Return Flight from Trivandrum to Bombay:

Monday, July 27, 2026

Return Flight from Trivandrum to Bombay:

Our flight from Trivandrum on Air-India was scheduled for 9.30 am. We planned to be at the airport at 7.30 am as we were checking in our bags. With enough time to kill, we were able to buy a few gifts for my Dad (Kerala’s famous black halwa) and for my brother Russel (a box of milk pedas) before we went in search of a cup of filter coffee as we were expected to be served breakfast on board.

Time passed quickly and boarding was soon announced. We had a very smooth flight and very good service on board and a substantial breakfast of an omlette with a chicken sausage, grilled tomatoes and fries and a coffee. While everything was piping hot, nothing was really tasty…but I suppose it filled us up for the rest of our flight. I really did enjoy my window seat which gave me an uninhibited view throughout of the West coast of India—I realized how much of it is actually covered by sandy beaches, not many of which are even remotely developed.

We touched down on schedule at 9.30 am, arriving at the international airport from where we took an Uber car to get us back to our flat. We were home by 11.45 am and boy, how good it felt to enter our own home again.

Thanks for following me on this trip through Kerala—a rather strange combination of spiritualism and tourism; but one that was interesting in both parts. Until I blog again, about my next trip, may the road rise up to meet you…

Scouring Kerala’s Capital City of Trivandrum—A Medley of Museums:

Sunday, July 26, 2026

Scouring Kerala’s Capital City of Trivandrum—A Medley of Museums:

We awoke once again, after a very good night’s sleep in Rama’s Garden Hotel, showered, dressed and went down for breakfast. Both of us had the Western Breakfast (omlettes with buttered toast and jam, coffee or tea and fresh fruit—bananas and papaya). Nothing about this hotel was displeasing. We enjoyed every aspect of it, not least the excellent service we received from the staff. We decided to devote the day to touring the city of Trivandrum and enjoyed ourselves scouring a few museums that offered abundant fascination.

Seeking the counsel of Receptionist Honey, we decided to go to the Puthe Maliga Palace Museum first—it would open at 10am and stay open till 5.00pm.Accordingly, we walked to the end of our quiet hotel lane and found an auto rickshaw to take us there. Most rickshaws do not ply by meter (unlike Bombay) and one is required to negotiate a rate before getting inside. We used Uber to help us figure out the going rate and then took the local rickshaw drivers’ vehicles at Uber prices—which, we thought, were very fair. About ten minutes later, we were deposited at the gates of the Museum and made our way inside.

Touring the Puthe Maliga Palace Museum:

Once inside the museum complex, we were led towards the ticket kiosk and then asked to wait for a guide in whose company we’d be allowed inside. There were about a dozen other people with us in our tour group. The guide spoke in three languages: Malayalam (regional language of Kerala), Hindi and English. We began initially with the lower floor (or ground floor) after depositing our footwear on provided stands. The Palace was the abode of the former Travancore kingly dynasty and the complex is composed of several beautiful structures, some in a better state of repair than others. They are all of uniform color (white stucco walls with red Mangalore tiled roofs). I loved the traditional architectural lines of these buildings and took pictures outside. To take pictures inside, you need to buy a ticket for Rs. 500. We did not do that, but we enjoyed the interiors with their carved details.

Indeed, there are dozens of rooms in the main palace building with gorgeous carved teak ceilings, very interesting floors that gleam and shine but made of an organic mixture of materials containing mustard oil, etc. The Palace is renowned for 172 decorative carved horses that encircles the exterior and for the carved rosewood details on its many solid doors and windows. Of course, there are decorative items inside such as European pottery and ceramics, Belgian glass, glorious Czech chandeliers, an entire art gallery devoted to royal portraiture with aristocratic heads of the Travancore dynasty depicted by such famous European portraitists as Roerich. Another gallery is devoted entirely to arms and armor from past centuries. There is beautiful carved furniture in Victorian style, palanquins and elephant howdahs. It was certainly worth touring the palace to see the wealth of the Travancore maharajas laid out for our viewing pleasure.

Visiting the Napier Museum:

The next item on our agenda was the Napier Museum which I remembered fondly from visiting Trivandrum in my 20s. I was determined to visit it again, not least because I remember seeing, for the first time in my life, a collection of works by Raja Ravi Varma, an aristocrat from the same Travancore dynasty. It had been my first introduction to his work and I had remained deeply struck by it. I believed that the collection was still housed at the Napier Museum; and so, by making inquiries, we discovered that we would need another auto rickshaw to get there—a distance of five kilometers The sun was really hot by this point (it was almost mid-day) and walking on the unshaded streets was quite uncomfortable.

The Napier Museum is located in a vast complex of Victorian gardens that comprise the Government Botanical Gardens and the Zoo. One of the reasons that I probably remember it so well is because it is a strikingly beautiful building whose style defies categorization. Suffice it to say that a combination of red and pink brick work, rather decoratively applied to the façade plus other details such as carved, conical wooden windows and red tiled roofs give it a most dignified and distinctive appearance. It is further accentuated by a large fountain in the front and sprawling gardens that radiate from its main entrance.

Inside, the decoration on walls, floor and ceiling is just as spectacular. There are balcony-like protrusions that stick out of the top where a combination of paint, carving, stucco, etc. combine to create a confection of visual delights that enchanted me. It is a small museum and restricted to just one floor, but there are clear sections within it: Chola bronzes, granite Hindu sculpture, marble figurines, carved ivory objects, a massive wooden Temple car that would have participated in several significant public processions over the years. It was all quite wonderful, but I kept wondering where the Ravi Varma paintings were to be found.

An inquiry at the entrance led me to discover than since the past 40 years, Ravi Varma has grown enormously in stature as one of India’s best contemporary painters. As such, his collection is now housed in a building entirely dedicated to it. This, fortunately, was within the same complex and involved a short five-minute walk. This objective became the most exciting and productive aspect of our day.

Visiting the Art Gallery Containing Raja Ravi Varma’s Paintings:

There is a separate ticket to enter the Ravi Varma Gallery and this we bought easily as we were pretty much the only visitors in the museum. A total of about twenty other visitors were present through the length of our stay of over an hour.

So here’s a word about Raj Ravi Varma. He was born in 1848 into the royal family of the Travancore dynasty of maharajas in Killimanoor Palace in the city of Trivandrum. As his penchant for painting was noticed very early in life, his uncle suggested that he receive training. Accordingly, while in his late teens, he received instruction in the Western painting tradition from the Dutch painter, Theodore Jensen. He soon began to paint portraits of the Travancore royal family in the new European tradition and, upon finding that his work was much admired, he submitted four of his paintings to art competitions in Chennai and Vienna, Austria, respectively—in both places he won prizes. It was not long before Ravi Varma was invited by the royal families of other Indian states to paint their own portraits. He ended up traveling extensively across India to undertake commissioned works, mainly for princely families. In course of time, he made his way to Chicago where, at the same time, the Indian Hindu philosopher, Swami Vivekananda, was also making a mark (in 1893). Both received high acclaim in the USA. While portrait-painting remained Ravi Varma’s bread and butter, he did indulge in the painting of a number of subjects purely for pleasure, The end result is a gigantic oeuvre that includes religious deities, spiritual and mythological narratives, still lives, landscapes and, of course, portraiture—both of prominent people and the common man. Ravi Varma’s style is distinctive because it is realistic in the extreme, characterized by an exuberance of color, unfailing eye for composition and proportion and the ability to pull the viewer into a long-ago world that is both accurate and authentic. Towards the end of his life, he returned to Trivandrum where he continued to remain an active creative artist. India’s Viceroy Lord Curzon, in 1904, described him as the Lord of Paintings and presented him with the Kaiser-e-Hind gold medal. Raiv Varma, whose work and style exemplified Victorian traditions of painting, died soon after the Queen Empress did—in 1906.

As I have personally loved Ravi Varma’s work ever since I was first introduced to it in my 20s, on my first visit to Trivandrum with my parents, I found the visit to this gallery to be the best part of my day. It takes about half an hour to see replicas of the paintings in the initial rooms before one moves further into the gallery to see the actual original oil paintings themselves. These have brief but adequate curatorial notes that take us through the various phases of his achievement. There is also a second floor that takes another half hour to see. Photography is permitted and I found myself wanting to preserve most of his work for posterity—hence I kept clicking quite enthusiastically. I thoroughly enjoyed the visit to this gallery which was probably the highlight of my stay in Trivandrum (as I had expected it to be).’

Sadya Lunch at Mother’s Veg. Plaza:

By this point in time, we were ready for a sit-down and lunch as we had been on our feet for hours. Suggestions on the internet had led me to a place called Mother’s Veg. Plaza which touted the best Sadya Lunch in the city. Sadya is a traditional Keralite meal, served at festive times (usually Onam, the Keralite harvest festival) on a banana leaf. Our Receptionist Honey, at our hotel, had confirmed that this place offers the best Sadya in the city.

Accordingly, we ordered an Uber rickshaw to get to the venue which we found to be filled to bursting. It took a chaotic wait of at least 25 minutes inside a hot, crowded, noisy, large hall before we were able to bag the seats of patrons who were just finishing their meal. At just Rs. 225 per head, this is a very good value for money. It is also very well touted on all social media—which explains the mainly tourist crowd.

Once we sat down, we had a variety of items plonked down on our individual banana leaves. There was a variety of chutneys followed by a mound of thick boiled rice. Equally thick daal was poured over it, with a spoonful of ghee. Then came a number of different vegetable preparations, all traditional and all known to the diners. I have to say that nothing was very tasty or delicious and both of us began to wonder what all the fuss was about. Finally, our meal ended with a number of little bowls containing butter milk and sambar as the servers came around with two types of dessert—payassam (one made of sago or tapioca, the other made with pineapple). These were the tastiest parts of our meal. As there were other diners hovering over us, ready to grab out seats, we could not really linger over our meal, I need to point out that we were the only two people in the entire establishment who asked for spoons—everyone else used their fingers to attack their mound of rice with gusto.

With our bill having been cleared right at the beginning, we merely thanked our servers and left. It is a pity that the crowds made the entire experience highly impersonal. With lunch done and another item ticked off our Wish List, we called another Uber rick and returned to the Botanical Garden for our afternoon visit to the Zoo.

Visiting the Trivandrum Zoo:

Although I always love to visit a zoo, we might have given this one a pass but for a very important reason. It is this zoo that inspired a Booker-Prize winning novel that was later made into a film and a successful stage play (and we have read the book and seen the film and the play). The novel is ‘Life of Pi’ and the author is Yaan Martel whose father served as zoo-keeper at this zoo while he was a child. His novel is largely inspired by the zoo and its animal residents.

So, with this knowledge, we bought our tickets and entered the zoo. There is a golf buggy cart available but it operates at specific times and we were too late for the previous one and too early for the next. Hence, we opted to use our own two (awfully tired) feet to see the zoo, Honey had told us that the zoo boasts a rare white Royal Bengal Tiger and we hoped very much that we would catch a glimpse of it (if not of the original Richard Parker—the name Martel gave the tiger in his novel).

There is nothing else very special about this zoo. Our recently refurbished Bombay Zoo is infinitely better. However, towards the very end of our visit, we did see the white tiger and he is indeed a magnificent creature. He happened to be having a drink and taking a bath in the little stream of water that runs through his enclosure. He offered himself for a few photo ops and both Llew and I excitedly clicked and were rewarded for our efforts.

And once we had seen this attraction, we were ready to call it a day. We were both quite tired by this point and looked forward to sitting down somewhere. It was about 4.30 pm at this time and we realized that we’d be in time for the 5.00 pm Mass at the Church of St. Anne Forane. This was significant as today is a Sunday and it happens to be St. Anne’s Feast. So that was our next port of call.

Mass at the Church of St. Anne Forane:

Once again, Uber came to our rescue as we found our way into the church. However, while there was a large statue of St. Anne with the young Mary by her side, outside the church, we realized that the church website had given us wrong information. We were supposed to have arrived for an English Mass at 5.00 pm. As it turned out, there was no Mass at 5.00pm; it was scheduled at 6.00 pm and it was not going to be in English but Malayalam. Hence, we paid a prayerful visit to the church (one that was profusely decorated for the Feast Day with an abundance of fresh gladioli) and left.

Another Uber rickshaw took us back to our hotel which we reached at about 5.30 pm. As soon as we reached our room, we threw ourselves on our bed as we were so exhausted. About twenty minutes later, we brewed ourselves a cup of coffee and enjoyed it with a bunch of biscuits that we happened to be carrying. With this snack in us, we settled down to do our packing as we would be leaving the hotel early, the next morning. A little later, as we were too tired to get out for dinner, we requested Honey to use his Zomato account to order us Chicken Tikka Sandwiches from Subway. He readily obliged and after sharing a foot-long sub that was not even remotely tasty, we were ready to call it a night. We set our alarms for 6.00 am and fell asleep.

Until tomorrow, cheerio…

Trivandrum-Kanya Kumari: A Day Spent with a Visit to Kovalam Beach and at the Southernmost Point of the Indian Sub-Continent:

Saturday, July 25, 2026

Trivandrum-Kanya Kumari

A Day Spent with a Visit to Kovalam Beach and at the Southernmost Point of the Indian Sub-Continent:

After the adventurous bus journey we had yesterday, we decided to treat ourselves to the luxury of a privately hired car and driver for the day to take us further down the Kerala Coast and into the state of Tamil Nadu. We had both slept beautifully in our most comfortable bed and after a hot shower, we dressed and were ready to enjoy breakfast in our hotel (included with the price of our room).

Breakfast was of two types: Indian (for which I opted—it included idlis with curry, iddiappam with a chick pea stew, medu vadas with coconut chutney plus fresh fruit—little yellow elchi bananas, water melon and a choice of tea or coffee). The Western breakfast consisted of eggs any style with toast, butter and jam, fresh fruit, tea and coffee. Llew opted for the Western and enjoyed his omlette with buttered toast. Fueled with our food, we requested the helpful Receptionist Honey to find us a private cab driver to fulfil our day’s travel needs. It did not take him long to connect us with a lovely driver named Rajesh who stayed with us for the whole day. He spoke a smattering of English but was very comfortable in Hindi (unlike most people in the South) which made communication with him both very simple and easy.

And so, by 10.20 am, we were in our taxi, heading off for Kanya Kumari. It is a journey that ordinarily takes about two hours, but for some reason, it took us much longer. This was probably due to the fact that we stopped briefly at Kovalam Beach en route.

Stopping at Kovalam Beach:

Kovalam is one of Kerala’s best-known beaches. I’m not really sure why as we did not find anything particularly distinctive about it. It took us about an hour to get there from Trivandrum and once there, it kind of seemed pointless. The tide was in and the ocean was a beautiful dove blue-grey. The sand was wet even at the shore which made it possible to walk down the stairs leading to it an easy business but not a lengthy one. We stayed for a few minutes, took pictures and left. The Leela Group of Hotels has a lovely five-star hotel at one end which is quite picturesque. I found a few souvenir shops and went in search of our souvenir magnets but there were none of Kovalam Beach—only of Kerala. I was able to pick up a few shells at a fraction of the cost I would have paid anywhere in the West and those became my souvenirs for this trip.

Heading South to Kanya Kumari:

And then, more than two hours after getting back into our car and heading further down south, we arrived at Kanya Kumari (formerly known as Cape Comorin). It is the southern tip of the Indian sub-continent and it is the confluence point of three major oceans: the Indian Ocean (in the south), the Arabian Sea (to the West) and the Bay of Bengal (to the East). Rumor used to have it that there are three shades of sand to be found on these beaches, but that is incorrect. The sands of the three beaches merge together to create a single shade. However, the lighting at different times of the day can create an optical illusion that leads the viewer to believe that there are three distinct shades of blue water that come together at this point. And indeed, that was something we easily discerned. You have beautiful shades of aquamarine, cobalt and turquoise blue meeting (the sort of thing we had seen in Hawai’i) in the gigantic waves that hit the shore.

We stopped initially at the confluence of the three oceans—the point known as Triveni Sangam. More about it later. Our first destination was the area’s main attraction, the Rock Temple dedicated to Swami Vivekananda, an Indian sage and philosopher. After Rajesh parked our car, he dropped us off at the roundabout and pointed us in the direction that would lead to the stop from where we could buy tickets for the ferry that would take us across the water to the Temple, which lies just a tiny bit offshore. What also catches the eye is a gigantic statue of a deity (who turned out to be the Hindu sage Thiruvalluram), on an adjacent rock. To get from the Vivekananda Temple to the Hindu Sage’s Temple, you walk across a glass bottomed footbridge which is quite a nice experience in itself as you can see the foaming waters of the sea crashing upon the rocks below. Pretty cool!

Visiting the Vivekananda Temple:

The ride in the ferry lasts about twenty minutes, you are given life jackets (a very wise move) and deposited on the other side. It is quite orderly as the crowds make control necessary through channels that maintain order. We were very fortunate not to find a crowd in the line when boarding. In fact, we were only about the first twenty passengers that boarded. Once on the other side, we gave up our life jackets and were about to climb the rock when we were directed by some of the volunteers to a small room where we watched a short film about the temple, its origin and its construction. This was highly informative, particularly for us who do not know too much about Vivekananda, his life or work.

You take your shoes off in this entire complex and walk with socks or barefooted.The temple complex consists of three parts: the rust-colored stone temple housing a large gleaming brass statue of the philosopher. Once we saw this interior, we walked to the opposite side, where there is a replica of a stone footprint said to have been created by the goddess Kanya Kumari (after whom the site is named) in one of the Hindu epics. Vivekananda is said to have come to this site to stand on this same footprint. Hence, the footprint is well defined and well cordoned off inside a glass enclosure—you can see it but cannot photograph or touch it. Hence, the temple in Vivekananda’s honor was built right opposite. The third structure is the one to the sage Thiruvalluram and this required walking across the glass footbridge. Once inside, you climb up a few flights of stairs to arrive at a viewing gallery which brings you to the feet of the sage. We were very much reminded of our climb up the mountain called Corcovado to see the Statue of Christos Redemptor (Christ The Redeemer) in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, which we had done together, a few years ago. Of course, we did take pictures at this spot too and also enjoyed wonderful views of the seashore at Kanya Kumari. Interestingly, there is a Muslim mosque and a Christian church on these shores—which leads me to believe that this is considered a somewhat sacred spot in all religions.

After we had surveyed all these properties, we took a few pictures and returned to the orderly lines that would lead us back to the ferry that would take us back to the shore. It was here that we found our magnet of Kanya Kumari in one of the shops as well as bags of more shells as I became really delighted to find them at such a cheap price. It was only their weight and fragility that prevented me from buying more.

Visiting the Gandhi Mandapam:

I have to say that it was quite hot and being in the outdoors at mid-day was not entirely comfortable. As we’d had a heavy breakfast, we were not too hungry, but it was important to find shade. We made our way next to the Gandhi Mandapam, a very interesting modern structure.

This white building was specially constructed on the spot where Gandhi’s ashes were kept exposed after his death so that people could pay their respects. A few days later, some of them were scattered in the Triveni Sangam (the three oceans that envelope the peninsula of India would forever hold the ashes of the man who had brought the region into global prominence by giving up his life for it). There is a very reasonably-priced ticket to get into all these venues and there is also footwear to be left behind for safekeeping, as a mark of respect.

Inside, you will find a large, wide hall with a small structure at the far end. In this receptable, Gandhi’s ashes had once lain. All around the hall, on the walls, are a pictorial history of Gandhi’s life. I found it quite fascinating indeed as I used to teach Gandhi’s life and work in my South Asian Studies courses at NYU and seeing all these photographs on the wall took me on a sort of deja-vu trip through the various phases of his life on which I used to lecture. We took about twenty minutes in this space, collected our footwear and returned to the roundabout. As we were carrying our shells with us, we called Rajesh to pick us up and once he arrived, we gratefully got into our AC car and asked him to take us to an AC restaurant so that we could get a bite to eat. He did manage to find us a place in a hotel but the menu was most unappetizing and all we had was a cooling lassi each.

Scaling the Lighthouse for Bird’s Eye Views of Kanya Kumari:

Having cooled off a bit, we proceeded to the next item on our agenda: climbing up to the light house for 360 degree views of Kanya Kumari. Fortunately, there is a lift to get to the top. My brother Russel, reminded me, when I spoke to him on the phone from Kerala, that we had been up to the top about 40 years ago! Truly, he has a phenomenal memory! That said, I too had a feeling that I had been to the place before as soon as I entered the compound.

The lighthouse is not very tall (maybe about six storeys in height). It is a candy-striped red and white building which closes at 6.00 pm. When we arrived there, it was about 5.30pm—which left us half an hour to stay at the top and take pictures. Yes, we did get the 360 degree views of the town but, more importantly, we had a chance to see the tapering West coast of India in a clear line as it petered out into the sea. We did take a few photographs as the ebbing sun rays gilded the landscape quite magically. But then, it was time to descend back again to the arms of Mother Earth and by 6.00pm, we were summoning Rajesh to pick us up again. We had one more item to be covered and we headed towards the spot.

Viewing the Sunset from Sunset Beach:

Two of the biggest attractions of Kanya Kumari are watching the sunrise over the East coast of India and viewing the sunset over the West Coast. When we had visited, forty years ago, we had stayed over the previous night and woken up at 5.00 am (literally the crack of dawn) to view the sunrise. It is a happy family memory that I deeply cherish. This time round, we would be able to see the sunset—so stay we did until we were able to tick that item off our To-Do List.

Sunset was supposed to be at 6.41 pm. This left us about half an hour to find a parking spot and then wait to see the sunset. Well, we weren’t the only ones with such a plan. Half of Kanya Kumari was out on the beach attempting to find a good spot from which to watch the sun sink over the Western horizon. At Rajesh’s suggestion, we got to a spot where we could seat ourselves comfortably and still see the molten gold orb disappear into the sea. Rajesh also took a few pictures of us on the sand as the gilding rays of the sun brought a romantic filter to the scene. Hundreds of people gathered at the same spot to take selfies or to pose in groups as the sun began into downward descent. And then, just give minutes later, it was gone and another day came to an end on the Indian sub-continent.

Long Drive Back to Trivandrum with Dinner En Route:

And then, it was time for us to pile back into our car and get to our hotel in Trivandrum. Darkness fell swiftly over the land as soon as the sun set. We were tired and happy to have a cool, comfortable environment in which to unwind before reaching home. We requested Rajesh to stop at a fast food place such as McDonald’s or Burger King so that we could pick up a take home meal. But Rajesh had other ideas! He suggested a place called Taste of Kerala for what he said would be “excellent fish”. As Llew does not eat fish, he almost nixed the plan. But I told Rajesh that I eat fish and would like to try the famous Karimeen Polichattu (Pearl Fish Steamed in a Banana Leaf). Rajesh said that I was sure to get it at that spot. Hence, the spot became a no-brainer.

True to his prophecy, we really did enjoy an excellent seafood meal at Taste of Kerala. There was a live seafood counter from which we could choose our own favorite fish—fortunately for Llew, there was shell fish too and he chose a neat batch of gigantic shrimp. I chose the pearl fish and had them make it the way I wanted. We ordered fresh lime sodas to wash down our meal and, seated at dimly lit tables in a lovely outdoorsy atmosphere, we enjoyed our dinner. Our driver Rajesh was taken care of by the proprietors, and it seems that he is accustomed to bringing his passengers to this place. His idea was a sterling one and we were very pleased we took his counsel.

Dinner done, we had about a half hour’s run to our hotel. Rajesh dropped us at our gate and within minutes, Honey was present, to open the main door, hand over our keys and bid us goodnight as we climbed the one floor to our room and called it a night.

It had been a full and very productive day and we were amazed at how much ground we had covered, thanks to the services of our own private vehicle and driver.

Until tomorrow, cheerio…

In Kerala: Journey from Potta to Trivandrum: Nine Hours Traveling Cattle Class in a State Transport Bus

Friday, July 24, 2026

Journey from Potta to Trivandrum: Nine Hours Traveling Cattle Class in a State Transport Bus

Today was the day our Retreat ended. After the daily rude awakening, followed by prayer (which I skipped so that I could do my packing) and the hour-long lecture (which I also skipped because frankly, I’d had enough), we had our last breakfast in the communal hall. The next session was touted as very important and so we attended it. It would be the last session we would attend—Praise and Worship for half an hour followed by an hour-long lecture. The rest of the morning plodded along in the main Vincentian Hall. It was supposed to be an Anointing Session, but we could not wait for it.

We had a bus scheduled to leave at 12. 15 pm from Challakudy Bus Depot (according to the website of the Kerala State Transport Corporation—KSTC) –so we had requested Joy from the Reception Desk to order us a Taxi at 11. 45 am. We said our last goodbyes to our friends, old and new, and left to return to our room for last-minute packing and to bring our bags down. We were off to spend the next 3 days in southern Kerala while the rest of our group would be returning to Bombay.

A Most Unusual Journey by Bus:

Our taxi did arrive on time at 11. 45 am and off we went to Challakudy Bus Depot hoping to catch the 12. 15 pm bus from there to Trivandrum. Imagine our irritation when we discovered that all the information on the website is outdated or incorrect. There were no buses to Trivandrum from Challakuddy—they went along some bypass and did not stop at the bus deport there! With great language difficultly, we were informed that we would need to take a bus to Ammangeli. This was a half hour run and the bus was expected to call in to Challakudy in a half hour. This left us enough time to pick up a few dry snacks (vadas) and get a fruit juice for lunch at a shabby snack stall before the bus arrived and we boarded it. We were quite the objects of curiosity on the bus as it was obvious no one had ever seen passengers like us using such a pedestrian form of transport. We had expected to get an AC bus with reclining seats, free WIFI. etc. Well, let me tell you, it was an ancient vehicle used as commuter transport. No one going long-distance took those buses. A lady on the bus asked me (in sign language) where we were from and I told her New York because if I had said Bombay, she’d have thought that was an alien planet. And so, paying Rs. 25 per seat, we arrived at Ammangeli.

At Ammangeli, we were told that the AC bus to Trivandrum would arrive at 3.00 pm. It was not even 1.00 pm then and we did not wish to wait for another two hours in that one-horse town with nowhere to go and nothing to do. Hence, we opted to take another state transport bus that was equally pedestrian as the one we’d taken earlier—only this time, we’d be on the bus for nine hours!!!! After waiting for anther half an hour, our bus arrived. We climbed on to it, stashed our baggage in front near the driver’s seat and settled down into two seats far away from each other. Believe me, we were squeezed into seats so narrow it would be hard to accommodate anyone more than 100 pounds in weight. Using sign language again and making many requests, I managed to get us seats together at the very start of the ride. We stayed in that position until night fell and we arrived at our destination—the capital city of Kerala, Trivandrum.

En route, we passed through the entire coastal rib of Kerala. As we are in the monsoon season, everything is clean, green and fresh. We passed by the city of Allepey where we caught fabulous glimpses of the last of the backwaters filled with river craft for which Kerala is famed. We also passed glitzy gold and diamond showrooms and we realized that no matter now dusty the town or how tiny, there are gold shops galore to tempt the buyer. Kerala is obviously a far more wealthy state than West Bengal through which we had driven in May and which is decrepit, to say the least.

We also passed through the town called Kollam and only when we were passing through its obvious prosperity did it occur to me that it was the city formerly known as Quilon. I was excited as my cousin’s late husband had hailed from that town and I was very familiar with the name. Anyway…passengers came and went and as we made our way closer to Trivandrum, the bus became like a commuter van with dozens of folks getting on and off and many standees crowding the gangway. At many stops, we had left our seats to stretch our limbs (Llew even used a restroom at one stop but it was not something I was even interested in doing as I could just imagine how ghastly it would be). So I basically did not use the toilet until we eventually got to our hotel!

And get to our hotel, we did. Upon arrival at Trivandrum, we called for an Uber car and we were deposited at our hotel, ‘Ramas Garden’, where we reached at about 10.00 pm. We had called the hotel and told them that we would be checking in later than notified. We found a lovely Receptionist called Harnik (Honey) waiting for us and within minutes, he gave us our room key on the first floor and saw us into our rooms. It was not even fifteen minutes later that we used the bathroom, brushed and flossed our teeth and fell asleep in the amazingly comfortable bed.

And so that was our big adventure story of our trip to Kerala. Yes, it is true that you can only see India by bus and you can only mingle with the common people when you choose this form of transport. We found everyone extraordinarily kind and gracious towards us—almost protective. The people of the South of India are so refined, so cultured, so extraordinarily nice. It made all the discomfort of the trip worth it.

Until tomorrow…cheerio.

Potta, Kerala: Getting Accustomed to the Regimen of a Well-Orchestrated Retreat

Monday-Thursday, July 20-23, 2026

Getting Accustomed to the Regimen of a Well-Orchestrated Retreat

For the next few days, this was the tenor of our lives. Early morning wake-up calls (at 5.30 am) were punishing, to say the least. A loudspeaker would blare out a hymn that never failed to wake me up with a terrible start, my heart palpitating unpleasantly until it settled down. Half an hour later, (at 6.am), there was black coffee served to all—a way of waking up participants (in case the blaring alarm hymn had been inadequate). At 7.00 am, the entire group gathered for Praise and Worship, a spirited singing session with a full band in attendance. These musicians are part of the Music Ministry, and they did an excellent job getting the congregation to sing loudly with them. The Charismatics do not do anything quietly—their worship is all about sound and fury. They also punctuate their singing with actions (the raising of arms, the rhythmic clapping, the swaying from side to side, etc.). It soon became routine for us, but initially, it was all a bit overwhelming to watch. Praise and Worship was followed by an hour-long lecture by which time my stomach was rumbling so fiercely as to make it impossible to focus on what was being said.

At 8.30 am, we trooped into the Dining Hall for breakfast. It was always tasty with a different kind of ‘bread’ served daily—one day appams, another day Malabar parotta, another day idiyappam (string hoppers)—always with sambar or curry. There was also always a hard-boiled egg (for those who needed protein with every meal). This was followed by a choice of tea or coffee.

Post-breakfast, there were more lectures, more healing sessions and at 3.00 pm daily, there was the Divine Mercy Chaplet that was recited by the entire congregation. Lunch followed with more lectures or praying sessions interspersed until tea-time. Post-Tea, there were more lectures until dinner. There was always Mass at 7.00 pm (most often said by Fr. Augustin which unfailingly included a 40-60 minute homily). I have to say that I found it tedious in the extreme and I often wondered how much more of it I could take. I suppose what kept me going was the fervor and devotion of everyone else around me. They were completely fixated on the altar, on the words of the speaker, on the notes emanating from the keyboard or the guitar. None of them seemed to find the sessions too lengthy, too repetitive or too boring. Their devotion was truly inspirational.

In the midst of the sessions, Llew and I found the time, one afternoon, to explore the vast premises of the Center. We took a walk down to a river along whose bank the Center has been constructed. There are structures through which the 14 Stations of the Way of the Cross are spelled out in plaster of Paris sculpture. The entire facility is thick with greenery and tropical vegetation. We could smell ripe jackfruit on the trees and see other fruit plantations and orchards all around us (mango, cashew, banana, coconut). It is a perfect setting for quiet contemplation and meditation on the various lessons we were taught through the talks. Sadly, there was no time given for any of these activities—probably because, from experience, they realize that people will simply sit around and chat because they were craving relief from the spiritual overdose. I often wished I could slip out and sit under a tree and listen to the wind rustling its branches or watch cheeky squirrels scampering along to the top. But there was never any opportunity to enjoy this. Meal-time offered some respite from the spiritual treadmill when we could actually chat with each other as we enjoyed our food. It was during these times that we laughed about the more humorous speakers and the badly-needed comic relief that they brought.

On one of the days, there was a mandatory fast (except for those with heath issues who were unable to maintain a fast). This was held to support the youth and children who would be attending their Confessions that day. After breakfast, there was no food served until tea-time. I have to say that I did not really feel hungry (as breakfast was hearty) but by tea-time, I was ready for a snack. And dinner that night was a feast! There was vegetable biryani, fried chicken, chicken curry, two vegetables and even chocolate for dessert!

The penultimate day—the second-last day—was the most powerful. It was the day devoted to Iner Healing and it was conducted by Fr. Joseph Edattu who is based at a similar Divine Retreat Center in Ramsgate, Kent, UK. He is a terrific speaker and the examples he used to teach were so perfectly apt that I took most counsel from his words. He conducted a session in which people were asked to surrender all their petitions, woes, worries, etc.to the Lord. The place was darkened, all electric lights switched off, the only light coming from a few candles on the altar. The monstrance was exposed throughout this nearly 90 minute session when people lost all their inhibitions and cried aloud in anguish that was heartrending to hear. It made me realize how much emotional, financial, physical hardship people endure on a daily basis and how difficult it is for them to carry their burdens. At the end of the session that included music, singing, chanting, call and response measures from the priest at the altar, people were told to come forward to let the congregation know if they had experienced any healing at that session. Eric, who was a member of our group, a retired sea captain, who had lost his sight and was near-blind, went up to the altar and gave his ‘testimony’. He reported that during the healing session, he felt a strong sensation near his eyes and when he opened them, he found that he could see all the colors and patterns of the altar clearly—something he had been unable to do when he had arrived for the Retreat.

Spiritual and Tourism in Kerala: Five Day Retreat at the Divine Retreat Center in Potta

Sunday, July 19, 2026

Arrival in Potta and First Day of Retreat

Llew and I had been persuaded to sign up for a 5-day Retreat in Pota, Kerala, several months ago, by our friends, Anand and Jean Prabhu. We did not know what to expect, but since scores of Bombay Catholics have undertaken this Retreat and have spoken eloquently about it, we decided to make this the year we would make the Retreat. As always, I saw this trip as an opportunity to fill in the blanks of the places we had not covered in Kerala in January this year (when we had traveled to Cochin so that I could present a paper at the International Anglo-Indian Reunion Conference). So, this time round, we made plans to visit Trivandrum (capital of Kerala), Kovalam Beach (which is highly reputed and only an hour away) and Kanya Kumari, the southernmost tip of the Indian Peninsula and which involved crossing state lines from Kerala into Tamil Nadu.

Accordingly, we left our home at 6.30 am to arrive at the Bombay Airport in record time (20 minutes) for our 9.30 am Akasa Airlines flight to Cochin. Our friends Anand and Jean and Gloria were there too and at the departure gate, we met them, after we’d bought ourselves a coffee and settled down to board our flight.

Our flight was very comfortable indeed. We were presented with a meal on board (we had chosen our breakfast meals—I had a Chicken Salad Croissant and Llew picked a Thai Chicken Salad with coffee) and feeling ready to face the day, we arrived at Cochin. At the airport, we also connected with Eric and Rowena D’Souza who were also part of our Retreat group. Anand made arrangements for us to take two taxis that took us, in two groups, to Potta, where the Divine Retreat Center is located. We entered the gates at abut 1.00 pm and were ready to have lunch.

We had the first of the communal lunches we would have in a great big dining hall. We also met Nimmi Moniz at this point. She too would be a part of our group for the next five days. All the members of our group had opted for AC rooms (non-AC was also available at cheaper rates) and special meals (for which we also paid more). The meals were substantial and delicious, based on the typical South Indian staples of Kerala (rice, sambhar, rasam, vegetables sauted with coconut and a non-vegetarian curry--we had chicken, pork and fish curries and Kerala’s famous fried beef). In the evening, in addition to rice, lovely soft chapattis were also served.

Right after lunch, we joined in the first of the many lectures/talks that we attended. These were either preached by lay preachers or by priests who are based in various parts of the world. The Director of the Divine Retreat Center is Fr. Augustin Vallooran and he played a very prominent role throughout the five days of our Retreat. This was my first introduction to the power, faith and devotion of the speakers who have the capacity to speak for a whole hour at a time without looking at a single note. They have the particular facility of being able to quote the Bibe effortlessly down to the last chapter and verse. I have to tell you that, overall, I was quite floored by their talents even as I wondered how I could possibly sit through five whole days of hour-long lectures, often preceded by half an hour of Praise and Worship sessions that involved a great deal of loud music and zippy singing. I need to state, at this stage, that the Retreat is conducted in the traditions of the Catholic Charismatic Renewal. And, if you are unfamiliar with their culture or religious practices, they will take some getting used to. There is a lot of very loud expressions of faith (frequent utterances of “Hallelujah, Praise the Lord and Thank you Lord”), repetitive hymns that become almost like a chant or a mantra and speakers who evoke the power of the Holy Spirit to effect conversion, healing, revelation, etc.

Tea Break followed and we were treated to a choice or tea or coffee with biscuits, after which more Praise and Worship sessions and more lectures followed. Finally, it was time for Dinner which was also delicious and substantial (and definitely a far cry from the reputedly thick boiled rice and watery daal meals of years gone by). As the Retreats have been conducted for over thirty years, the Center has made many improvements in the living conditions of the participants. After dinner, there was more opportunity for Adoration with the Blessed Sacrament in the many chapels that are scattered all over the vast premises but both Llew and I were simply too wiped out by dinner time to do any more religious activity.

I should add that there were about 3000 people at the Retreat from various parts of India and around the world. While we were attending the Couples Retreat, there was also a Youth Retreat and a Childrens’ Retreat going on, at the same time.

And, on that note, our first day of Retreat came to an end.

Until tomorrow, cheerio…

Bewitching Bhutan! Whiling Away an Extra Day while Awaiting a Return Flight to Bombay

Saturday, May 16, 2026

Siliguri, West Bengal

Away an Extra Day while Awaiting a Return Flight to Bombay

We awoke in our Newas Home Stay after a good night’s sleep. I had realized late at night that I had an appointment with friends in Bombay today involving a Walk-through of an Art exhibition by Subodh Gupta called ‘A Fistful of Sky’ followed by Afternoon Tea at The Art Café at the Ambani Center. I had sat up for a good half hour last night cancelling my appearance and making alternative arrangements so that my friends could continue having a great time in my absence. I even left a message for the Manager of The Art Café informing him of my flight cancellion and my absence and requesting him to take good care of my friends.

Then, with Llew and Marisa up, we realized that we had no set program for the day and could take it really easy. Breakfast would be served to us in just a little while and I used the time to walk outside in the beautiful garden taking in the tropical vegetation on a day that promised to be really hot, Because we had left the mountain coolness of Bhutan behind us and were in the dusty plains of India again, the temperature reflected the geographical change.

Breakfast did appear before long, provided by our landlady Pratima. There were omlettes with toast, butter and jam and coffee. We ate our fill and then each of us set off to do our own thing. Marisa stayed in her room and got on with some work, I put on the TV set and watched You Tube videos on Bhutan—it was good to relive the sheer joy of our recent travels It was hard to believe we had left it all behind us and would need to get back to reality again. Llew went back to our room where he spent the rest of the morning completely out for the count—probably making up for lost sleep following our fairly late nights.

A couple of hours later, we had our showers and around mid-day, we were ready to go out and look for some lunch and poke out heads inside the Hongkong Market. We had packed up and kept our baggage ready to be hauled into the car of the general dogsbody that was in-charge of the place as Pratima had left for Gangtok, earlier in the morning, after leaving us her bill. The rickshaw ride took much longer than we expected and, ultimately, we were hungry enough that we decided to postpone shopping until we could eat.

We did look at a few shops as we went past the market looking for a suitable place to eat. Eventually when we did find something it was rather terrible. On the upper floor, where it was air-conditioned, we managed to squeeze ourselves into some seats, ordered a non-veg thali and satisfied our hunger although service was extraordinarily slow and tested our patience. When we finished, we had just enough time to try to find another rickshaw, get back to our bungalow and into the car that would take us to the airport. We managed to find our way back and headed off to the airport.

At the airport, there was the regular streams of humanity waiting to get inside, but at least it was orderly. Things seemed to be working normally and we checked in our baggage, after ascertaining that all flights were on schedule. There is not much to be said about the airport at Bagdogra. There were good, clean, working toilets, shops that sold the regular detritus of handicrafts and souvenirs at inflated prices and a lot of coming and going. We settled ourselves down on seats (it seemed much less crowded and chaotic today) and, ultimately, made our way to our gate when our flight was announced.

There is also not much to be said about the flight except that it was full and on time. Service was good but as we had no meal plan, we ate the last of our snacks and contented ourselves with that light repast. When we touched down in Bombay, we made our way to the Uber station (after calling for one) and ended up getting back at about 11.00 pm. We were dropped off first and then Marisa made her way to her own place.

Yes, after a whole week in Bhutan and with one unexpected bonus day in Siliguri (which turned out to be a sheer waste of time), we were back home again. As always, it is so good to be home and no matter how fantastic a time one has had, the thrill of being in one’s own bed and bathroom in priceless and we were deeply glad that we had reached home safely.

Conclusion:

Our travels in Bewitching Bhutan had gone beyond expectations. Frankly, I had not done much reading or looked at any You Tube videos before our departure—so I really did not know what to expect. But, as it turned out, Bhutan was just delightful. So here are some of the things that will stay with me about this lovely country:

1. Aside from its wonderful natural beauty which will stay with me always, it was the people I liked. They were gentle, soft-spoken, kind, helpful and seemed to be guileless. Yes, we were guests in their country and, as such, they were hospitable, but I believe it went beyond that. I think there is something intrinsic about their culture (perhaps their religion?) that makes them kind, patient and gentle.

2. The grandeur and extravagance of their unique temples which, sadly, we could only commit to memory and not photograph. I do not believe I have seen such monumental figures in sacred spaces as I saw all over Bhutan—or indeed the lavish decoration that surrounds their shrines and altars.

3. The cleanliness, the greenery, the order and organization everywhere were striking. I did not see people shoving or pushing or raising their voices because they did not need to do so. Every place seemed orderly and organized and people knew where they were going and what they were doing. The place is definitely under-populated, compared to India (I suppose every place is under-populated, compared to India) but this country seemed especially empty.

4. The neatness and visual uniformity of their man-made structures—buildings, house, temples, monasteries, even shops and official buildings, have an architectural sameness about them that was very interesting. Painted in a calm color palette of just four or five colors (red and green for roofs), stark white or off-white for buildings with stylized decoration in orche, white, black and red for other buildings, there was no monotony—just a sense of pleasing homogeneity which I truly loved.

5. The interesting national clothing that is worn by everyone: gho for the men (checked tunics that look like midi skirts with long sleeves that end in pure white cuffs, thick black knee length socks and flat black shoes; and kira for the women—a two-piece outfit consisting of a colorful skirt and a self-colored short blouse held together with a brooch.

6. Food that is not really edible unless you love fiery chillis. We did like the Ema Dashi (chilis with cheese but they were not always done well everywhere).

7. Butter Tea made with water, salt, butter/yogurt and tea leaves (made from a local herb—not from tea leaves as we understand them). I absolutely loved this tea which reminded me very much of chicken broth and I enjoyed sipping it with all my meals.

8.The natural landscape of this country in the foothills of the Himalayas. There is so much forest cover, so much vegetation (and we were lucky enough to be there in spring when many trees were still in bloom) and so many naturally beautiful vistas—cascading waterfalls, snow-capped mountain peaks, miles of flooded rice fields, etc. We were also lucky enough to have stayed in hotels in varied terrain: in urban settlements like the big cities, in the midst of rice paddies, in the soft curve of nestling mountains, etc. Each place offered into own ambience and beauty that we really enjoyed.

Thank-you for following me on these travels. I enjoyed having you as my armchair-companion and until the road rises up to meet me again, I wish you Carefree Wanderings.

Bewitching Bhutan! Day Eight: Road Journey from Puentsholing to Bagdogra (Siliguri, West Bengal) and Cancelled Return Flight to Bombay.

Friday, May 15, 2026

Bewitching Bhutan!

Day Eight: Road Journey from Puentsholing to Bagdogra (Siliguri, West Bengal) and Cancelled Return Flight to Bombay.

We awoke on our last morning in Bhutan and were all set to return to India. After showering, packing, leaving our baggage ready for pick up, we adjourned to the restaurant for breakfast. It was a hearty one: omlettes with buttered toast, jam, sheera, poha, fresh fruit, coffee, tea. We ate well and, having made contact with the two drivers who would take us across the border from Bhutan into India and on to the airport at Bagdogra, we piled into their cars. We had asked Gilroy for two separate cars as a single one had been simply too cramped and we could not imagine undergoing the five to six hours journey in such uncomfortable positions. Accordingly, Blossom and Menaka (heading for Bangalore and taking a flight an hour before us) left in one car while Llew, Marisa and I (heading for Bombay) were in another.

We had a bit of a setback when it came to clearing Indian Immigration as Llew and I had foreign passports that needed to be stamped before we entered India. Marisa had undertaken her immigration formalities, the previous day. When we arrived at the Indian Immigration Office in Jaigoan (a one-horse town in West Bengal, just over on the other side of the border from Puentsholing), we discovered that it only opened at 9.00 am. We were there at 8.00 am hoping to be nice and early. Hence, we had to kill time for a whole hour and our driver took us to an air-conditioned restaurant called Sheetal (as it was really humid and hot) where we found refreshment (ice-cream and cool drinks) before we returned to the place at 10.00 am. By this time, tons of foreigners had arrived there and we found ourselves having to download an e-entry card for India that gave us trouble as we did not have adequate bandwidth on our phones to download it. Anyway, the immigration officer, who had remembered us from our previous visit (and whom we had christened “Chubby Checker”--hahahahah) went out of his way to help us and a good one hour later, we were out of there and on our way. Meanwhile, Blossom and Menaka’s car had sailed ahead, but they had to come back because our driver had become very late with all this waiting and we needed to switch cars and drivers before we set off again.

We thought we would meet at lunchtime, but we missed them again, as they left just before we arrived at the ‘K B Restaurant’, where we had stopped en route to Bhutan. Along the way, we had passed by miles and miles of neat tea estates, beautifully manicured and irrigated and sunning themselves picturesquely in the hot sun. There were also a few dusty, under-developed towns filled with half-baked structures that were uniformly ugly and unappealing. And then, eventually, lunch done (an Indian a la carte meal this time consisting of thupka—Chicken noodle soup for me, fish curry for Marisa and Butter Chicken for Llew with naan), we arrived at Bagdogra Airport where we had a reunion again, of our entire group.

After we checked in and went through Security, we were able to enter the area where the gates were located. Blossom and Menaka, who had been holding seats for us, made us comfortable and we had a good hour together as their flight was delayed. Chaos reigned supreme with long lines of people waiting to board flights, others sitting around and waiting. The shops did very desultory business as everything was heavily overpriced. It had begun to rain by this point and we could hear the downpour drumming on the terminal roof. Finally, when their flight was announced, we said our goodbyes and waited patiently for our flight to be announced too.

Except that our Air-India Express flight was not just delayed, it was well and truly cancelled. We discovered this at about 8.00 pm. Of course, from that time onwards pandemonium prevailed as three flights had been cancelled: to Bombay, to Calcutta and to Dibrugarh. Passengers began to shout for assistance and, on discovering that there were no more flights leaving Bagdogra that night, they began to demand hotel accommodation.

Now, I was well aware that Bagdogra is a one-horse town and it would be impossible that the airline authorities would be able to conjure up accommodation for hundreds of passengers in the flash of an eye. We, therefore, decided to find out what our alternatives were, found a traffic assistant who advised us to get ourselves manifested on the flight tomorrow leaving at the same time and pick up the baggage we had checked in. We did these things while everyone else around us was raising their voices. Once we received our baggage, we found ourselves a quiet corner, far from the madding crowd, near the luggage conveyor belts and sat down to look for an Air B&B close to the airport. Blossom and Menaka, meanwhile, delayed on the tarmac for over an hur, finally did take off and reached Bangalore a little after 10.30 pm.

Well, to make a long story short, we found a place in Siliguri that was about 5 kms away and called the proprietress whose name was Pratima Pradhan and who ran a place called The Newas Home Stay. A call to her ascertained our accommodation for the night in her apartment that had 2 bedrooms—perfect for the three of us. She also arranged for us to get an airport shuttle pick up service (for Rs. 500 extra) and in a short while, the driver arrived and transported us to her place. We met and liked her, looked at our apartment and our rooms for the night, were content with what we saw and then asked her to order diner for us. We also asked her if there was anything interesting we could do, the next day, as we had a whole day to kill before taking our flight; but when she discussed the options with us, we found that it involved waking at the unearthly hour of 4.00 am to see the Jaldapara Wild Life Sanctuary which was almost 3 hours away. We nixed that idea and decided instead to simply spend time in a place called Hongkong Market. In a short while, we received a simple Indian dinner of Mixed Vegetable Kurma with Naan and on that replete note, we made the most of our unexpected delay and settled down to bed.

Until tomorrow…keep smiling.

Bewitching Bhutan! Day Seven--Goodbye Paro! Return Journey from Paro to Puentsholing…Because All Good Things Must Come To an End

Thursday, May 14, 2026

Bewitching Bhutan!

Day Seven--Goodbye Paro! Return Journey from Paro to Puentsholing…Because All Good Things Must Come To an End

We awoke in the Shomo Chukki Resort in Paro in the middle of misty rice paddies. The knowledge that this was our last productive day in Bhutan brought a veil of sadness as we had truly enjoyed our time together in this unique land and felt sorry to be leaving it. I showered, brewed a cup of decaff coffee in our room (as we did every single day of our time in Bhutan) and took it out to our lovely little balcony attached to our room to sip it and savor it slowly while taking in the miles of flooded rice paddies that spread out before us, stretching all the way to the distant mountains. This was as rural a scene as any one could expect in the Himalayan nation and I was grateful for the few minutes of peace and solitude as Llew showered. Then, I packed up my bags and got ready for our departure. But first, breakfast…

After the disastrous dinner of last night, we hoped to eat a decent breakfast and we were not disappointed. There were the usual Indian and Western offerings on the buffet table and we ate well: omlettes with toast (which I asked to be made extra dark and crispy—and that took an age), chicken sausages, butter, jam, fresh fruit, coffee. Yes, it did make for a substantial breakfast and before long, after checking out of our hotel, thanking the staff and taking pictures of our bucolic pastoral location, we piled into our van and left.

Goodbye Paro and Hello Again Puentsholing:

We passed through the picturesque town of Paro, for the last time, taking in its neat main street, its dzong or fortress that overlooks the main road and it’s really pretty airport. Paro is supposed to be one of the trickiest airports at which to land an aircraft and it is said that only very seasoned pilots can negotiate the short runway which, if misjudged, can drive the aircraft straight into the adjoining mountains. We actually watched a plane land as we skirted alongside the airport terminal. And then, we had left the town behind and worked our way into the snaking mountain road that would follow us for the next few hours as we made our way down south to Puentsholing.

It was with some sadness that we played ‘Antakshari’ to while away the time on the long journey back. Occasionally, we switched to listening to Bhutanese music—which, to be frank, I could take only in small dozes. I found it to be very monotonous and soon we were longing to listen to something else.

About halfway through our long car ride, our driver Chilay stopped and our guide Dil told us that we would make a stop at a river bank to take some pictures. He told us that this was an unscheduled stop—“a gift from Chilay and myself”. Hmmm…it turned out to be a nice break as we were at a river bank covered with river stones and pebbles that had been hewn smooth and rounded by water erosion. Marisa suggested that we make a stone tower to which each of us would add a stone, in order to leave something of ourselves behind in Bhutan. It was such a good idea—and we certainly did so and took a lot of photographs to immortalize the moments. Next, we each picked up a few stones ourselves to take home: I tried to find the smallest and most stable ones so that they would form a balanced tower that I could place on a bookcase. And with this being our last holiday experience, we reentered our van and continued with the journey. We passed through the verdant mountains on both sides, an occasional cascade, concrete bridges that spanned the mountain sides, flowering trees, a patch or two of road works that left the road bumpy and uncomfortable—"Kantwadi Road”, as we christened it—and some spurts that were just really smooth and lovely and lulled us to sleep.

We stopped for lunch at ‘The Pit Stop’ and had one of those buffet lunches that had become truly predictable, by this point. I enjoyed the Butter Tea best in these places but we also had the salad, dal, papad, rice, rotis, chicken, vegetable dishes (all done in typical Indian style) with sheera (sweet semolina) for dessert. We had a private joke among us—that we would get back to our van for a proper dessert of Toblerone chocolate—but, of course, as we were carrying none, the chocolate never made an appearance. Instead, we passed the time during the long drives by nibbling on dried fruit and nuts, quiche, cookies and other snacks that we had carried with us from India.It was here that I discovered, as I finally got connectivity, that my brother Russel was unwell in Bombay and would need a house visit from our doctor. I had to make several calls to arrange it and with it done, we could move on.

Although we spent most of the time in the van, it is really surprising how tiring these drives can be. By the time we were on the outskirts of Puentsholing (at about 4.00 pm), we were too tired to even step out to take a look at the very last temple about 5 kms from our final destination. We decided to pass as we were keen to have some time for last-minute shopping in Puentsholing. When we discovered that we would be at the Park Hotel, which we knew was right in the main temple square, we checked in speedily. Dil informed us that he and Chilay would be taking our leave and since we had all contributed to tips for the two of them (which we had placed in two envelopes with their names on it), we handed them over with thanks, took our last pictures with them, said our goodbyes and saw them off. They had, on the whole, been very helpful to us, highly knowledgeable and had been worthy escorts on our week’s adventures. It was sad to see them go off, but we too had a few things to do before calling it a day.

Hence, we used the facilities and then left immediately to make a beeline for the Duty Free Shop. Some of us wished to buy imported booze to take back to India, others wanted to buy a bottle of peach wine. These purchases made, we went into the handicrafts shops to buy a few last trinkets to take back as gifts. As we wove our way in and out of the shops, we realized that most of them were the same and offered similar merchandise. By the time all our shopping was done, darkness had fallen over the town, the temple was illuminated and we had our last few pictures taken by it. Then, we returned to our rooms to pack up our shopping, met in our room for the last time to finish our bottle of peach wine and the last of our nibbles and then made our way downstairs to the restaurant for dinner.

Dinner was quite tasty as this chef certainly knew how to cook. We had soup, rice, roti, papad, chicken or fish, two vegetables, and gulab jamuns for dessert. We chatted a bit with the staff and looked for Blossom’s young admirer—but he was very subdued this evening and did not have any of the flirtatious exuberance of a week ago! When we’d had our fill, we said goodnight and returned to our rooms, having decided to return to the restaurant for breakfast at 8.00 am.

And with that, our last day in Bhutan came to an end.

Until tomorrow…keep smiling.

Bewitching Bhutan! Day Six: Conquering the Hike to the Tiger’s Nest Monastery, Bhutanese Lunch, Shopping in Paro, Hot Stones Bath.

Wednesday, May 13, 2026

Bewitching Bhutan!

Day Six: Conquering the Hike to the Tiger’s Nest Monastery, Bhutanese Lunch, Shopping in Paro, Hot Stones Bath.

Today was the most significant day in our travels in Bhutan. A lot of people consider this day to be a test of their endurance. It is the day we were to scale the heights of the mountain that lead to the most famous temple-monastery in all of Bhutan, Takshen Lakhang (The Tiger’s Nest Monastery). How did we do? Read to find out…

But to begin at the beginning: we awoke excitedly in the Shomo Chuki Resort, showered, dressed comfortably for a tiring hike, prepared for it by keeping the load in our backpacks to the very minimum and went downstairs and into the neighboring building for breakfast. We joined the others at a corner table and settled down at 8.00 am to eat omlettes with toast, butter and jam, an Indian breakfast dish (puri bhaji), fresh fruit, tea and coffee. It was a hearty breakfast and we felt fortified for the exhaustion of the day ahead. At 9.00 am, our guide Dil and driver Chilay arrived to take us to the base of the mountain that we would need to climb to see the Tiger’s Nest Monastery.

Drive to Takshen Lakhang (the Tiger’s Nest Monastery):

The drive to the site was no more than ten minutes, past the rural rice paddies of the outskirts of Paro. On our right was the bank of mountains, nestled in which was the goal point. Most climbers start really early in the morning as the temperature is at its best for an energetic hike. We arrived with other groups of tourists in large vans or small coaches a little after 9.30 am.

As Blossom has difficulty climbing, she had decided to sit this one out. Marisa, who was keen to climb with us, had a setback yesterday (her fall at the Museum) and since her knee was aching, she too decided to give it a miss. I was uncertain, until the very last minute, about whether or not I would climb. I rather doubted my physical stamina to climb to that height and for such a long gradient. But Llew, although recovering from a recent hernia surgery, was always gung-ho about it. So was Menaka—she was very certain she would undertake the hike. I thought I would wait till the eleventh hour to decide. And indeed, when we parked our van, and I saw large groups of people get ready for the climb, I felt motivated to join in. We made our way to the two Bhutanese ladies who were selling climbing poles nearby and at Rs 100 per pole, we rented two each (Llew took just one) and paid Rs. 200 to hire the pair. It was probably the best purchase I have ever made in my life as those polsx offered me the kind of support I cannot even begin to describe, both ways—up and down. In fact, as each step in a really high one, I used them to haul me to the next step. Believe me when I tell you that they were truly invaluable—and I cannot recommend them enough. Yes, I did have hiking boots—they protected my ankles beautifully and, as I had used them as sneakers throughout my trip, I was very grateful for them. They were sturdy, protective, gripped fabulously, offered great traction (especially along slippery muddy portions) and saw me depend enormously on them.

Undertaking a Daunting Hike to the Tiger’s Nest:

And so our hike began. It was hard to believe that Dil, our guide, would go along with us all the way to the top. But before I go any further I should explain: there are two levels to which one can climb—what is known as the Café level (a height of 3000 meters or 10,000 feet) and then a further climb to the actual monastery itself. This, apparently, involves a descent into a deep gorge for about 300 steps and then a climb on the other side for about 800 steps. We had all decided to undertake the former. I simply did not think I had the physical stamina to go all the way to the monastery. Llew, too, declined going that high as he was afraid he would trigger a physical reaction at the site of his operation that he did not want to handle. And for Menaka too, the café level was adequate. And so, the three of us set out.

Initially, one walked along fairly flat land, over large stones that offered traction. But soon the climbing began…and once the slope appeared, it was simply uphill from there all the way. Steps are hewn into the mountain and constructed with rounded logs of wood at their edges to provide traction. There are also mules that a person can hire to climb to the Café Level. They stop a little ahead of the café itself—so there is a little bit of climbing involved if you wish to have a drink in the café and catch a glimpse of the monastery, still perched way up high on the mountain opposite. Yes, there were dozens of people who hired the mules with their attendants (Rs. 2000 per mule) and for a while, they follow the same pathway as human climbers. After a while, however, maybe halfway up, the routes bifurcate and the mules have their own path so that humans are not stalled in their efforts to go higher by passing mules

.

As we went higher, we passed by the most beautiful Himalayan vegetation—remember, you are climbing in a forest, completely enveloped by trees. We saw apple blossom still clinging to the low trees in an orchard at the base and loads of flowering bushes such as viburnum with its frothy fronds of white flowers. Everywhere, there were bushes of wild red Himalayan hibiscus clinging to the mountain’s sides and we were followed and accompanied by bird song, although the new spring foliage made it hard for us to spot any birds. Even had we not reached the summit, we’d have been stirred by this exceedingly natural loveliness that enveloped us on all sides.

Aside from these natural elements, there were also man-made ones. Lower down the mountain, there were a set of three red-banded stupas that had a mountain river rushing through them. The movement of the water turned the prayer wheel inside one of them and, rhythmically, we could hear the lovely soothing sound of the temple bell as the falling foamy water provided its own music. Further ahead, there was a small temple with a large prayer wheel. People stopped at this point to turn the wheel and get some much-needed respite. There were also benches and ledges at various points so that exhausted climbers could rest their bodies for a few seconds before setting off again, Dil had warned us not to sit for more than 3 minutes at a time as it would be hard to muster up the motivation to get up again.

So how did I fare? Well, suffice it to say that it was one of the most grueling physical feats I have ever undertaken in my life. Had I been ten years younger, I could have done it without batting an eyelid—but no longer being a spring chicken, it was challenging in the extreme and, at one point (about 40 minutes into the climb), I seriously thought of giving up and making my way down again. I certainly needed to stop and rest more than Llew and Menaka did and, finally, I told them to go ahead of me as I did not want to hold them back. Dil stayed with me and was extremely patient, telling me to go only as fast as my capacity would allow. I did stop occasionally to click pictures of the flowers and the natural scene of the valley spread before us because as we climbed higher, we could see how far below was the car park. I took advantage of all the rest stops, sipped water from my bottle quite frequently as my throat and mouth grew parched by the effort of climbing and then, as if the conditions were not daunting enough, it started raining. Luckily, we had all carried our rain ponchos with us—so we stopped to put them on, raised up the hoods and continued. The path did become more slippery as a result of the rain, but it was short lived and soon, we could take off our rain ponchos and continue. So let me put it this way: we had every challenge thrown at us as we scaled those heights…but still we soldiered on. A word, at this stage, about the Tiger’s Nest Monastery, would be in order.

What is the Tiger’s Nest Monastery?

The site on which the Tiger’s Nest Monastery is constructed in Bhutan is a sacred one. It represents the spot (the cave) where Guru Rimpoche (who brought Buddhism to Bhutan from Tibet) meditated for three months. A series of seven lakhangs (or small temples) comprise the entire site and, as with all temple-monasteries, no photographs are allowed inside. If you do make it to the top, you need to take off footwear, headgear and leave cameras in a small locker. You then tour the various temples taking in the sites of gigantic (and very beautiful) images of the Guru, of the Buddha and other Buddhist deities, all very lavishly decorated in stylized fashion. Many of the Buddhist faithful undertake this severe task of human endurance to pray for the gift of a child. There is a viewpoint, close to the Monastery, that offers wonderful photo ops and most visitors who are able to get that far, pose there for pictrues. It is a bit like the famous spot at Machu Pichu in the Incas where all visitors who get to the summit of the Andes’ mountains at this spot, in Peru, will pose (as our family had done too).

Back to the Hike and a Long Rest in the Cafe:

And so…we moved on. Climbing ever higher. Llew and Menaka reached the summit about twenty minutes before I did. They took exactly two hours to get to the top; I took 2 hours and 20 minutes. At this level, there is a gate that announces the Takshen Café and the pair of them and I too, took pictures at this spot, It is a short flat walk to the café terrace where most people were enjoying the sun and the grand view of the seven temples clinging to the side of the mountain in most precarious fashion as they sipped on refreshing beverages. We had a lovely fond reunion (I think Menaka doubted I would make it although Llew was pretty certain I would) and then decided to have a much-needed cold Coke and a cereal bar to replenish the calories we had lost on the exhausting hike up. After we’d refreshed ourselves enough, we posed on the terrace overlooking the monastery and took many pictures, as individuals and groups. It was truly a heartening achievement, and we all felt very proud of ourselves. However, the great descent still lay ahead of us and we needed to prepare ourselves for what lay ahead. Suffice it to say that the muscles of our legs, our shoulders, our back, even our wrists, were fully exercised in the massive climb we had accomplished and, no doubt, we would feel the after effects of this physical exertion, the next day.

Getting Down the Mountain:

The three of us and Dil stayed together as we made our descent towards the base of the mountain. For me, the going down was far far easier than the going up as climbing is not my strong point—I can walk for miles, quite effortlessly, on flat terrain (touch wood!). Menaka found the climb easier than the descent and Llew found both ways equally demanding. Yes, on the way down too, we stopped to rest but not as frequently. We did chat with groups of people along the way and it is a nice way to break the monotony and pure silence of the mountains.

I also foraged for pine cones to take home as souvenirs—as there are two types of pine trees that grow here: the blue pine which has long conical pine cones that give off a lot of resin and the chir pin which has fatter, rounded cones (with less resin). It was hard to find the chir pine cones—although there were many blue pine ones. Dil also helped me find good specimens that had not deteriorated with the damp or the rain and armed with a few of them, I came down the mountain. Mission Successfully Accomplished! We all felt a great sense of triumph at what we had achieved. It had not been easy and I probably will never be able to do this again…but it has convinced me that walking the 500 miles (approx. 1000 kms) of the Camino de Santiago (which is also on my Buckley List) will be a piece of cake (and it is mainly done on flat ground—except for a short stint while crossing the Pyrenees between France and Spain) after this venture.

Delicious Lunch of Bhutanese Specialities:

And then, with all of us safely ensconced in the van, we drove off to our hotel to pick up Blossom and Marisa who had spent the morning at leisure enjoying the resort and its many offerings. No, we were none the worse for our exertions and were ready to sink into a large and very delicious lunch. I told Dil that we did not want to eat any more Indian food but would prefer to have typically Bhutanese items such as momos—which we had yet to try on this trip. Dil was more than willing to take us to a place right in the heart of Paro—the sweetest, neatest, prettiest city. In a place called ‘Momo Corner’ which was full of local Bhutanese people (a sure sign that the food is authentic and good), we parked our car.

‘Momo Corner’ turned out to be a little hole in the wall kind of place with one waitress and a clerk at the counter who shouted out orders to the kitchen as soon as they were placed. We settled down in a corner and were delighted to find Thupka (the traditional Bhutanese Chicken Noodle Soup) on the menu. There were also a variety of momos, although none of beef today. We opted for a variety of chicken and pork ones—steamed and deep fried and one with a delicious chill sauce. When our thupka bowls arrived, we found them to be filled with noodles that were delicious and hearty. With vegetables and shredded chicken, they made a hearty meal—in fact, with the momos, it was a bit of overkill. But we all enjoyed the food enormously with the spicy chilli sauce that was provided as an accompaniment. Also, the meal was very economical indeed and easily fell within our budget although we did order drinks (butter tea for me, mango lassi and fresh lime sodas for others). It was definitely one of the best meals we ate in Bhutan.

Shopping for Handicrafts in the Paro Shops:

As we had a bit of time to kill, this was a great afternoon for exploring the shops of Paro and finding the little souvenirs we hoped to take back home for family members and friends. As we walked into the shops on the main street, we realized that they pretty much carried the same merchandise, namely thangka paintings, sculpture of Buddhist deities in varied metals, lacquered and painted phalluses (apparently a popular souvenir of Bhutan where phallic-worship is wide-spread and fertility rites take place in many temples), jewelry in precious and semi-precious stones, beaded jewelry, fabrics fashioned into utilitarian items such as cross-body bags, purses, shawls, mats, caps, hats, scarves, etc. trinkets such as pocket mirrors, magnets, key chains, wood carvings, wall hangings, etc. A few of us did buy a couple of small items, but having bought a wood carving from Pema Tshering, I felt that our souvenir from Bhutan was already in the bag.

With our shopping done, we got back into our van and headed off to what would be a real treat—a hot soak in a novel bath tub.

Soaking in the Hot Stones Bath:

Lonely Planet tells visitors that they must not leave Bhutan without taking advantage of a rather unique soaking experience: the hot stones bath. As we had found Dorji, a native Bhutanese man, who offers the service in his Alpine River Front Restaurant (where we’d lunched yesterday), we asked Dil to make appointments for us for a relaxing soak in the evening, Those of us who had hiked up the mountain and back down in the morning were sure that the soak would be therapeutic. For the other two, it would be a great opportunity to simply enjoy a luxurious experience that does not occur every day.

Well, the hot stones bath was truly a novel experience. Two bath tubs are located in each cabin—Llew and I shared one; Blossom and Menaka shored another and Marisa had her own. Hot stones are added to the wooden bath tubs and as we attempted to enter, we found our’s was really and truly hot—it was steaming, We had to add a whole lot of cold water to the baths before Llew or I could get in. For the next hour, we thoroughly enjoyed the fragrant water—the artemisia fronds were delightful and we rubbed them to release their oils and aroma. The poultice bag containing the root callum was also beneficial and as we closed our eyes, we found ourselves truly transported to a spot where aches and pains were but a distant memory. We did not have to ask for more stones as our tubs remained really hot throughout the one hour. In fact, we had to often get out of the tub and sit on the edge as we were beginning to feel dehydrated (cold bottles of water were provided and we were told to sip from them), and even a bit light-headed (Llew) after a while. After an hour, we reconnected and talked about our experiences. Each one had a unique experience—no two people felt the same way. But, in general, we all enjoyed the soak immensely and I have to say that I did feel as if my back pain had subsided very much.

Dinner at the Shomo Chukki Hotel:

Still flushed with this delightful experience, we returned to our hotel for drinks in our room (that peach one had been replenished and another bottle bought for our tasting pleasure) followed by dinner in the restaurant. This turned out to be the worst of the meals we would eat in Bhutan. The food was tasteless—everything from the soup to the dessert was extremely blah and we actually heard other patrons complain noisily about the poor quality. I merely took a small helping of soup, green salad, papad and dessert and really did not even bother to taste anything else. The poor waiter felt really bad and tried hard to make up for our disappointment. But, by this time, we were pretty tired and decided to return to our rooms for a good night’s sleep.

Until tomorrow, keep smiling…

Bewitching Bhutan! Day Five: From Punakha to Paro with Sightseeing En Route—Suspension Bridge, Traditional Bhutanese Lunch by a River, National Museum of Bhutan, Donning Traditional Bhutanese Garb, Posing for Pictures on a Picturesque Bridge, Shopping for Handicrafts

Tuesday, May 12, 2026

Bewitching Bhutan!

Day Five: From Punakha to Paro with Sightseeing En Route—Suspension Bridge, Traditional Bhutanese Lunch by a River, National Museum of Bhutan, Donning Traditional Bhutanese Garb, Posing for Pictures on a Picturesque Bridge, Shopping for Handicrafts:

We had a very nice night in our Zen Hotel, awoke refreshed, ready to take our showers, pack our bags and head down for breakfast.

Breakfast was a buffet with cornflakes and hot milk, omlettes and toast (with butter and strawberry jam—standard items in a Bhutanese buffet), puri bhaji, fresh fruit, coffee and tea. We ate well and felt ready to meet Dil when he showed up at 9.00 am to pile our baggage into the van and set off. We were heading today towards Paro, the country’s largest city and one that can boast an airport (for international travel)—the other airport is domestic and is in Bumthang (in the northeast of Bhutan—an area that we did not explore). En route, we would stop at a couple of places and the first site was the Suspension Bridge.

Walking Across A River Along a Suspension Bridge:

The Suspension Bridge is another large attraction in Bhutan, primarily because it is a novel concept—a visitor can actually walk across the bridge to get from the car park to the opposite bank of a raging river to a little temple called Tachog Lakhang. But, as this temple is small and does not offer anything exceptional, few tourists actually enter it. The real joy comes from crossing the bridge that is colorfully strung with prayer flags, take pictures in groups, couples or as individuals and generally enjoy the location which is exceedingly picturesque

And so, of course, we followed suit. We took pictures with the bridge behind us. I must state, at this point, that the bridge we crossed is a modern one. The older one, that dates over centuries, is now rather fragile and protected as a national monument. The one we crossed is built more recently to offer access to the temple and to provide tourists with the fun of walking along a swaying bridge. Built with steel ropes and wires, the bridge is designed to sway and it does offer some excitement on a very casual stop. Once we were on the other side, we stopped by a small chorten that is decorated with prayer wheels on all four sides and were able to turn each one of them as we passed by. Once we had our fill of the novel experience and the natural beauty of the spot, we piled back into our vans and continued our journey. And then it was time for lunch

Traditional Lunch by the Riverside:

By this point, being quite fed up with Indian food, we asked Dil to take us to a typical Bhutanese place where we could enjoy home-spun food. He took us to the Alpine River Front Farm House which was about a half hour’s drive from the Suspension Bridge.

This site turned out to be idyllic. Although it does feature a proper restaurant, Dil asked the proprietor, a man named Dorji, to set up and lay tables for us in a little shack overlooking the mountains and the river that gurgled alongside us. It was simply lovely. And then, after we were seated and told the waiter that we’d like to taste Bhutanese food, the offerings started to come at us. First of all, we were treated to either Milk Tea or Butter Tea (no marks for guessing that I chose Butter Tea as I had grown a huge liking for it). Next came the actual dishes themselves, one after the other. Yes, there were the usual suspects: rice, roti, dal, papad, but there were also some unusual Bhutanese dishes that we had not tasted before—really delicious fish and lovely chicken. And we tasted the best Emma Dashi we had ever eaten—the cheese was so flavorful and the chillis in it were not spicy at all. Including this dish, there were three vegetables—steamed broccoli, carrots and another dish with potatoes and stewed beans. Everything was just wonderful. The best part was that our appetites were thoroughly whetted by being in the crisp mountain air, with the soft sounds of the shallow river burbling over the stones. We just loved the setting and the food so much that it became one of the best meals we ate in Bhutan

We also discovered that this same place offers the famous Bhutanese Hot Stones Bath. This was something that I had read about in ‘Lonely Planet’ as being one of the “Don’t Miss” experiences in Bhutan. And when we found out that it was offered here, we decided it would be good to book in for baths tomorrow after our epic climb to the Tiger’s Nest Monastery would badly require the healing and soothing qualities of a spa soak. Hence, we sought out Dorji who very kindly showed us the entire process—from the collection of the river and mountain stones to the heating of them on wood fires, to the inserting of them in wooden bathtubs in which patrons soak taking in the comforting presence of native herbs like artimesia and roots like callum. After a one hour soak, one’s aches and pains and supposed to magically dissolve away—at least temporarily. At Rs. 2000 a pop, it seemed like a steal. And so we decided to take advantage of it and have a go at it tomorrow.

And with that, we returned to our van for the next sightseeing venue—the museum.

Visiting The National Museum of Bhutan and a Minor Set-Back:

And so, in about ten minutes’ time, right in the heart of the city of Paro, we were at the National Museum of Bhutan. This was the very first museum in Bhutan that we would see (as we missed seeing the National Library and Archives in Thimphu)—and so, we were excited.

Like all the official buildings in Bhutan, the National Museum is built in a very stylized aesthetic, in the same uniform colors and with the same design on its façade which gives all the structures in Bhutan a sense of planned development. The interesting thing is that this building was actually a dzong, the Paro Ta Dzong, which was built in 1649. It has been refurbished to house the national art collection and was inaugurated in 1968 by his Majesty King Jigme Dorji Wangchuk. The dzong stands on a hill overlooking the river—an ideal place to build a dzong (fortress) to keep away invaders and also to see them coming by water or land from a distance. In a fascinating and most visionary manner, the inside of the Dzong, a circular building, has been reconfigured to house over 3000 articles that comprise some of the finest works of art produced in the country. Over five floors, each of which contains a particular form of craftsmanship, one can take in the nation’s best treasures: there are thangka paintings galore of various sizes and featuring various deities, bronze sculpture, wall-hangings, arms and armor, a whole life-size Buddhist altar or glassed shrine (this was of special interest to me as it was the first time we were actually allowed to take pictures of a Buddhist shrine). It contained all the elements of a real Buddhist shrine from towering central figure to dough decoration, from tin and clay figurines to extensive wall paintings.

We strode through all the galleries and halls, descending from one level to the next. It was all really fascinating. At the very end, just as we were about to leave the museum, we spied a large prayer wheel and Marisa was keen to turn it. She needed to climb about three steps to get to it, but she was probably distracted, not looking down, and she misjudged the height of the step she needed to take. Next thing we knew, she was literally flat on her face after we’d heard a loud thud. Several people rushed forward to help her get up. Needless to say, she hurt herself badly. I spied a café that, providentially, happened to be just a few steps away and I requested Menaka to run inside and bring Marisa some ice. This she was able to do quite easily and in just a few minutes, we made a little ice pouch that Marisa applied to the affected parts of her body—her forehead, her cheek bone, her knee. No doubt, she was in great pain and seated for a long while on one of the steps, she was able to find a bit of relief.

With all of us helping her up, she was gradually able to make her way up a gentle slope to the van. Yes, we all felt subdued by this terrible experience, but we were also conscious of the fact that it could have been much worse and that Marisa could well have sustained more painful and permanent damage.

And so it was that we got back into the van for what Dil told us would be the next item on our itinerary: trying out traditional Bhutanese dress and shopping for handicrafts.

Donning Traditional Bhutanese Garb and Posing for Pictures on a Picturesque Bridge:

We had one more treat ahead of us as we looked towards the end of a very happening day. We stopped outside a large store where the sign said, “Dress for Hire”. Dil led us into a cavernous space, crawling with loud and animated Indian tourists, bargaining vigorously for the shop’s wares and excited in the extreme. It turns out that although this is a frequent stop, it is a real tourist trap. It hires out the traditional Bhutanese outfit—ghos for men and kiras for women. In a quieter corner inside, where we paid Rs. 200 more for each outfit (ie. Rs. 500 as opposed to Rs. 300 outside), we had an exclusive range of beautiful outfits shows to us and the services of a sweet Bhutanese lady who helped us dress. We, ladies, found skirts and matching blouses in lovely satin and silk fabrics and were shown how to wear them. Llew had the services of a man who helped him pick out an outfit and wear it. Of course, these outfits were grander than the daily ones that we saw all Bhutanese people wear. Once our outfits were on us, we were led to the bridge by Dil—we needed to catch the evening light before it disappeared altogether. There, against the walls of Paro Dzong (not to be confused with Punakha Dzong which we had visited in the afternoon), our guides too pictures of us in these national outfits. It was a great deal of fun and we really had a fabulous time. In fact, we had even more fun when our crazy driver Chilay told us that he wanted to teach us a Bhutanese dance which he would then put on Tik Tok. We followed his lead and ended up having a great time even if we made fools of ourselves. When all this tom-foolery ended, we returned to the shop, where we took off the national garments, and then spent a little while browsing through the wares and buying a few things to take home as souvenirs.

We were quite tired by this point and were experiencing tourist fatigue—the kind that comes from climbing, walking, photographing, posing for photos, shopping, etc. Yes, we had heard, before we set out, that a visit to Bhutan would involve a larger amount of leg work than usual…but this was not overly daunting. However, at the end of the day, one does look forward to the opportunity to check into a nice hotel and relax on a comfortable bed

Checking into our Hotel In the Midst of Rice Fields in Paro:

We drove past the sweet little town, with its very picturesque main street, lined with enticing handicraft shops that we hoped to sample, the next day, and arrived at our hotel, the Shomo Chuki Resort that we found to be tucked away in the rice fields—a completely different rural setting from the urban ones we had enjoyed in the past few days

After we checked in, we found out that we had to leave the Reception and Restaurant building, walk through a small garden (filled with the promise of blooming hydrangeas) to get to the three storey building (no elevators) behind that housed our room. We did not assemble for drinks this evening but merely made our way to the restaurant where we had some of the worst meals of our entire trip. The chef here was certainly not the best and although the sweet waiter tried hard to make us feel satisfied, we were not. The buffet contained the same offerings—a soup that was tasteless—and the regular chicken curry, two vegetables (there were no Bhutanese dishes), a green salad, papad, roti, rice, dal and tinned fruit in its juice for dessert. Nothing was tasty and we were left very unsatisfied by the meals offered by this hotel. Still, considering that we’d had a very eventful and productive day, we overlooked the poor quality of the food, said bye to each other and moved to our own rooms, with the plan to return at 8.00 am, for what we hoped would be a better breakfast.

Until tomorrow…keep smiling.

Bewitching Bhutan Day Four: Journey from Thimphu to Punakha with Sight-Seeing En route: Dorchula Pass, Druk Wangyal Khang Zhang (108) Chortens; Chimi Lakhang (The Temple of Fertility) and Punakha Dzong (Fortress)

Monday, May 11, 2026

Bewitching Bhutan!

Day Four: Journey from Thimphu to Punakha with Sight-Seeing En route: Dorchula Pass, Druk Wangyal Khang Zhang (108) Chortens; Chimi Lakhang (The Temple of Fertility) and Punakha Dzong (Fortress)

Another night in Thimphu, Bhutan’s modern capital, saw us awake in time for showers and breakfast in Hotel Migmar. In the restaurant in the lobby, we found hordes of people as large tour groups use this space. The lobby is beautifully decorated with stylized Bhutanese interior decoration, including several layers of dentil molding, that is then vividly painted with recognizable Buddhist motifs. The breakfast buffet offered Indian and Western choices (we chose masala omlettes with toast which we fashioned into sandwiches)--poha, sheera, fresh fruit, tea and coffee. Replete with our big meal, we were fortified for the travel and sightseeing that lay ahead.

En route to Punakha, after we had left the precincts of Thimphu valley behind, we climbed ever higher into the mountains, experiencing, once again, the thick vegetation comprising of trees that were abloom with spring foliage and flowers. There were the regular fund of hairpin bends, slim occasional waterfalls and concrete bridges that spanned deep ravines and valleys. There are no ugly billboards on the highway and only the occasional reminder, “Clean Bhutan Green Bhutan” reminds the motorist to maintain the pristine beauty of the mountains. The air is clean, green and serene—a true natural tonic for the lungs

It was not long before Dil informed us that we would be approaching one of the highest mountain passes in the world—Dorchula Pass. It was here that we would make our first stop to see a very popular tourist site.

Exploring Druk Wangyal Khang Zhang (108 ) Chortens:

This site is popular for many reasons: it is historically important, it is architecturally striking and is naturally beautiful. In a large car park, vehicles came and went in uniform order, Bhutanese guides, clad in their traditional outfits, milled around chatting informally in groups, visitors stopped for the rest room or a coffee in the adjoining café and many climbed the low mound ahead of us that wound around in a cobbled path through three tiers. Strung along the pathway were stupas or chortens in an appealing uniform design that commemorated the deaths of those brave Bhutanese soldiers who had died fighting an Assamese insurgency having taken refuge in 30 camps in Bhutan. These structures were the brain child of the Queen Ashi Dorji Wangmo Wangchuk who thought it necessary that their sacrifice should be commemorated. Their construction was completed in mid-2004 and they were later sanctified with religious rites soon after. The chortens (stupas) are red band or Khangzen chortens. They are striking because they increase in number and size as one climbs higher up the mound. In the center is a much larger chorten. I was under the impression that one could enter the central one, but I was mistaken. It is an imposing structure but it is solid and has no entrance.

What is most appealing about the chortens is their design—their colors of black, white and red sees each one topped with filigree-like lace tin gilded decoration that gives them a majestic impact. There are 45 on the lowest level, 36 in the middle and 27 at the very top. Ingenious access makes it very easy to reach the top although it is a steady climb. Surrounding this site are mountains with mist still clinging to them. Opposite the chortens is a temple, built in stylized Buddhist manner—but to access it, you need to climb another slope. Not many tourists go to the temple although it is popular with local Buddhist worshippers.

Once we took our fund of pictures, we made our way to the café for a much-needed coffee and to use the restrooms and before long, we were in our van and on our way again, Our route actually took us along the Dorchula Pass which we could not see very clearly as the entire valley was shrouded in mist. But we drove on, enjoying the passing scenery and taking in the sights of hundreds of prayer flags that were strung along the highway, particularly at dangerous points that represents blind curves. The flags are always strung in five colors: blue for sky, white for clouds, red for fire, green for water and yellow for earth. Many of them are highly decorative and aside from symbols, are covered with Buddhist scripture and pictures of leading figures.

Arrival at Chimi Lakhang:

It was not long after that we arrived in the precincts of a little village hamlet called Yowakha in which the most striking aspect was the decoration of the walls of every dwelling and shop front. The figures turned out to be phalluses represented in the most graphic way I have ever seen—a symbol of the celebration of human reproductive capabilities. Indeed, we had arrived at the site of Chimi Lakhang (Temple), one of the most celebrated and unique of Buddhist venues.

Chimi Lakhang (or the Temple of Fertility) is a monastery and temple in Punakha District. After we parked our van, we realized that to access the temple, one needed to climb a hill that was well marked, along a stone pathway. On both sides were exuberantly flowering trees and many varieties of succulents and cacti including prickly pear cactus (with which I had become well acquainted in Morocco for its miraculous power to keep facial skin youthful and wrinkle-free). As the four of us climbed to the top (Blossom elected to sit this one out at the base of the hill), we enjoyed taking in the sights of this flora

Once at the top, our guide Dil, filled us in with the information we needed to make sense of the site and its structure. He told us that the site was blessed by Drukpa Kunley (1455-1529) who also built a chorten on the site. Lama Kunley had subdued a demon of Dorchu La with his “magic thunderbolt of wisdom” and trapped it in a rock at a location close to where the chorten now stands. He came to be known as the “Mad Saint” or “Divine Madman” for his unorthodox teaching of the practice of Buddhism by singing, humor and outrageous behavior which amounted to being bizarre or shocking and evoking sex. It was he who popularized the custom of decorating walls, floors, etc. with phallic symbols. In course of time, this lama and his site became known for their fertility rituals and were frequented by couples seeking conception. In fact, there is a thick album inside the temple (which we visited later) which contains pictures of the vast number of couples who, through the years, found wish-fulfillment after visiting this temple and carrying out the rituals—including pictures of the children that were the result of such miracles.

When we did eventually enter the temple, after leaving footwear outside, we were told not to take any photographs. A gigantic statue of Lama Kunley is in the center surrounded by other important Buddhist deities and the stylized iconography of the Buddhist religion: lotuses, flowers, animals, birds, etc. This altar is also the receptable of the original wooden phallus that Kuney brought to Bhutan from Tibet. It is the most sacred object in this temple and is used in fertility rituals regularly. Women seeking to conceive are told to walk with it on their backs and take several rounds encircling the altar and temple. Indeed, in Bhutan, symbols of the erect penis are used everywhere to drive away the evil eye and malicious gossip.

When we emerged from the dark interior of the temple into blazing sunlight, we made our way to the row of prayer wheels that line one exterior wall. We turned those wheels while walking in a long line and then gradually returned along the gentle sloping hill pathway towards our van. However, we were attracted to the shops with their many handicrafts. It was the first time we would enter the shops or find the time to browse in them. All sorts of Buddhist handicrafts from expensive thangkas (religious wall hangings that are painted or embroidered), prayer wheels, jewelery, textiles in the form of scarves, bags, purses, etc. as well as any number of phalluses in varied forms of decoration (most painted or lacquered) were available for sale and I found a nice pair of ear-rings in this spot. Other members of our group also did a little bit of shopping before we piled back into our van for the final lap into Punakha.

Arrival in Punakha and Visit to Punakha Dzong:

Punakha has strategic and historic importance. It was the capital and the seat of government until 1955. It is 72 kms from Thimphu and takes 3 hours along a motorable mountainous highway to access from the modern capital. It is at a much lower elevation than Thimphu, which explains why it is much warmer than Thimphu.

After we left our van in the car park, after having spotted the architecturally striking Dzong (or fortress) for quite a while along the snaking road that leads to its entrance, we followed our guide Dil to the gate and discovered, to our delight, that we had to cross over a beautiful stylized wooden bridge to get over to the other bank. The raging river below us flowed into the distant mountains and made for some lovely photo ops. While crossing the bridge too, we took several photographs all the while sighing at the beauty presented by the entire bank of flowering jacaranda trees as we had arrived at the right time—Spring—when these beautiful lavender flowers lend their color to the scene.

we arrived on the other side, we were aware of the fact that Tibetan lamas or monks frequent this spot as it is constructed in keeping with Tibetan Buddhist traditions. Punakha Dzong was constructed in 1637 and is known as the Palace of Great Happiness. It’s location was especially chosen because of its close proximity to the Mo Chu and Po Chu rivers and because it stands at the center of some of the most fertile agricultural land in the country, known for its vast rice-farming enterprise. It is the monastic headquarters of Bhutan’s most important religious figures and a frequent spot to which the Bhutanese royal family comes for ritualistic worship and national ceremonies. It houses a collection of the most sacred relics of the country’s religious practices, but these are located in the lakhangs (or temples) deeper inside the structure (and remain closed to the public).

But to get into the fortress, you need to climb up a single flight of really steep steps that can be daunting for the elderly. Once we accomplished that task, we found ourselves in the first courtyard—for Punakha Dzong is not only the most beautiful and significant of the dzongs in Bhutan, but it is also unique in that he contains three separate courtyards (as against two in most other dzongs). The first one is large and spacious, surrounded by buildings constructed in uniform style and decorated in unique color--red, yellow, orche, black--seen against the stark white walls of the structure. There are colonnaded corridors (similar to Gothic medieval cloisters) where, I would imagine, the monks take their exercise. There is a large white chorten (stupa) with a gold finial right in the center and a spreading banyan tree that dominate this space.

Dil sat us down as a group at this point and explained to us that each of the courtyards have a different function. The first one is used for military exercises and the annual festivals for which Bhutan is famed. Once you take in the splendor of this courtyard, you are directed to the far left end of the space where, in a rather nondescript corner, is an important glass-covered shrine housing items related to Tsochen, Queen of the Naga spritis, and decicated to snake-worship. We then passed through a very narrow corridor to enter into the second courtyard. This houses a very tall tower called the Utse with more steep stairs leading to the top. This is out of bounds to tourists and all we could do was content ourselves looking at the decorative painted elements on the façade which, once again, follows the uniform set of colors and patterns. We posed here for pictures before we followed another narrow passageway that took us into the third courtyard.

This courtyard is the most important as it is open to visitors, offers a variety of visual treats that made us take many photographs and contains a temple. In this temple are the remains of the terton, Pema Lingpa. As usual, we were quite stunned by the inside of the temple. No photography is permitted but it bore striking resemblance to the Buddhist Temple in Bylakuppe in Karnataka which we had visited last January (2025). It carries the same towering figures of Buddhist deities with Sakyamuni Buddha (Gautama) right in the center, flanked again by his aides, Guru Rimpoche and Zhabdrung that date from the 18th century. The walls, floors and ceiling are completely covered by Buddhist iconography in vivid colors while the main structure is held up by 54 pillars that also present scenes from the storied life of the Buddha. The floors are also covered with carpets and soft mattresses and visitors are welcome to lounge on them for a while in prayer or to take in the absolute wonders of the scene in front. Because there is simply so much to see, the eyes experience visual fatigue and it is for this reason that, after a while, all this magnificence blurs into one grand feeling of disbelief.

Once we left this final courtyard, we traced our steps back to the entrance. While passing the huge prayer wheel, we walked around to turn it and hear the striking bell. Then, very gingerly, we descended that steep flight of stairs, focusing completely on the task at hand. We reunited with Blossom who had waited patiently for us and then crossed the wooden cantilevered bridge, once again, to arrive at our van.

We then drove for another half an hour to arrive at our next hotel. It was charmingly located right in the midst of the mountains, far from the madding crowd. In fact, it was simply and suitably named the Zen Hotel. Once we passed through the main gated entrance, we found ourselves in a stark white courtyard whose only splash of color was a flowering deep pink bougainvillea. In the Reception (a small squat building), we picked up our keys and found that we had to get into another building (3 floors—no elevator) to find our room. Thankfully, they were all on the first floor—so all we had to do was climb one flight of stairs. Our rooms were equally plain—white walls, soft, serene bed linen, no wall hangings, paintings or any decoration. This was the Zen spirit. I peeped outside our window and discovered that we were on a very narrow road that curved around a mountain. I liked the fact that each of our hotels was in a different sort of location: it really did give us a taste of different Bhutanese landscapes and it was good to get away from urbanity into the verdant arms of emerald-clad mountains.

Winding Down for the Day in our Zen Hotel in Punakha:

As all our rooms were adjoining each other, we decided to meet in Blossom’s room (dual aspect and lovely single sofas and a coffee table) to enjoy peach wine, some nutty nibbles plus something we began to call ‘Octopus’ which we had picked up from the Centenary Bazaar in Thimphu. It was a savory snack, shaped like the tentacles of an octopus and it went really well with drinks. After much laughter and reminiscing about our day, we went down for dinner

Dinner was served in a lovely big dining area (restaurant) with a bar attached. There was a buffet there and many white tourists—the first we’d seen on our travels. As usual, we had soup, plus rice, roti, papad, pickle, a none-veg chicken curry dish, two vegetables (one is always potato and this was made with Bhutanese cheese), green salad (simply chopped up tomatoes, onions and cucumber) and tinned fruit with cream for dessert. By this point (as Indian cuisine is not my favorite), I grew tired of the same offerings and really longed for something else (but I am aware that since the majority of the tourists here are Indians with very unadventurous palates, they cater to their needs—so no complaints).

And filled again with lovely impressions of our day, we decided to hit the sack and return to the restaurant at 8.00 am for breakfast.

Until tomorrow, keep smiling…