EVEN A PACKAGED TOUR HAS ROOM FOR IMPROVISATION. We were scheduled to visit he Talo Festival in Punakha that began today but Penjur got a tip that it would be better to visit tomorrow when the full complement of dancers would be there. So we switched itineraries and headed up the Phobjikha Valley towards the Gangtey Gompa Monastery instead.
We never made it.
What bird was that?
The road up the valley is as terrible as the scenery is exhilarating. Sixty-five percent of Bhutan is forest filled with rushing rivers, deep valleys, rocky crags and splashing waterfalls. But the twists and turns and bumps soon took their toll. We convinced Penjur to stop often for birding breaks. During one stop the murmured consensus of the group was that birding was preferable to another hour of the road and that lunch was the new priority. So after another good family-style meal and some more birding we turned tail for the hotel.
Golden-throated barbet
Pam, already a birder, spotted a black eagle, a new species for us. Keiko began to be hooked when we showed her a golden-throated barbet and the spectacular Mrs. Gould’s sunbird. It probably won’t be long before she trades her mini-binos for Swarovski’s like Pam has. Even Rene is making noises about buying a man-sized zoom lens for birding and what was originally billed as the Festival Tour is slowly becoming a birding trip.
Like double dutch
As we neared the hotel swarms of school kids - boys dressed in gho and girls in kira, filled the street and we stopped for photos. They were incredibly curious and precocious and spoke English like Americans. Some watched us cautiously while others played games for our amusement. One girl nearly climbed into the van asking for our autograph. No doubt, she will be Bhutan's first woman Prime Minister someday.
