This morning it was time to say good-bye to India, our drivers and tour guide, as we were going through the bureaucratic process of leaving India – and the very straight-forward entry into the Kingdom of Bhutan.

Entering Bhutan was like entering a different world – it felt serene compared to the hustle and bustle in Jaigaon on the Indian side: clean streets, fewer people, less traffic and very limited honking.

We were welcomed by our new tour leader for the Bhutan part of the trip; a bus was waiting for us now, on which we continued the journey from the border at Phuentsholing to Thimphu, the kingdom’s capital. A distance of 150km was ahead of us – plus an elevation gain of over 2000m – so another long drive along winding mountain roads – and views that made this worthwhile.

The drive was broken up by a few stops, the first at a stupa with a view (and the freshest air we had breathed in quiet some time), followed by one at the Eight Dharma Kaya Stupas near Gedu and a late lunch in a restaurant about half an hour later.

We continued the drive after lunch with a stop at Chhuzom Bridge – the crossroads between Paro and Thimphu. After a short photo stop we continued towards Thimphu, where we had a quick walk around downtown, to change money and get a first impression of town.

Now – tourism works a bit different in Bhutan than in other parts of the world; travel in Bhutan usually comes packaged – and in our case was pretty much an “all inclusive” affair (except drinks of course). As such dinner was included, buffet-based (as most of our meals in Bhutan) and had in the restaurant of our hotel – very convenient. Next to other dishes, the buffet did include our first encounter with Ema Datshi – essentially a cheese-based chili soup (find a recipe here) and Bhutan classic. The one offered to us was basically a spicy tourist version – yet, it made me sweat quiet a bit. After dinner a few of us headed out into town to check out the local bar scene … and have a panda beer with a drunken yeti.