Festivals of Bhutan

Arrive in Kathmandu; the busy, colourful and chaotic capital city of Nepal. Thousands of years of history are revealed in shrines, hidden temples and narrow backstreets, and the Himalayas provide a spectacular backdrop to this intoxicating city. Our hotel in Kathmandu is about 30 minutes' drive from the airport. There are no activities planned today, so you are free to arrive in Kathmandu at any time. If you would like an airport transfer today, you'll need to arrive into Tribhuvan International Airport (KTM). If your flight arrives earlier in the day, you might choose to walk in to the centre of town which is around 15 minutes from the hotel. Our time in Kathmandu is accompanied and we will meet our Tour Leader on arrival in Paro on day two of the trip. In the meantime a local Nepali guide will meet you in the hotel reception for the initial tour briefing. After this, for those that wish, there is the chance to go out for dinner. Should you miss the meeting, your leader will leave you information giving the meeting time for the next day in the hotel reception and will inform you of any essential information as soon as you catch up. This evening you might like to have your first taste of Nepalese cuisine. The local dumplings are a good bet. Called momos, they consist of a flour-based dough filled with meat or steamed vegetables. Also worth trying is dal bhat, a lentil based soup usually served with rice and vegetable curry. Whatever you try you'll find the cuisine varied, a mixture of influences from around the region, and a riot of colours and flavours.

Today we have a long but beautiful drive through the glacial landscapes of the Phobjika Valley, an area that is a prime wintering ground for the rare black necked cranes that flock here from the Tibetan Plateau between October and March to feed. The area is also home to sambars, red foxes, Himalayan black bears and muntjaks. We'll stop at the famous Gangtey Monastery. Built in the early years of the 17th century the goemba was built by Tenzing Legpai Dhendup, the second reincarnation of Pema Ligpa, and its Tibetan style prayer hall is one of the largest in Bhutan. The monastery is still an active seminary and its government-funded college offers a nine-year course in Buddhist studies. We will then begin our walk down the picturesque valley and back to Phobjika village where we visit the black-necked-crane information centre to learn more about this interesting bird.

Today we join locals in celebrating at the annual Black Neck Crane Festival. The festival celebrations take place in the courtyard of Gantey Gompa and focus on celebrating the arrival of the Black Neck Cranes who make the Phobjika Valley there home during the winter months. The festival centres around cultural dances and songs, often containing reference to the birds, and makes use of Bhutans traditional carved wooden masks. There is a large focus on conservation of the area and the cranes habitat during the festival.