Chris visits more of Thimphu

The long travel combined with the elevation has really impacted me this trip.  I have not been feeling well and have had very little appetite.  The hotel is well aware of this and has been bringing me extra butter cookies with my tea and giving me electrolyte drinks with my meals.  My appetite started to return a bit last night at dinner and I said I could not decide between the banana cake or the tapioca pudding so they brought me a small taste of each. And now this is my favorite hotel. 

Bhutan is a truly unique place.  With a population of 800,000 people sandwiched in between the 2 giant countries of China and India, they measure their success by Gross National Happiness (GNH) instead of Gross Domestic Product. GNH prioritizes collective well-being and moral progress. The previous king abdicated his thrown so that he could guide his son to become the next great ruler of Bhutan.  The United States could learn a thing or 2 from Bhutan

They have no traffic lights so the busier intersections have a cop standing in a small covered hut directing traffic.

The drivers are quite sane. We biked for a few hours today on the road and the cars were all very polite. The biking was just ok because it was an e-bike situation. Not my favorite. 

It is forbidden to cage animals except they had to build a preserve for the Takin because they were too destructive and dangerous to roam free.  The Takin is a half-cow and half-goat animal native to the Himalayas. 

We visited the Takin preserve today. In addition to the Takin, it also serves as a rehabilitation center for wild animals which have been hurt. They heal them at the center before returning them to the wild. 

In addition to the Takin Preserve and the biking, we visited the National Folklore Museum and the school for the arts.  We ended the day with a visit to a monastery and a meditation lesson. I thoroughly enjoyed speaking to the monk about meditation and the challenges of focusing in the modern world.  

Tomorrow is a travel day,  4-5 hours in the car with some stops along the way. 

A better view of downtown Thimphu and the giant Buddha

It is mandated that all buildings have the same Bhutanese architecture.