Rachelle’s milestone 30th in mystical Bhutan:
Rachelle’s milestone 30th in mystical Bhutan:
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You’re probably wondering, where the heck is Bhutan? Bhutan is a small kingdom nestled in-between China and India bordering the south-eastern section of the Himalayas. Bhutan has become famous for measuring the countries wealth dependant on gross national happiness (GNH) rather than the GDP. In 2008 Bhutan transitioned from an absolute monarchy to a constitutional monarchy under the 4th King, which really broke it’s historic isolation. Since then Bhutan has become quite a popular and very fascinating tourist destination.
In an attempt to establish sustainable Tourism, the government adapted a unique visa application system, which requires you to book a tour package with local tour operators, directly or through a foreign travel agent. The visa application is then submitted by the tour operator on behalf of the visitor. There is also a minimum expenditure that is connected to the visa. For example, anybody visiting in a group of 3 or more must pay USD 250 per person per night (high season). This minimum expenditure includes things like; all internal taxes and charges, accommodation, all meals, all travel with a licensed Bhutanese Tour Guide, all internal transport and/or camping equipment and haulage for Trekking. A portion of this fee actually goes towards a development fund for free health care, free education and road building in Bhutan.
So as you can tell it isn’t necessarily cheap to travel to the little kingdom of Bhutan, but all the mystical and historical Dzongs (fortresses) and monasteries, remote valleys, himalayan vistas, curious and friendly locals, amazing culture, architecture and untouched nature, make it absolutely worth while!
I recently had the honour and pleasure to experience all of this and more on a 10-day trip to celebrate my 30th birthday. You know, one of these milestone birthdays where you feel like you need to do something special and meaningful? So I decided to book a trip to Bhutan, a country full of mystical and magical history, mountain side monasteries, the famous GNH wealth indicator and where Buddhism is still a way of life not just a religion.
With a passion for sustainable tourism and the environment, I had dreamed of going to Bhutan ever since I heard about their commitment to sustainable tourism and protecting the environment. What I didn’t expect was to fall in love with the country, people and way of life!
The Bhutanese have this aura of contentment about them and you can’t help but get inspired by their infectious attitude towards life. It spread throughout the whole group after just a few days of travelling in Bhutan. We were all reassessing our busy and hectic lives back home, while experiencing the deep feeling of contentment taking over the longer we were there.
I felt very honoured to be able to celebrate this milestone birthday by honouring the amazing gift of life and practicing being truly content. Anyone looking for some inspiration and wanting to experience something off the ‘beaten track’ will not be disappointed by everything Bhutan has to offer.
Tashi delek (good wishes),
Rachelle
