First International Travel
Bhutan
The Entrance
Bhutan is one such Country in the world which does not have a GDP(Gross National Product) But has a GNH(Gross National Happiness).
There are about 3-4 routes to reach Bhutan, If you are planning to do a Budget trip then the one which I would be suggesting would be the most cost effective one
Bangalore ->Kolkata Flight
Kolkata(Sealdha)-> Hasimara Train (Border of India and Bhutan)
Same route can be used for Return
You would need a Travel Guide inside Bhutan so I would suggest you to try and contact a person who would help you out to travel in Bhutan
Most Importantly please check the dates when you would be travelling to Bhutan , based on their calendar if there is a leave on the day that you arrive there you would not be able to get the Permit or entrance inside the country .
You can get a entry inside the country if you already have a E-Visa applied . It can be applied using this link E-Visa Link
If you are a Indian Citizen you wouldn't require a Passport to enter the Country you just have to produce a any of the documents to prove that you are a Indian Citizen (Ex: Voter ID , Adhara Card , Driving License)
The permit form will be available at the Entrance and see to that you are at the Immigration office first thing in the morning .
The Immigration office Opens at 9 AM sharp , see to that you have all your travel documents
You need to show your Travel Plan at the Immigration office , they will give you a Travel Permit for 7 day's
My Personal Suggestion to anyone Travelling to Bhutan get your E-Visa approved so that you don't have issue's when you get to the border to get the Permit
So this Travel Journey was for about 3 day's in Bhutan
Day 1 : Entry formalities at the Border
Border (Phuentsholing) to Thimphu
It will take about 3 hrs to reach the first point from the entrance (Phuentsholing)
First place visited on Day 1
En-route to Thimphu is a Mesmerizing view of the nature guys please don't sleep while travelling in this country, they very first stop while travelling was the natural water fall , the water is so sweet to drink you will love the taste of it and the chillness of the water is really awesome
Images are copyright protected by me
This is the view of the place, The water fall is about 100ft in height if you hire a local tourist guide you will be able to stop at places and enjoy the views. If you are using a local transportation method then you would not be able to stop where ever you would like to , so I would suggest you to hire a local Guide.
Some of the pictures of taken during the travel
Second Place Visited on Day 1
Buddha Dordenma
Great Buddha Dordenma is one of the Gigantic statue which was built to Celebrate the 60th anniversary of the fourth ruler of Bhutan Jigme Singye Wangchuck.
This is one of the Mountain Top Statue of Buddha , The view from the top of this mountain you feel as if you are seeing the Himalayas below are the pics of the view from the top of this mountain
These were the only 2 places that we were able to Visit on the First day since it took us too much time at the immigration center . Hence I would suggest you to reach the Immigration center as early as possible .
Day 2 : Thimphu Travel
First place visited on Day 2
Simply Bhutan:Living Museum of Bhutanese Culture
The museum resembles a Bhutanese Village featuring Traditional Food and Performance's
There is a Entry fee for the Museum
They charge the entry fee for the Guide , As soon as we entered the premises we were given a warm welcome from one of the guide .
You will be escorted to a small round shaped room where the picture of all the Ruler's of Bhutan has been put up.
They will offer you a Welcome Drink which is White Wine , It has a very Strong Aroma.
The start of Journey inside the museum
The Very Entrance of Simply Bhutan Museum
These Wooden frames Depict the how the Window's are made during the House construction
A wall paint done to show one of the festivities of Bhutanese culture ( The woman in the Green robe was our Guide)
The tool which was used to grind food grains as it was used by the previous generation
Behind are some of the Mask's which are used during the Bhutanese Festival's
Ancient Kitchen Tools that were used to cook
Bhutanese Special Tea ( Special Ingredient Butter)
Statue of Buddha In-front of the wishing Well
Exiting Simply Bhutan (A Living Museum)
Day 2
Second Place Visited : The Kings Palace
The Famous Dechencholing Palace is located in Thimphu the capital of Bhutan, is spread over for about 5 acre land and was build by the Third King of Bhutan Jigme Dorji Wangchuck in the year 1953.
The Palace has 2 floor's each of which has a ceiling height of about 20 ft. at the very entrance you can find the Flag of Bhutan , The pole whose height is about 80 ft. and is Guarded by 2 armed Guards throughout the day .
The palace has about 150+ rooms through out the 2 floors and has 4 watch tower's at each end which is placed at a height of 100 ft height to be guarded.
The very entrance arch is placed at a height of about 75 ft.
You will not be allowed to take pictures inside the palace so please be aware of this.
Third place Visited : Clock Tower Square
The Clock Tower Square is a very special location where the clock is built in a complete stone structure which has a clock facing all the four directions and this place is covered with many Restaurants a around it , you will find most of the cuisines here.
Since Bhutan is a Land of Harmony and Peace loving you will still be able to get Non-Vegetarian food as well but the only thing is that the Meat is Imported. There is no Butcher shops all over the country since it has banned Killing of Animals, All the Meat Products are imported. There are a Variety of food choice's for both Vegetarian's and Non-Vegetarian's.
I was able to take only 1 Picture at the Clock Tower Square since there was an Unexpected rains that happened
A View of the Clock Tower
There was a Small Restaurant which we visited Tower Cafe
The Cafe offer's wide varieties of Snack's the Service provided by them was really a great Experience.
Menu Offered by Tower Cafe
Day 2 Completed by roaming around the Streets of Bhutan and some shopping done the streets are completely kept very clean and the there is a huge respect towards the pedestrian's, While walking around we found out that if we use the Zebra crossing to cross the road's the vehicles on the road stop for us to cross you and need not specifically wait for the vehicles to pass. The people are very Friendly and are very helpful.
Day 3 : Paro:
The Famous Tiger's Nest :
Tiger's Nest is One of the Famous Himalayan Buddhist Monument that has been built on a Hill Top in Paro.
This Place is considered as a Holy place by the Bhutanese people since Guru Padmasambhava had meditated for 4 months during the 8th Century.
There is a Entry Fee to go Inside the Tiger's Nest .
You can Start off climbing the mountain at 8 AM once you get the Tickets , if you plan to just enjoy the trek and view at the top of the mountain , I would suggest you to start your Trek at 6 AM sharp so that you have a Mesmerizing view at the top of the mountain.
If you have issue's to climb the mountain's you will get a horse to climb the mountain till half way of the trek they charge a very low cost if all of you take the horse's.
My suggestion is to climb by yourself rather than using the Horse to climb half the way point.
Please carry some water and food while you are trekking since the distance to hike is about 5 km up hill and down back. even though you have a cafe at the midway point of the hike you will get some food to have only if you start climbing the mountain after 8AM. If you reach this point by 7AM you will only get Black Coffee and Biscuits.
One of the Most Amazing part was the Temperature on the day we did out Climb to the Tiger's Nest was at -4 Degree
Some of the Pics during the Travel to the Top of Tiger's Nest
Day 3 was completed after we came back to the Starting point of the Trek .
An Unexpected Plan happened and this Travel Continued to a different city once we were heading back to our Land.
Day 4 : The Unexpected Plan
After Crossing the border back to Our Homeland we started our travel by Hiring a Cab ,
The Unexpected Travel Plan which took us to the Land of Tea (Darjeeling) which is located in the Foot hills of the Himalayas at an height of 6700 ft , known for the best Tea which you get here .
This City is also famous for the song Mere Saponoki Rani from Aradhana(1969)
The Train Song which has been in our hearts for a a very long time, You can still find that Steam Train available till today.
The Steam Train (Darjeeling Himalayan Railway) operates Daily 2 Times and Its very expensive since its route is from the Bottom of the Mountain to Top of the Mountain
We were able to arrange a Home-stay which was a very really good and had a very good service (Morning Calm Home-Stay)
We had the Opportunity to have some of the best Momo's while we were staying here
Even tough we have just 1 day to stay in Darjeeling we had the Opportunity to see some of most Attractive place's in Darjeeling
The Main Attraction of Darjeeling was the Darjeeling Rope-way which give's you a complete View of the City while you travel on the Rope-way.
Another Important Attraction of Darjeeling is the Himalayan Mountaineering Institute One of the best Institutes in the country which Teach's you about Mountaineering
Followed by this was the Padmaja Naidu Himalayan Zoological Park
The next stop was the Darjeeling Peace Pagoda which has some of the Statues of Buddha
Some of the Picture's of Our Stay, Place's Visited in Darjeeling
Bhutan
The Entrance
Bhutan is one such Country in the world which does not have a GDP(Gross National Product) But has a GNH(Gross National Happiness).
There are about 3-4 routes to reach Bhutan, If you are planning to do a Budget trip then the one which I would be suggesting would be the most cost effective one
Bangalore ->Kolkata Flight
Kolkata(Sealdha)-> Hasimara Train (Border of India and Bhutan)
Same route can be used for Return
You would need a Travel Guide inside Bhutan so I would suggest you to try and contact a person who would help you out to travel in Bhutan
Most Importantly please check the dates when you would be travelling to Bhutan , based on their calendar if there is a leave on the day that you arrive there you would not be able to get the Permit or entrance inside the country .
You can get a entry inside the country if you already have a E-Visa applied . It can be applied using this link E-Visa Link
If you are a Indian Citizen you wouldn't require a Passport to enter the Country you just have to produce a any of the documents to prove that you are a Indian Citizen (Ex: Voter ID , Adhara Card , Driving License)
The permit form will be available at the Entrance and see to that you are at the Immigration office first thing in the morning .
The Immigration office Opens at 9 AM sharp , see to that you have all your travel documents
You need to show your Travel Plan at the Immigration office , they will give you a Travel Permit for 7 day's
My Personal Suggestion to anyone Travelling to Bhutan get your E-Visa approved so that you don't have issue's when you get to the border to get the Permit
So this Travel Journey was for about 3 day's in Bhutan
Day 1 : Entry formalities at the Border
Border (Phuentsholing) to Thimphu
It will take about 3 hrs to reach the first point from the entrance (Phuentsholing)
First place visited on Day 1
En-route to Thimphu is a Mesmerizing view of the nature guys please don't sleep while travelling in this country, they very first stop while travelling was the natural water fall , the water is so sweet to drink you will love the taste of it and the chillness of the water is really awesome
This is the view of the place, The water fall is about 100ft in height if you hire a local tourist guide you will be able to stop at places and enjoy the views. If you are using a local transportation method then you would not be able to stop where ever you would like to , so I would suggest you to hire a local Guide.
Some of the pictures of taken during the travel
Second Place Visited on Day 1
Buddha Dordenma
Great Buddha Dordenma is one of the Gigantic statue which was built to Celebrate the 60th anniversary of the fourth ruler of Bhutan Jigme Singye Wangchuck.
This is one of the Mountain Top Statue of Buddha , The view from the top of this mountain you feel as if you are seeing the Himalayas below are the pics of the view from the top of this mountain
These were the only 2 places that we were able to Visit on the First day since it took us too much time at the immigration center . Hence I would suggest you to reach the Immigration center as early as possible .
Day 2 : Thimphu Travel
First place visited on Day 2
The museum resembles a Bhutanese Village featuring Traditional Food and Performance's
There is a Entry fee for the Museum
They charge the entry fee for the Guide , As soon as we entered the premises we were given a warm welcome from one of the guide .
You will be escorted to a small round shaped room where the picture of all the Ruler's of Bhutan has been put up.
They will offer you a Welcome Drink which is White Wine , It has a very Strong Aroma.
The start of Journey inside the museum
One Last Pic with Our Guide showing all the Artifact's inside the museum
Day 2
Second Place Visited : The Kings Palace
The Famous Dechencholing Palace is located in Thimphu the capital of Bhutan, is spread over for about 5 acre land and was build by the Third King of Bhutan Jigme Dorji Wangchuck in the year 1953.
The Palace has 2 floor's each of which has a ceiling height of about 20 ft. at the very entrance you can find the Flag of Bhutan , The pole whose height is about 80 ft. and is Guarded by 2 armed Guards throughout the day .
The palace has about 150+ rooms through out the 2 floors and has 4 watch tower's at each end which is placed at a height of 100 ft height to be guarded.
The very entrance arch is placed at a height of about 75 ft.
You will not be allowed to take pictures inside the palace so please be aware of this.
Some of the pictures of the Palace captured
The View of the Palace from up-top
The Entrance where the Flag of Bhutan is Hoisted
A view of the Mountain from Inside the palace
Third place Visited : Clock Tower Square
The Clock Tower Square is a very special location where the clock is built in a complete stone structure which has a clock facing all the four directions and this place is covered with many Restaurants a around it , you will find most of the cuisines here.
Since Bhutan is a Land of Harmony and Peace loving you will still be able to get Non-Vegetarian food as well but the only thing is that the Meat is Imported. There is no Butcher shops all over the country since it has banned Killing of Animals, All the Meat Products are imported. There are a Variety of food choice's for both Vegetarian's and Non-Vegetarian's.
I was able to take only 1 Picture at the Clock Tower Square since there was an Unexpected rains that happened
There was a Small Restaurant which we visited Tower Cafe
The Cafe offer's wide varieties of Snack's the Service provided by them was really a great Experience.
The Inside Picture and the Menu offered by the Cafe
Day 2 Completed by roaming around the Streets of Bhutan and some shopping done the streets are completely kept very clean and the there is a huge respect towards the pedestrian's, While walking around we found out that if we use the Zebra crossing to cross the road's the vehicles on the road stop for us to cross you and need not specifically wait for the vehicles to pass. The people are very Friendly and are very helpful.
Day 3 : Paro:
The Famous Tiger's Nest :
Tiger's Nest is One of the Famous Himalayan Buddhist Monument that has been built on a Hill Top in Paro.
This Place is considered as a Holy place by the Bhutanese people since Guru Padmasambhava had meditated for 4 months during the 8th Century.
There is a Entry Fee to go Inside the Tiger's Nest .
You can Start off climbing the mountain at 8 AM once you get the Tickets , if you plan to just enjoy the trek and view at the top of the mountain , I would suggest you to start your Trek at 6 AM sharp so that you have a Mesmerizing view at the top of the mountain.
If you have issue's to climb the mountain's you will get a horse to climb the mountain till half way of the trek they charge a very low cost if all of you take the horse's.
My suggestion is to climb by yourself rather than using the Horse to climb half the way point.
Please carry some water and food while you are trekking since the distance to hike is about 5 km up hill and down back. even though you have a cafe at the midway point of the hike you will get some food to have only if you start climbing the mountain after 8AM. If you reach this point by 7AM you will only get Black Coffee and Biscuits.
One of the Most Amazing part was the Temperature on the day we did out Climb to the Tiger's Nest was at -4 Degree
Some of the Pics during the Travel to the Top of Tiger's Nest
The Start of The Trek to Tiger's Nest
Halfway through we were able to see the Snowfall that had happened a day before our Trek was done
Picture of the Tiger's Nest From the Halfway Point
A very Old Abandoned shop which had Snow fall View
This Beautiful Soul Accompanied me throughout the Trek guiding me how to climb and showing me the Route Up-top the Hill
The Water fall which was converted to a Mountain of ICE Rock due to the Freezing Temperatures
The Squad which completed the whole Trek with me
Selfie with Tiger's Nest
They said the climb up the hill would be tough, But they did not tell how Mesmerizing the view was at the Peak
Day 3 was completed after we came back to the Starting point of the Trek .
An Unexpected Plan happened and this Travel Continued to a different city once we were heading back to our Land.
Day 4 : The Unexpected Plan
After Crossing the border back to Our Homeland we started our travel by Hiring a Cab ,
The Unexpected Travel Plan which took us to the Land of Tea (Darjeeling) which is located in the Foot hills of the Himalayas at an height of 6700 ft , known for the best Tea which you get here .
This City is also famous for the song Mere Saponoki Rani from Aradhana(1969)
The Train Song which has been in our hearts for a a very long time, You can still find that Steam Train available till today.
The Steam Train (Darjeeling Himalayan Railway) operates Daily 2 Times and Its very expensive since its route is from the Bottom of the Mountain to Top of the Mountain
We were able to arrange a Home-stay which was a very really good and had a very good service (Morning Calm Home-Stay)
We had the Opportunity to have some of the best Momo's while we were staying here
Even tough we have just 1 day to stay in Darjeeling we had the Opportunity to see some of most Attractive place's in Darjeeling
The Main Attraction of Darjeeling was the Darjeeling Rope-way which give's you a complete View of the City while you travel on the Rope-way.
Another Important Attraction of Darjeeling is the Himalayan Mountaineering Institute One of the best Institutes in the country which Teach's you about Mountaineering
Followed by this was the Padmaja Naidu Himalayan Zoological Park
The next stop was the Darjeeling Peace Pagoda which has some of the Statues of Buddha
Some of the Picture's of Our Stay, Place's Visited in Darjeeling
The Famous Rope-Way
The Scenic View from the Rope-way
Waiting In Que for the Rope-way
The Very Famous Mountaineering Institute
Entrance of the Famous Himalayan Mountaineering Institute
H.M.I
Tenzing Memorial to show the History Created by him who was the First Person to climb the Himalayas
Some of the Animals that you will be able to See at the Padmaja Naidu Zoological Park
One Last Pic at the Zoo
The Last Stop for the day was the Darjeeling Peace Pagoda
The Perfect Pose of Buddha which would depict me 😀
The View from Our Home-Stay
The Track of the Darjeeling Himalayan Railway
You don't see Nature's Beauty every day unless you stay in such Hill-station
Last but not the least the Very Famous Darjeeling Tea
When the Squad like's the Aroma of the Tea
A Huge Thanks to the Owner of the Morning Calm Home-Stay for making our Stay in Darjeeling a Memorable one
This Marked the End of Our Journey to Our First International Journey , Thanks to the team that accompanied me with this Wonderful Journey (Ashwini, Seema, Rakhinya). It has been a great pleasure travelling with you on the very First International Journey.
Thank's to the People who helped us along our Journey to make it a Memorable one it has been a great experience travelling to Bhutan and Darjeeling since we made many memories .
The complete Trip Costed 25000 /- INR Per Person since we did not go in a package trip and we individually booked our Flight's stay and other Transportation's.
Travel Bag : https://amzn.to/3iNMsV6
Hiking Shoes :https://amzn.to/3axY6AF
It has been a Great Experience sharing these memories with you all.
Thank You
Naveen Kumar S
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