Roads of Doom? Part IV

Recently I was twiddling my thumbs at the Tekezampa road closure when I was returning from Bumthang, when something struck me:

Why do we need to widen our roads to the size of an airstrip that can accommodate a commercial jetliner?

Has the East-West vehicular traffic increased so much that we need to expand the width of our roads? Has there been some sudden explosion of commercial/manufacturing activities in the East that we need to widen our roads leading to, and from there?

If not, what mammoth vehicles are we planning to ply over the East-West highway that we need to widen the roads, in preparation?

In my view, the roads we have are quite fine for the volume of traffic it has to carry at the moment - except that they are riddled with potholes, poorly paved and maintained. If the government wishes to improve our roads, the way to go is to resurface the existing roads in a much better way and ensure that they are maintained properly. A well-paved road can certainly shorten travel time and improve road travel experience for the tourists and locals alike.

Even if widening of the roads to the size of an airstrip is necessary, for whatever reason, there is a need to do it with better planning and foresight. What is being done currently is a total mess that will imperil our vitally important tourism industry.

I propose:

Stop the road-widening project between Wangdue and Trongsa for the moment.

Complete the ongoing road-widening project between Thimphu and Wangdue, pave it well and resurface it and let the traffic flow without any hindrance. By the way, why is this stretch of road taking so long to complete? It has been going on for nearly a decade since the work started. If a mere 60 KMs of road is going to take us a decade to do, imagine what time will be taken to complete the road from Wangdue to Trongsa - a distance of 130 KMs.

Once the Thimphu-Wangdue segment is completed in all respects, start the Wangdue-Trongsa segment. However, do it in shorter stretches - and not all the way to Trongsa all at once. Undertake no more than 20 KM stretches at one go but employ a number of contractors to work on the stretch all at one time. Complete the stretches in the shortest possible time, resurface is and allow traffic to flow on the completed stretch, unhindered. Then move to the next segment.

Extend the road opening time to atleast one and a half hours - so that people can better time their travel hours.

Simultaneously, work on improving the road condition between Wangdue-Gaylephu and Trongsa-Gaylegphu so that tourist traffic can be diverted.

Roads of Doom? Part III

At one time during my various trips within the country, I started my journey from Bumthang at the ungodly hour of 3.30AM. This was necessary because I had to make it to Nobding before 9AM – when they open the road for traffic until 9.30AM – only to be stranded at Tekezampa road closure.

There were occasions when I required my guests to get up at 4.00AM in the morning so they can start their journey from Thimphu at 5AM – in order that they can beat the road closure at Lamperi. I offered the excuse that they needed to cross Lamperi before 8.00AM after which the road would close for traffic until 10.00AM. That is a lousy excuse for visitors who pay US$250.00 a day and more, to be asked to get up at 4AM - merely to beat a road closure.

And we think we are doing them a great favor!

A few days back, I heard of a tour group that started from Phobjikha towards Paro. By the time they reached Wangduephodrang - a distance of around 60 KMs - they were so fatigued and tired and frustrated by the roadblocks that they did not wish to proceed any further. The tour operator had to accept an unplanned night halt at Punakha, at great expense.

Another group traveling from Phobjikha to Haa also ended up night halting at Thimphu - because the tourists were so tired and frustrated by the numerous stoppages at road closures - that they refused to go beyond Thimphu. The tour operator had to arrange hotel accommodation in Thimphu and pay for the cancellation at Haa.

A few days back, a tour operator providing bird watching trips arranged for camping at Pele-La so they could do early bird watching in that area. Unfortunately he found that the road closure at Nobding opened at 9.00 and gave him only half hour to pass Tekezam before the road closed for traffic. Thus he was faced with a choice: either do bird watching in the area and be prepared to be stranded for hours at Tekezampa or beat the road closure at Tekezampa and miss bird watching in that area which was the sole reason for camping at Pele-La.

I can bet my last Chettrum that these are not stray incidences – there must be many such horror stories out there.

What kind of experiences are we giving the tourists? What horror stories will be told other prospective visitors, when these beleaguered tourists go back home?

The road-widening project has been a source of great worry for the tour operators and the Tourism Council of Bhutan (TCB) - the regulatory authority that oversees tourism in Bhutan. About two weeks back, some members of the Association of Bhutanese Tour Operators (ABTO) and the officers of the TCB made a joint/separate representation to the National Council of Bhutan - to do something about it. I have no idea if something has come of it. However I have been witness to a gathering of the following luminaries at Lamperi, on Sunday the 12th April, 2015 when I was on my way to Trongsa. I am encouraged to believe that they were on a field trip to make amends, hopefully:

Lyonpo Dorji Chhoden, Minister of Works & Human Settlement
His Excellency Indian Ambassador Gautam Bambawale
Dr. Sonam Tenzing, Secretary, Ministry of Works & Human Settlement
Aum Chhimmy Pem, Director, Tourism Council of Bhutan (TCB)
Aum Tashi Wangmo, Eminent Member, National Council of Bhutan
And many others I didn't have the time to see or recognize.

It is my hope that something useful has emerged from the above people gathering at Lamperi. They need to do something URGENTLY - or see the tourist arrivals dwindle in the coming years. All that hard work for the past many years would have gone down the drain if we allow the only industry that has any chance of redeeming this country from the stranglehold of debt and despair that we now find ourselves in, to be run into the ground becuase we are incapable of better planning and foresight.

And for what? For the cause of a wide, wide road that we do not even know we need?

.................to be continued

Roads of Doom? Part II

Today, and for the foreseeable future, tourism remains Bhutan’s most profitable and vibrant economic activity. It is the biggest employer, giving jobs and livelihood to every segment of Bhutanese society - cutting across all religion, gender, social standing, geological boundaries, level of skills, educated and uneducated, the aged and the young. Tourism also brings in the highest amount of foreign exchange - untied and without any interest bearing loans - estimated at about US$73 million annually, out of which close to US$21.00 million is net Royalty that goes into the national exchequer.

From its initial start sometime in 1974 when the tourist arrivals were a mere 287, it has now grown to over 133,000 arrivals in 2014. From a single tour operator in 1974, there are currently over a thousand companies that are engaged in tourism related businesses. This does not take into account the ancillary service providers that number in the thousands.

Since the past close to six decades of our planned development activities, tourism industry is the only industry that has grown from strength to strength. Over the years we have built up in-country capacity and capability to run this business without having to play second fiddle to outside forces. This success can be attributed to sound policies of the successive governments of the past that have remained focused on nurturing it with farsighted policy guidelines and through creation of enabling conditions and conducive atmosphere – within which to foster and develop, unhindered. This industry has now entered that phase in its evolution when it no longer needs or requires government intervention. It is a girl child who has been groomed into full womanhood and is now ready to breed a multitude of opportunities for a variety of economic activities.

Over the past many decades, donor countries led by India have been generous in pumping in hundreds of billions of Ngultrums in aid money, to help contribute to our nation building. Sadly, we have squandered most of it in activities that did not contribute to real growth - in economic terms. We spent all the aid money in social sectors such as building schools, hospitals, roads, mithun farms and lavish structures and Dzongs that we do not need, with the net result that today we have no manufacturing base of any kind that generate jobs or contribute to economic health and wealth creation. Instead, we have hydro-power projects that help us to be enslaved until the end of time.

Tourism industry has the potential to liberate Bhutan from the clutches of the monumental debt that is being accrued from debilitating projects such as hydropower and Dungsam Cement. Unfortunately, indications are that the industry is now headed for a disaster in the next one or two years - if we do not take stock of what we are doing, and make amends immediately.

A tourist destination that is the envy around the world - a holiday experience that used to be filled with distinctive cultural marvel and pristine natural beauty, is fast turning into a loathsome experience that the tourists are coming to detest and abhor.

I am talking of the ongoing ROAD-WIDENING activity that is about to cause irreparable damage to our reputation as a coveted tourist destination. The hurried implementation of this poorly planned and executed activity is almost as if it is being done to throttle the Tourism Council’s declaration of the year 2015 as the “Visit Bhutan Year”. The horror stories the tourists tell of their sufferings as a result of hours of being stranded on the road as a result of road closures at more than 5 locations is something that does not bode well for the tourism industry.

............... to be continued

Roads of Doom? Part I

What is it with our roads? All of a sudden, our roads are at the center of our focus and, trouble!

Note the following media reports in Bhutan as well as in India:

“Construction of 68.3 Kms. Nganglam-Dewathang  highway: deferred indefinitely”.

“The 98Kms. Lhamoizingkha-Sarbang highway aborted”.

“Project Dantak will execute the 52km widening from Trashigang-Yadi”.

“The 546km Thimphu-Trashigang road widening work begins next month”.

“Chazam-Duksum road widening work well on track”.

“Shingkhar-Gorgan road makes it to the 11th Plan”.

“India seems not to have lost its hope of building a road through Bhutan to have an easier access to Tawang, near the Sino-Indian border in Arunachal Pradesh, from the plains of Assam. Bhutan is not willing to allow the construction of the road because of objections from China”.

“Quoting official sources, the report said that the issue was raised by Narendra Modi during his trip to Bhutan as Prime Minister—“

“The PTI report said External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj had been requested by political representatives from Arunachal Pradesh to convince Bhutan about the benefits it will bring to the economy of that country besides curtailing travel time between strategically important Tawang and Guwahati”.

Clearly, what is emerging is that our roads, like our hydro-power projects, have the potential to bring about our eventual doom. There is something terribly amiss - at the manner and the haste with which we are going about our road widening initiatives.

........ to be continued

This one is funny too!

Funny Signage

What do you understand by the following signboard put up at the entrance of Lamperi Cafe?

For those of you who are photographers, tell me - what is the flaw in this photo, taken with my iPhone. I wont make this mistake if I was using a proper camera ... but shooting with a mobile phone is rather cumbersome.

The Gleeful KUENSEL

KUENSEL’s Editorial of the 7th April, 2015:

For a bigger and safer airport

"It was quite a spectacle for the thousands of people, who visited Paro over the weekend. The Paro tshechu, the Royal flower exhibition and, to the surprise of many, all the seven aircraft operated by the two Bhutanese airlines were on the ground at the same time.

It was a beautiful sight, as hundreds waited, stranded in a terrible traffic jam on the single lane road that runs beside the airport."

Sadists!!

Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank (AIIB)

The Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank (AIIB) - with a target capital of US$100 billion, is promoted by China, to free itself and its member states from the control and influence of the overlords who control the IMF and the World Bank. Already, 30 countries have been approved as Founding Members that include India and most European countries. Some more may join by the April 15 deadline. Unfortunately, there is no talk of the Land of the Thunder Dragon being part of the consortium.

Take a look at the following map that shows the countries that currently form AIIB membership. Poor Bhutan is a blotch of grey within a sea of color.

May be it is still not too late - today is only the 10th - we have 5 more days to make it to the list of Prospective Founding Members (PFMs) of the AIIB.

‘Not a Single Neighbour That India Doesn't Have a Problem With': National Security Advisor of India Mr. Ajit Doval

Recently our firebrand Blogger Wangcha Sangey of Haa posted a withering article that supposes a number of assumptions behind the abrupt stoppage of the construction of a number of critically important roads in the Southern parts of the country.

http://wangchasangey.blogspot.sg/2015/03/the-headline-news-of-20th-march2015.html#comment-form

I agree with all of the points raised in that article. Given India’s monumental paranoia about China, the road connectivity to Samtse is bound to be perceived as a threat to India’s security. Until India sheds her inferiority complex in relation to China and learns to have faith in her own greatness, Bhutan will continue to suffer.

Samtse’s proximity to the “chicken-neck” area at the tri-junction of Tibet, Sikkim and Bhutan, is its undoing. It is also for this reason that India will never do the Amochu Hydropower Project - in India’s view the proposed project has two problems with it: it is too close to the "chicken-neck" area and, of all the hydropower projects that have been planned and executed so far, the Amochu Hydropower Project will be the most profitable for Bhutan and that, fellow Drups, is not in the scheme of India’s long term strategy.

Take a look at the following map to understand and sympathize with India and why she behaves the way she does - at the possibility of a all-season highway reaching Samtse.

Mr. Wangcha Sangey of Haa needs to think on another issue that bewilders me. I can understand India’s paranoia concerning the road that leads up to the chicken-neck areas. But what is India’s interest in the Shingkhar-Gorgan highway?

I am told that recently DANTAK and RGoB officials numbering close to 20 people, led by the Secretary of the Ministry of Works and Human Settlement, visited Shingkhar in Bumthang to survey the areas. It is my belief that it has to do with the reported resumption of the construction of the infamous Shingkhar-Gorgan highway. I had reported about a similar survey conducted by DANTAK from Gorgan side, in conjunction with the CDCL people – read my post “Where In The Name of DANTAK Is This Road? – II” dated November 14, 2014:
 

http://yesheydorji.blogspot.com/2014/11/where-in-name-of-dantak-is-this-road-ii.html

Our Prime Minister recently returned from USA with promises of millions of dollars based on our commitment to conserve and preserve our environment. The Shingakhar-Gorgan highway is a meaningless road, does not benefit the Bhutanese people in any way and will cause huge environmental disaster. As far as Bhutan is concerned, this highway is NOT needed and its construction goes against every law and has the potential to cause grave damage to our reputation as a champion of environmental conservation. How will Bhutan justify to partners around the world - why an environmentally disastrous road that cuts through a national park and has no social or economic benefit to the Bhutanese people, is a useful and necessary endeavor? Is this the way we demonstrate our commitment to environmental stewardship, in whose cause we seek funding from the world community?

My New Year Wish

Here is wishing a Very Happy Lunar New Year to all my readers.

New year resolutions and wish lists are not my thing - resolutions get broken and by now I know that not every one may realize all that they wish. But there are always exceptions to the rule and this year I am making an exception: I am making a New Year Wish:

I WISH that the two governments of Bhutan and India would get together and take the only sensible decision they can - a decision to abandon the Punasangchu Hydropower Projects.

In his interview to the Kuensel of 21st September, 2013, Dasho Chhewang Rinzin of Druk Green Power Corporation has said that “indecision” in the case of Punasangchu Hydropower Project I should be avoided. I would like to go one step further and add that “correct decision” is even more important, than a hasty incorrect decision. And, in the face of what is increasingly becoming obvious that the geological surprises that are being thrown up in the Punasangchu I & II project areas are insurmountable, the only correct decision, in my view, is to cut our losses and scrap the projects entirely!

Is this a preposterous idea? Not if you consider that given all the “geological surprises” that are being “discovered” in the project areas, there is every likelihood that the Punasangchu Project I & II may eventually end up in the Bay of Bengal. What then? The gravity of the situation cannot escape any one - if one considers that the final cost of the two projects will be 3-4 times bigger than the country’s entire GDP. If these two projects fail, Bhutan can never recover from the ensuing debt!

Apparently, it is not just the Punasangchu I: Kuensel also reported in their April 16, 2014 issue that even Punasangchu II is faced with “geological surprises”! To add to all that, Kuensel on 5th February, 2015 reported that the projects are now running out of budget!

Even if the two governments do not agree to scrap the Punasangchu projects, they should accept that WAPCOS (consultants to all the hydropower projects in Bhutan) has proven to be anything but competent to undertake any further investigations in the case of these or future hydropower projects in Bhutan. Thus, while we must ensure that WAPCOS is barred from future involvement in our hydro power projects based on their terrible record so far, we should now look at engaging consultants from third countries to investigate if the geological make of the Punasangchu areas is suitable for large hydro power projects. Through the engagement of better-qualified consultants, we should ascertain whether it is wise to continue with the projects - or scrap it, to prevent further losses. If the government of India has the best interest of the projects at heart, they should agree to a second opinion from an independent consultant from a third country.

The Punasangchu Hydro Power Project I started with an initial cost estimate of Nu.35.00 billion, in 2006. By 2013, the cost had escalated to Nu.98.00 billion - almost three times the initial estimate.

The project was supposed to be completed by 2015. Latest date of project completion is now deferred to 2016. Regardless, if past records are anything to go by, we can be sure that the project will not be completed even by the end of 2018. And, in all likelihood, the cost will escalate to over Nu.120 billion.

In my view the project is no longer economically viable. No one can convince me that a project that has seen cost escalation almost four times its original projection - can still be considered feasible and profitable.

The famous cost+ pricing concept is no consolation at all. Have we considered the likelihood that the Indian state electricity boards that purchase our electricity may at some point turn around and tell us that the unit cost of our electricity is too high for them to purchase and redistribute to their consumers? This is most likely to happen - given that our cost of production has gone up so high. What then?

The Bhutanese people have long been mislead into believing that the hydropower projects will make all of us rich. So far, that has remained a pipedream. On the contrary, the Punasangchu I & II have already caused a number of our mining companies to go bankrupt with losses running into hundreds of millions. Another one is on the verge of heading the same way.

One simple question: If these hydropower projects are for the benefit of the people of Bhutan, how is it that even small ancillary services like quarrying for sand and stone for supply to the projects is being allowed to be monopolized by the Indian contractors? Why is this being allowed by the RGoB even while our laws are explicit that only Bhutanese people can engage in mining activities?

There is a need for Bhutan to take a serious look at where we are heading with our hydropower projects. If we don't, it will be the cause of our doom.

The Soldiers’ Logic

This morning I had to visit the Royal Bhutan Army (RBA) Headquarters in Lungtenphu, to apply for trekking permit for a trekking group wanting to trek in the Jumolhari basecamp area.

Now, I pride myself as a thinking man. Thus, regardless of how difficult or choked a parking space may be, or how constrained I am for time, I make sure that I park my car - head out. This is what I did this morning at the RBA parking: parked my car - head out.

As I was walking away from my car, a Johnny - obviously the parking attendant - walked up to me and asked that I park my car - head in. I said why??? He said because that is how it is required to be done in the RBA parking lot.

All cars must be parked - head in!

I pulled the Johnny aside and explained to him my logic and the merit of parking ones car - head out. I explained to him that if there is an emergency or if there is a fire or an earthquake and buildings are crumbling all around me, first thing I need to do is to pull out of the area in a jiffy. I can do so if my car is parked - head out. I told him that if I park my car head in, I will not be able to get out pronto because backing the car out of the parking lot requires me to drive the car backward and forward few times, before I can get out.

I asked him to give me his side of the logic as to why the RBA requires visitors to park their cars - head in. He explained to me that it has been the RBA’s experience that not many drivers are skilled at parking their cars - head out. Thus, in fairness to those poor unskilled drivers, the RBA has decided to impose this standardized rule that requires every one to park their cars - head in. I was nonplussed! But I know one does not reason with soldiers - so I turned my car and re-parked it - head in.

Dremtoen! Soldiers, how about some tactical thinking?

Unexpected Star of the Vibrant Gujarat Show

From all accounts, our Prime Minister had a successful trip to India. One paper calls him “unexpected star of the Vibrant Gujarat show”. A friend in Bengaluru, India sent me the following news clipping. I am told that Indian media is full of praise for our Prime Minister.

But the best praise for him came from a Bhutanese. She said; “I am not impressed so much by the fact that the PM impressed everybody in Gujarat. I am more impressed by the fact that he is turning out to be even better Prime Minister than the consummate Opposition Leader that he was”.

Frankly it is good for the country that our Prime Minister made a big impression on the people of India. I have only one regret: like PM Modi, our Prime Minister Tshering Tobgay should have addressed the Gujarat gathering in shudh Dzongkha :)-

Yes Minister!

I was recently forwarded a copy of the RCSC’s Press Release on the issue pertaining to the curious case of the surrender of 3 Government Secretaries.

After reading through the exaggerated and inconsequential verbosity wherein they went on to quote seven legal provisions, I realized that the RCSC completely missed the point of the surrender of the three Secretaries.

The Cabinet obviously realizes that they cannot act against the Secretaries - however grievous their crimes - because of various provisions in the Constitution, the Civil Service Act and the BCSR. That is precisely why the Government surrendered the Secretaries to the RCSC - for action. In doing so, the Government has duly recognized the RCSC’s ascendancy over matters dealing with any action against senior bureaucrats. Thus the RCSC’s strenuous sermon was totally uncalled for and a waste of newsprint.

In fulfillment of what they claim is within their domain, the RCSC should investigate the matter, seek proof from the Cabinet which they have done, and arrive at a decision. And take action! as they deem fit. It is at this point that they should provide all the justifications and quote all the rules and regulations - to back those justifications.

An atmosphere akin to that of the famous British TV Serial “Yes Minister” is developing between our bureaucracy and the government. I am not sure if events are being engineered to cause a rift between the government and the bureaucracy. As ludicrous as it may seem, there is nothing funny about it.

Wangchuk Lo Dzong of Haa

Two popular Bhutanese Bloggers - Wangcha Sangey and Passang Tshering (both have their origins in Haa) have written on the issue of Wangchuk Lo Dzong of Haa, within days of each other. The issue was also discussed in the just concluded Parliament. It would seem that the topic is currently in vogue - so, let me add my two Chettrum’s bit. I wanted to post my comments on their Blogs instead of writing out a new article but it was going to be a long one - so here goes.

Wangchuk Lo Dzong of Haa

Many have been infuriated and incensed by the matter concerning the Wangchuk Lo Dzong being handed over and used by the IMTRAT for the past many decades. Not me. I am cool about it. I absolutely do not doubt the imperatives behind such an act. But certainly it has intrigued me for years.

We supposedly needed IMTRAT to train our military. But why was Haa chosen? It is not a suitable location for a training center. It is cold, it is frigid, it was far removed from the main centers of activity and the logistical challenges were numerous.

Why was the Dzong handed over to house the IMTRAT? Didn’t IMTRAT have money to build their own lodgings? Wasn’t there any free, open space in Haa valley that could have been allocated to the IMTRAT, to build their lodging facilities?

The RBA has established its training center at Tencholing for the past few decades. So what is IMTRAT still doing there in Haa? Aren’t they a redundant organization with their key function out of their hands?

One other question that gnaws at my guts is this: if the IMTRAT is adamant about hanging on to the old Dzong, why aren’t the people of Haa and the Royal Government of Bhutan asking the GoI to build a new Dzong in place of the old one? I am sure that if the GoI can give money to build a Supreme Court building big enough to house the entire population of the country, they will be happy to give funds to construct a new Dzong for the Haaps - as compensation for the confiscation of their poor old Wangchuk Lo Dzong.

I think we need to go beyond the rhetoric and look at the issue with a sense of intrigue, rather than a feeling of loathing.

PS: Please note that I spell the name of the Dzong without “c” in Wangchuk.

The Yarn About Two Yarns

In my capacity as the Secretary of the Rotary Club of Thimphu, I came in contact with an interesting Japanese gentleman named Genji Nosaka. He is the Chairman of a museum in Fukui, Japan called “Bhutan Museum Fukui”. The museum is dedicated to promoting friendship between the people of Japan and Bhutan. It has exhibits that help create awareness about Bhutan’s rich cultural heritage among the Japanese people. I met him twice.

During his last trip, he gave me an intriguing assignment to perform. He and his wife handed me a bundle of creamy white yarn and requested that a fabric be created out of it. He had one very precise condition: the textile that I create must be of a fusion between his yarn (known as Kouzo) and a Bhutanese yarn of my choosing! In the enmeshment of the yarns, the Kouzo must form the Warp and the Bhutanese yarn must be woven as the Weft.

And what is the idea? The idea, according to Genji-san, is that such a fabric produced by bonding two natural fibers grown in the two respective countries will be symbolic of the strong bond and friendship that exists between the people of Japan and Bhutan.

And the purpose? It will serve as an exhibit that he will hang on the wall of his museum.

What an IDEA! The more I thought about this, the more I was convinced that the idea was refreshingly ORIGINAL! - very ingenious and creative and infinitely sensitive. I loved it! So I decided to devote time and thought over the matter.

First I needed to think of what yarn/thread to use to create this symbol of friendship. Then I needed to find someone who could do justice to the weaving that has to be top notch!

After days of brooding over the matter, I had the answers! For yarn, I will use Zocha Kuip (Kui kromen in Khengkha) - a yarn derived from the fiber of the bark of Stinging Nettle (Urtica dioica).

Having decided on the yarn, the answer to finding a master weaver was simple - I already knew a master weaver in Langthel, Trongsa who weaves Nettle clothing. Her name is Ms. Sundu Choeden. I called her up to find out if she was at home - she was. So I drove to Langthel to hand over the Japanese yarn and ask if she could weave what I had in mind. She looked at the yarn lovingly and exclaimed; “what beautiful yarn!”. She agreed to weave the piece and so we sat down to decide on the size and the pattern to weave into the body of the fabric. The results are the following.

Fusion Fabric Design 1

Fusion Fabric Design 2

Close-up of Design 1's Pattern

Close-up of Design 2's Pattern

Although a single strip of fabric was woven, it was divided into two different panels. This way it was possible for the master weaver to integrate two different patterning designs so Mr. Genji-san has an option to choose from and not be limited for choice.

The patterns of the fabric is also woven with Zocha Kuip that has been dyed with natural dyes.

The fabric is currently on its way to Japan. Pre-shipment images I sent him received glowing appreciation from Mr. Genji-san.

Kouzo yarn:
Kouzo yarn is derived from the bark of Paper Mulberry (Broussonetia kazinoki Sieb.). It is a temperate deciduous woody plant. It is popularly called Paper Mulberry because it is a raw material for Japanese paper that is mainly used for printing currency notes.

Balls of Kouzo yarn

 Nettle yarn:
In olden days, Bhutanese use to grow cotton but we don’t anymore. The other yarn that we used those days from which to weave clothing was harvested from the wild - Stinging Nettle (Urtica dioica). The plant was stripped of its bark from which a fine fiber was produced which was spun into yarns.

Zocha (Nettle) yarn

Weft & Warp:
In weaving, the thread or yarn that runs horizontally is known as the “Warp”. In Bhutanese it is called the Muh. Similarly, the thread or yarn that runs vertically or diagonal to the Warp is known as the “Weft”. In Bhutanese it is known as the Poon.

 Weft & Warp

UPDATE: One reader called me up to say that in some parts of Pemagatshel in Eastern Bhutan, some bit of cotton is still grown from which a textile design known as Kamtham is woven.

Viagra versus Cordyceps

Most of you know Viagra as a wonder pill that helps correct erectile dysfunction in human males. But how many of you know that mountain climbers who climb Mount Everest also take it? That is right - they do! The reason is simple: the drug dilates the pulmonary vessels, which in turn helps to move more blood into the pulmonary veins that result in improved exchange of oxygen in the lungs. In plain English, it means it gives the mountaineers much needed stamina.

Don’t ask me if the mountaineers suffer from any embarrassing side effects such as: erectile over-function. I have no idea.

I cannot afford Viagra or know where to buy them locally - so I depend on good old home grown Cordyceps. When I am trekking the high altitudes - like my last Snowman Trek when I trekked 28 days continuously - I take half a teaspoon full of ground Cordyceps, every night.

 In the case of this wonder worm, I can vouch that it is effective - and has no side effects whatsoever!

Silhouette

So you think you know Bhutan?? Lets see how many of you readers can correctly identify this place in the photograph.

UPDATE:

Five readers attempted to ID this image - three got it right - it is indeed Trashigang Dzong.

One said it was Lhuentse and another likened it to Trashiyangtse. Both were wrong.

I thought that someone would say it was Dagana Dzong - the roof pattern of these two Dzongs are almost similar.

BHUTAN: Land of Butterflies, Spiders, Crickets & Birds

One of my readers in India sent me a mail thanking me for posting new articles on the Blog. He said he is very "pissed" whenever he did not see a new post on this site. Another reader from Bangkok sent me a mail expressing happiness that I have resumed posting on the Blog - after an extended sabbatical! So, even at the risk of being an overkill, here goes some more - for their's and others' viewing pleasure :)-

I hope you are reading this, David?

ENJOY!

Rufous-vented Tit (Parus rubudiventris)

 Wallcreeper (Tichodroma muraria)

BHUTAN: Land of Birds & Butterflies

Here are some more butterflies. I am throwing in some birds too - for those of you who prefer them to the Lepidopterans!

White-browed Shrike Babbler (Pteruthius flaviscapis)

Red Junglefowl (Gallus gallus)

Yellow-bellied Fantail (Rhipidura hypoxantha)

BHUTAN: Land of Butterflies

It has been a while since I posted any photos on this site. So here are some of butterflies that I photographed during my recent trip to the East.

Some of you may not be aware that Bhutan has over 800 species of butterflies. For a small country the size of Bhutan, that is a huge, huge number. Compare that to 679 for North America and 440 for Europe.

Nature's splendor is reflected in their delicate colors and complex patterns. I wish I had some funding available to me - I would like to spend the next 5 years photographing them. Someone needs to do it before climate change renders some of them extinct even before we know and see of their existence.

Are there some rich uncles and aunties out there who want to help me realize my dream? :)-

ENJOY!

The Wandering Tsampa

While driving back to Thimphu from my recent trip to the East of the country, I had barely begun my descend into Trongsa over the Yotong-La pass when I passed someone walking up towards the Pass. I shook my head: there goes one of those glib Sadhus from the Indian state of Andhra Pradesh who make fortunes in Bhutan - reading palms and foreheads of the gullible Bhutanese.

I continued to drive on until it suddenly hit me that the man was clothed in all white. I remember that Andhra Sadhus wear saffron. Also the man was carrying a traditional Bhutanese cane-frame backpack. Sadhus don’t carry those. Even more surprising, the man seemed very comfortable in the near sub-zero temperature of the Yotong-La Pass at 6.30AM in the morning - a scantily dressed Andhra Sadhu would be dead meat at this temperature levels. In any event Andhra Sadhus’ preferred mode of transportation is Druk Air - walking on foot would be so terribly infra-dig!

Something was not right - so I turned my car and headed back towards the Pass. I was right - the man was not a Sadhu from Andhra. He was a wandering Tsampa! I stopped my car and struck up a conversation with the man. He tells me that he is a Tsampa from Mongaar.

 Tea break for the wandering Tsampa from Mongaar.

Please note the traditional cane-frame backpack and the one-legged resting stick

He was a young and good-looking guy on a personal quest to offer prayers for the benefit of all sentient beings. He has already walked to most of the holy places in Bhutan and he was now heading towards Bumthang where he hopes to pray and meditate for the next few months, until he embarks on another walk towards another holy destination.

He had actually intended to prostrate all the way to Bumthang but a medical examination at Thimphu revealed that he had ulcer in his stomach and his lungs were near collapse. His condition caused him great pain due to which he could not perform prostrations. That did not deter him - he was determined that he would continue to recite his prayers - by walking to every one of his destinations. Neither will he accept any ride - from any one - on any form of transportation.

Amazingly, he was not wearing any warm clothing and yet, the bitter cold did not seem to bother him. There was a wonderful look of peace and clam on his face - something that I thought was unusual given that it was bitterly cold and he was suffering from ulcer.

I served him hot tea from my flask, which he gladly accepted. I was of a mind to remove my Patagonia R2 jacket that I was wearing and give it to him but he wouldn’t know how to care for it and damage it in no time. Thus, I decided against it. Instead, I gave him Nu.1,000.00 and asked him to buy himself a woolen sweater when in Bumthang.

As I continued my journey towards Trongsa, I wondered what it was about religion that drove people to such meaningless acts of lunacy. Here was a man with his innards infested with ulcer and holes in his lungs. And yet, he wants to walk the length and breadth of the country - and pray in bitter cold - in the hope and belief that it will benefit all the sentient beings of the world. What benefit, exactly? And who elected him to take on the responsibility of saving the sentient beings? Poor blighter! If I were to ask him, he would provably tell me that he wouldn’t give two hoots if, one of these days, he is mauled to death by a bear while walking through the alpine wilderness. Or, bleed to death from the ulcer that is wrecking havoc on his innards.

Religion seems to teach some strange ways in which to earn merit for the afterlife or how to save sentient beings from burning in hell. It seems to promote the idea that the afterlife is more important than the now and the here. It is as if preserving the unknown afterlife is more important than the visibly miserable present.

During my trip to Tongmejangtsa, Trashiyangtse, I was told that the village would not rear pigs because they have been told that it was against the religion. They wouldn’t rear chickens either, for the same reason. They have no problem rearing cows though. The reason? Very funny one! - but that is a story to be told another day.

Practice of religion, particularly by those who are incapable of analytical thinking, can lead to some seriously dangerous misconceptions. That is the reason why I completely support our law that prohibits religious personalities from participating in politics.

Oh Compassionate Buddha - please hasten the process of human evolution before your teachings are contorted any further and humanity is put to peril!

Have Common Exams, Will Pray!

During my recent trip to Tashiyangtse, I ran into a group of students from the Tongmejangsa Middle Secondary School - in Tongzhang village.

They were all in their regular clothing. This was rather strange since at this time of the day they should be in their school uniform. I stopped my car to ask them why they were not in their classes. They chorused;

“Dhari Lhabab Duechen iin la” (To-day is Day of the Descending of Lord Buddha).

“OK .. so it is a holiday and you have no classes”.

“Yes, Sir … I mean No, Sir”.

“So where are you guys headed?”

“We are going to the Lhakhang (temple) to pray and offer butter lamps”.

“Ahhh Haa goi (Ahhh I know) - your Common Exams are due soon so you are going to pray to God and ask him to help you pass your exams, iinosh (correct)?

“Iin la (Yes, Sir)”.

“You think you all will pass?”

They are all full of smiles but none offer me an answer.

“So you think you all will pass?”

“Mashey la (We don’t know, Sir)”.

“OK … but you have studied and are prepared for the exams, right?”

“Yes, Sir”.

“Good, then I can assure you that you will pass even without prayers and butter lamps. You know why? Because in the world of the old and the wise, there is a saying;

“Siba Lhaghi Sibi ---- Mapa Rung Ghi Ra Siggo”.

“Do you know what it means?”

“No, Sir”.

It means; “It is God who initiates the shiver but it is mostly oneself who must shiver with vigour”.

“Let me explain further. You must have seen your village Pawo or Pammo, Ngeljorpas (Mediums, Oracles etc.) perform their acts. They start with a slow shiver of their body but as the ritual progresses, the shiver gets increasingly vigorous - until they collapse with exhaustion. That signals the end of the ritual”.

“Do you understand now?”

“Yes, Sir”.

“Actually there is a Chilip (English/White-man) equivalent to this Bhutanese saying”.

“Gachii iina la? (How does it go)?"

“It goes like this: “God helps those who help themselves”.

“Do you know what this means? This means that you should study hard if you want your prayers and butter lamps to help you pass your exams. If you don’t study, all the prayers and butter lamps in the world isn’t going to help you pass your Common Exam”.

“Ha goyi ga (Did you understand)?”

“Goyi la (Yes Sir, understood, Sir).

“OK .. you can go”.

As they plodded away, I noticed that they all wore similar kind of rubber flip-flops. I called them back and asked; “Why are you all wearing the same kind of flip-flops?”

“Uniform iin la”.

“Wai, iina? I have never heard of this as a part of school uniform anywhere else in the country. We used to have black leather shoes called “Naughty Boy shoes”. You don’t have them any more?”

“Yes, we have, Sir. But we only wear them when it is cold. Rest of the time we wear these”.

Strange! This is a first for me.

Even more strange, how did these young minds come to believe that offering prayers and lighting butter lamps at the local Lhakhang would help them get through their Common Exams? This is bad influence. Simple and gullible minds will believe any old thing but the problem in the East particularly is exasperating, according to one Livestock Officer who tells me of his losing battle with religious misconceptions and how it is interfering with his work.

But this is a story to be told another day.

As the kids walk away towards the Lhakhang in the distance, I hear one of them muttering “God helps he who helps himself ….. God helps he who helps himself ….. God helps he who helps himself”.

I shake my head in sadness - there go a bunch of potential social misfits of the future! As one village elder in Chaaskar told me, education is now a paradox - anyone without it is supposedly a nobody - but most of those who are with it are either crushing stones by the roadside, working as a Khalasi, gyrating wildly in some Drayangs in the urban cities or engaged in abuse of substance and gang fights!

So much for "Basic Education For All"! But this too is a story to be told another day.