Tuesday 6th November.
As a warm up for the main event that starts tomorrow, we take on a walk up to the Taktsang - the Tiger's Nest - a fortress-come-monastery that justifies the word 'clings' to the rockface. So named because its founder arrived in the area about 500 years ago via a flying tigress - as you do.
It's about 3 hours and a reasonably steep incline, but we're all way more out of breath than we expect, due to altitude. Back to Paro and a look around their Dzong (Buddhist monastery-fortress) above the town, which is stunning in its level of decoration and in the level of cold that the monks there must have to endure. In a country of 700,000 about 1 in 4 males is a monk, and they start at around age 6 (so not exactly a personal career choice). But it is beautiful above a covered bridge over the river that runs past the town. 5 days trek and 4 nights camping starts tomorrow - never done it before, let alone at 12-14,000 feet. Wonder if I've got the right equipment...? Everyone else seems to have several changes of trekking poles and a complete North Face store with them. A bit late to wonder maybe?
As a warm up for the main event that starts tomorrow, we take on a walk up to the Taktsang - the Tiger's Nest - a fortress-come-monastery that justifies the word 'clings' to the rockface. So named because its founder arrived in the area about 500 years ago via a flying tigress - as you do.
It's about 3 hours and a reasonably steep incline, but we're all way more out of breath than we expect, due to altitude. Back to Paro and a look around their Dzong (Buddhist monastery-fortress) above the town, which is stunning in its level of decoration and in the level of cold that the monks there must have to endure. In a country of 700,000 about 1 in 4 males is a monk, and they start at around age 6 (so not exactly a personal career choice). But it is beautiful above a covered bridge over the river that runs past the town. 5 days trek and 4 nights camping starts tomorrow - never done it before, let alone at 12-14,000 feet. Wonder if I've got the right equipment...? Everyone else seems to have several changes of trekking poles and a complete North Face store with them. A bit late to wonder maybe?
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