Robin's article on the Institute of Traditional Arts
was published in the Spring 2007 issue
of Tashi Delek Magazine.
Click here, to read this article
and others written by Robin.

Day 13, Wednesday November 4, Full day in Thimphu   After breakfast we leave for Tango Monastery, the residence of  the Druk Desi Gyaltsen Tenzin Rabgye, a 15-year-old spectacled boy who is the reincarnate of the 16th-century monk who built Tango.  We will be the special guests of this monastery and have access to many wonderful scenes of a monk’s daily life, and if he is there, the boy lama will give us a special individual blessing. Be prepared for a vigorous 45-minute climb into the clouds.  From the top of Tango (means horse, for the horse-head-like rock formation on the side of the mountain) we will photograph distant monasteries through a forest of colorful prayer flags and the interior courtyard of the monastery.  (Horses are available for those who don’t feel they want to make the climb, but be advised that horses do not carry riders down.)  After our descent we will enjoy a full hot picnic lunch on the banks of the Thim Chu (Thim River) next to the picturesque Cheri Zam (Cheri Bridge.)  This covered wooden footbridge is one of only a handful of traditional cantilevered bridges left in the Himalayas. 

(Click image to enlarge)

In the afternoon, we return to Thimphu where your guides and drivers are available to take you (individually or in small groups) anywhere you desire.  On past tours, we found that participants had their own ideas about what is interesting in Thimphu so we inform you of current events and give you this list of places to see, then leave this decision up to you.