Thimphu,Bhutan

I can hardly keep up with myself, at the moment,my head is spinning.I left Gangtok early yesterday in a shared jeep and after a scenic roll down the mountain arrived  at Siligurli about lunchtime. Siligurli is another railhead town and in a word unattractive,so I took a taxi to Bagdogra and was lucky  to score a room in the only hotel near the airport.A cold beer or two restored me enough to contemplate the adventure ahead.

I was just about knocking at the gates of the airport this morning in my impatience,I needed to be early you see to secure a window seat on the left hand side,which I managed to do.

Right on time the Druk Air A319 took off climbing steeply for the half hour hop to Paro,almost immediately I had Kanchenjunga within touching distance at my window followed by the giants of the Himalaya,one after the other,it was a magic show and perfect weather to boot.Suddenly we turned left as if to fly straight into the huge wall of rock and ice,another sudden lurch to the right and we were in a ravine,a v shaped valley,looking across the plane I could see clearly the green wall through the right side window,and likewise through my window.Now I realized we were falling like a stone,but too late we kissed the Tarmac and stopped like a Harrier jet,on a sixpence.People were moving about the plane and I still sat there like a stunned mullet,things had happened too fast I needed a rewind and replay button.I was told it is the worlds shortest runway and only 7 pilots have clearance to fly in and out of Paro.

My guide Tashi and my driver,whose name I am not attempting were there to meet and greet.I was draped in my white silk scarf and we were off to Thimphu,an hour and a half of driving through valley scenery that defies my weak arsenal of adjectives.Suffice to say it is extremely easy to see how it became labelled as Shang ri la.

On checking into my hotel almost immediately I sat down to a lunch of 8 separate dishes,there was a bowl of cream of carrot soup,a salad of tomato,cucumber,onion etc,a plate of spiced grilled crispy fish with chopped chives and lime,a plate of cauliflower and broccoli cooked in butter,a bowl of curried chicken,there was a salver of pasta cooked with shredded cabbage and chillies in a butter sauce.a huge bowl of rice,and the national dish of shredded chillies and cheese.God I hope this doesn't happen every day.

After this feast, was sight seeing in Thimphu.I am back at the hotel enjoying a whisky now but my head is still trying to disseminate all this.

What I do for research folks.

My Wi-Fi connection is very hit or miss so I don't know whether I will get this out,but photos are out of the question for now:-(