A trek to remember – Tiger’s Nest, Paro, Bhutan.. What to Expect!

We started our drive to Paro at our usual time of 9am from Punakha and got there around lunch time. Enroute we stopped at the Simtokha monastery built by the person who unified Bhutan and it was one of the first fort monasteries to be built. It has witnessed and partially survived attacks by Tibetans and now houses all the ancient scriptures.

Upon reaching Paro and after a quick lunch at the hotel we wanted to visit a monastery nearby called Kyichu Lhakhang. We got a good guide who took us around and explained the meaning of all the deities and rituals. As soon as you enter the courtyard you see 2 orange trees and the guide told us that these trees bear fruit all through the year; irrespective of the season. We were also just in time to witness many monks who were chanting prayers and the rhythm of it feels divine. This monastery in particular brought in a sense of peace and calm; maybe that’s why its one of the most sacred monasteries. After spending some time wandering around Paro town we called in early since our next 2 days were fairly packed.

Kyichu Lhakhang

Prayer Flags at Chelela Pass

View from Chelela Pass

Day 2 in Paro started at 8am with a 1.5hr drive to Chele La Pass. This is one of the highest passes in Bhutan located at 3900m above sea level. The first thing that strikes you when you get here is the number of prayer flags tied here, adding the colour to the picturesque mountain view. You will easily spend an hour here climbing up among the flags to go to a higher plain right up to the stupa. On our drive back from Chele La we stopped at the Paro Airport view point. The international airport at Paro is unique cuz its nestled in the valley between mountains. The view point is a great spot to see the runway and if you are lucky even a landing or a take off.

Chelela Pass

Post lunch we headed towards Ta Dzong – the National Museum. With the intent of strengthening Indo Bhutan ties this museum has a section dedicated to photos of visits by Indian PM to Bhutan and vice versa from the times of Jawarharlal Nehru. The museum covers a bit on the Bhutanese concept of GNH and provides a glimpse into Bhutan’s flora and fauna. Our next stop was then the fort – Rimpung Dzong. This Dzong is one of the larger monasteries and in addition to the shrines it also has many government legislative offices housed here.

After a quick tour we headed to Paro town to pick up some souvenirs. I have been quite fascinated by the prayer flags we saw everywhere and hence picked a few. Bhutan promotes a lot of “Made in Bhutan” culture to enable a self sustained ecosystem. From Textiles like shawls & stoles to handicrafts like bags, purses, wallets, personal care items like handmade soap, miniature versions of prayer wheels, thangka paintings, to handmade paper; Bhutan has a lot to offer as choices for gifts. And yes definitely picked up a few bottles of Peach wine!

Paro Airport Viewpoint

Day 3 of Paro was the much awaited trek to Taktsang Monastery – Tigers Nest. This monastery being one of the preliminary ones built by the founder guru is situated on a cliff and is a 2.5-3hr climb. We started our ascend quite early as we were told it gets hot and I’m glad we listened. We reached the base around 8:15am and started walking up the dusty path of the mountain. You do have an option of taking a mule/horse to climb the mountain halfway. The climb is a bit steep and slippery as the mud is loose along with some loose stones. Do ensure you have built up some stamina as the air is quite thin and renders it hard to breathe. Nevertheless we even saw some westerners and Indians who were above 55-60 successfully complete the climb. As you near the Tigers Nest there are a couple of fantastic view points for some great pictures. From there you descend some flights of steep stairs and then ascend an equal number to finally reach the monastery situated at an elevation of about 3100m. The view, the monastery – totally worth the climb!

En-route to Tiger’s Nest

Tiger’s Nest

There are 8 temples housed within Tigers Nest and once we deposited our bags at the counter a guide accompanied us to explain the various idols of Guru Padmasemba and the legends around it. There is a sense of peace and sacredness in this monastery as well which makes it one of the top most places to visit in Bhutan. We spent almost 1.5hrs in the monastery and then started our descend. We stopped for a quick lunch at a cafeteria which is located at about the half way mark and finally reached the base around 3:30pm – feeling tired but content!

Once we returned to the hotel we had planned to try the famous hot stone bath. This is a traditional woodden bathtub filled with water and some medicinal herbs heated by fired stones. It is said to cure joint pains when taken frequently over a period of time. We ended up being short of cash and chose to chill post nice hot shower instead.

With that feeling of content and victory (especially me, after having climbed to Tiger’s Nest post a ligament tear) we started our return journey back to India with a overnight stop at the border town of Phuensholing before proceeding to Bagdogra to catch our flight to Bangalore. The Indo Bhutan border is a free border – a wall separates Bhutan town of Phuensholing and Indian town of Jaigaon and one can just simply walk across – no permit or passport needed! That was so so cool!

Bhutan is a beautiful country which does bring in the sense of “Stillness” in your life. As the road signs read “No hurry No worry” Bhutan and its people completely live by it. A good break for someone looking for some peace, calm and reflection…