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Bhutan Culture |
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Bhutan Information |
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Bhutan:
Land of the Thunder Dragon, Department of Tourism |
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Book
Review
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| Cover Photo: Bhutan's Olympic archer, Tshering Choden |
| 2007
promises to be a momentous year for Bhutan for the tourism industry which
plans to mark the celebration of 100 years of Monarchy in the kingdom.
Planning
a series of events in a year-long festivity the Department of Tourism has
released a collection of writings "Bhutan: Land of the Thunder Dragon"
to promote tourism and Bhutan to the world.
Unlike
normal tourist brochures the publication seeks to be a cultural and literary
companion. It has a blend of travel writing and essays made enjoyable with
good writing. The splendour of the Bhutanese landscape and the unique
world of the Bhutanese way of life are portrayed with alluring use
of pictures and design as well. |
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Bhutan:
Land
of the Thunder Dragon,
Department
of Tourism, Bhutan, 2005,
64
pages;
US$
10 or Nu. 400
published
in German and English
2005 |
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As
part of the celebration of the centenary of Monarchy in Bhutan on December
17, 2007, the Department of Tourism is planning new programmes for
the year to bring visitors closer to the Bhutanese. The theme for the year
is "Meet the Bhutanese" and innovative programmes are being developed to
take visitors to villages, live on farms, mingle with school children,
and partake in archery tournaments.
Village
festivals, some of it to be shown for the first time to visitors, food
festivals showcasing the delicacies of Bhutanese cuisine, sacred and historical
places will form a part of the Bhutanese experience.
Some
of the programmes like the Royal Heritage Tour will take visitors on a
journey to the places where the Monarchy began and resided, and through
the path that the tourism department promises will relive Bhutan in the
past.
New
treks and trails are also being planned, including the Nabji/Korphu which
will take the trekkers across sub-tropical regions of Wangduephodrang,
Trongsa and Zhemgang. There is also the new Great Himalayan Trail which
will take trek lovers from Haa in the west to Trashiyangtse in the east
right through Arunachal Pradesh and Sikkim in India to Nepal.
If
today's positive reviews and exposure are any guide, the director of the
tourism department, Lhatu Wangchuk, told that Bhutan could meet the visitor
target of 15,000 a year.
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| House in Bumthang |
| Contributed
by Bhutanese writers and Bhutan observers, the articles provides an insight
into Bhutan's past and present, its culture, history, politics and people.
Some attempt to throw light on an ancient society seeking a balance between
tradition and modernity in a globalised world.
In
the short article on Gross National Happiness (GNH), Bhutan's unique development
philosophy, one of the contributors, Siok Sian Pek-Dorji, tells us that
GNH is regarded as an expression of Bhutan's time-tested system of strong
and viable tradition that has evolved over the centuries. It's an inspiration,
she says, for today's world.
There
is the engaging short story of a farmer, Tikchung, who is trapped in the
forest with the mythical abominable snowman or yeti, believed by the West
to roam the deep folds of the Himalayas. Kunzang Choden, the author of
Bhutanese tales of the yeti, tells this story in the fashion of much loved
Bhutanese fireside stories, mixing folklore with myth. |
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There
are, in total, 20 articles and stories, each sprinkled with a personal
touch and depth not found in competing guides, on the different unique
aspects of Bhutan and its people, ranging from arts and architecture to
food, archery and trek trails.
The
publication can be dipped into at random or read from start to finish.
It's published in German and English. Released during March 2005 ITB- Berlin
(a tourism fair in Berlin, Germany, where hundreds of countries attend),
the publication was well received by people and press.
| This
article was contributed b Kyencho Wangdi,KUENSEL, Bhutan's National
Newspaper, 2005 |
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