should be OK. We shall see......In any event it is cheaper (and knowing our postal delivery service just as quick) to send a postcard to UK from Bhutan than to send one internally here! A good place to go to send all your Christmas cards perhaps.

Left: 'Butter lamps' which are commonly displayed and used at various religious ceremonies and blessings in the temples. They are candles floating in and fuelled by yak butter or vegetable oil. They have, in the past, been the cause of several monasteries and temples burning down. I believe these places have now invested heavily in fire extinguishers.

Phew! This series of 'blogs' is going to keep me going for some time yet.....we are only up to Day 4 of the 14 day tour!