Bhutan is a landlocked country at the eastern end of the Himalayas. Bhutan's landscape ranges from subtropical plains in the south to the sub-alpine Himalayan heights in the north, with some peaks exceeding 7,000 metres (23,000 ft). The total population of Bhutan is only approximately 700,000, and yes, it is a small country alright. The only international airport is in Paro, approximately 60km away from Thimphu, which is the only capitol city in the world that doesn't have any traffic light.

Major sources of income for the kingdom are hydroelectric power, agriculture and tourism. The later is controlled by the government and is available in the form of pre-paid, pre-planned tours, which include transportation, lodging and meals. The price is dictated by the government. Basically, independent travels are not allowed; you don't see backpackers there. You can go to Bhutan only by flying Druk (Dragon) Air, the official Royal Bhutan Airlines and that only from selected cities in nearby countries.

The Bhutanese government has been promoting the philosophy of "Gross National Happiness", which strives to achieve a balance between the spiritual and the material. In 2006, a prominent international magazine rated Bhutan as the happiest country in Asia and the eighth-happiest in the world, based on a global survey. The government provides free health care and education, including advanced education to those who qualify. I wouldn't describe Bhutan as overly wealthy but I could see with my own eyes that indeed the people are definitely content and happy with their way of life. It shows in their generally laid-back attitude. And, yes, the people in Bhutan are genuinely friendly.

We combined this trip with that to Nepal: https://pbase.com/ageojo/gallery/nepal . In Bhutan, we based our travel from two cities, Paro and Thimphu. A "must-see" spot is the Tiger's Nest monastery or Taktsang, which is located 10 kilometres to the north of Paro. It hangs on a precipitous cliff at 3,100 metres above mean sea level or approximately 900 metres above Paro valley. The rock slopes are very steep and the monastery buildings are built into the rock face. The hike up there is not that easy. There is a rest place with a cafeteria about halfway and even if you take a mule, which I did, you still have to hike about 700 steps down first and up to reach the monastery at the end of the mule/horse ride.

One pleasant surprise about this visit is that English is spoken very widely in Bhutan. The Bhutan government more than encourages English as the second language and reinforces that throughout their school system. Coupled with the free education, practically everybody speaks English but yet, you hear "Kuzuzangpo!", the Bhutanese greeting phrase there a lot.

Photography tidbits:
As in other galleries, I stress more artistic quality over a complete documentation of the trip. Although I took two camera systems, an autofocus SLR and a manual focus rangefinder digital systems, the later was used only minimally, regardless of the high quality files it generates. Autofocus has proven to be more useful for my travel needs.

Please feel free to post your feedback, comments on the images or galleries as you see fit. Thank you and enjoy the images!