The next morning was the last one where we would awaken in a tent. Outside, one of the many Bhutanese dogs rested. Stray dogs can make a living in Bhutan because most Bhutanese will practice compassion for sentient beings by feeding them. There is a movement for neutering/spaying dogs, but it hasn't really taken hold yet.
Here is one of the orange trees growing at Nimshong. On the roof to the right red chilies are drying.
More onlookers.
In this photo, ponies approach us along the road. Our route down to the Mangde Chu was partially footpaths, and partially this road. The utility of the road has been diminished by Cyclone (hurricane) Alia, which hit the Bay of Bengal last May (2009), and dropped a lot of rain in Bhutan. The bridge across the Mangde Chu for this road, finished just a couple of months before, was completely washed away in the flood, as we will see.
Here we are making progress in our descent to the river. You may notice a small solar panel on the roof of this house. It was not uncommon for us to see an arrangement on this trek whereby a solar panel kept a small battery charged up, which would be enough to run a fluorescent light or two in the dark hours. But modernity is coming to this valley; along part of the route between Korphu and Nimshong a modest (by Western standards) right of way was being trimmed for electrical lines. I don't know how or if the lines will affect the future of the route for the trek, but I'm sure the villagers are looking forward to the juice.
Here we have reached the bottom. An abutment for the previous bridge is visible to the left; until it is rebuilt (higher), a temporary bridge lets us cross.
Joan waves as she crosses.
The air down in the valley was dusty, very dusty, from the road blasting. The finest particles appeared to stay suspended for days, and the foliage had a brown, fuzzy coating. From the river crossing, a wide but still unpaved nouveau road switchbacked up to the paved north-south road. My binoculars, camera case, and glasses all needed a cleaning when we got back to Trongsa. On gaining the road, Tsewang gave each of us a white scarf to congratulate us on completing the trek.
We had a final trail lunch.
Yes, that's a trail lunch! And then we said goodbye to the trekking crew before heading back to Trongsa.
On the far right is Toh (phonetic spelling), the camp boss, known to all as "the Hammer." At one spot, where the road had dipped down close to the river, the May floods had left nothing but a huge boulder field. The bus slowly bounced through this zone on a temporary road before regaining the pavement. Although December is off-season for road work, there was the occasional laborer here busting large rocks into a pile of medium-size gravel, by hand. As we drew closer to Trongsa it became clearer that we would get there too late to see the first day of the multi-day tsechu (festival). We would have all of the next morning to attend the tsechu, so everybody was content to get back to Yangkhil Resort to clean up and to repack yet again, stowing away trekking items and reorganizing the rest.
We awoke the next morning to our alarm, did our usual inside-the-tent routines, and waited for the hot tea. It seemed to be running late, and when voices began to draw closer, it didn't sound like the usual guys who brought the tea and hot water. Then one of them said, "Ho ho ho." It was Santa Namgay, wearing a cotton beard and bearing chocolate!
We learned later that delay was due to two things. It took a while to borrow the red jacket, which belonged to a monk (still asleep) that a lady in town knew. Also, the beard kept falling off. All was forgiven when this smiling visage bearing chocolate appeared. There was another surprise at breakfast.
This one was really yummy too. Today we took our breakfast plates to an overlook gazebo, separate from the dining pavilion.
The view into the valley was grand.
The trail on to our next destination, Nimshong, passed again through Korphu. Of course, some children noticed us.
As we walked by the house we had visited yesterday, our host called out to us, and a dialog ensued between him and Tsewang. Although we were running late, we went inside, and it was a fabulous experience. They were taking a break from the ABC (annual blessing ceremony) and offered us butter tea. I have never had butter tea before, and this was good. The butter is churned into the tea so thoroughly that there is not an oily film, just a rich texture. Tsewang is right to say that it's excellent for chapped lips. If the butter had been around too long, then the flavor would be off, but what we were served was excellent. Here the monks look on as the host assembles his family for us, to pose for a photograph.
This video clip of the same action gives you an idea of the sound of Bhutanese speech.
Here is the assembled family. The patriarch and matriarch are on the right.
As we stood up to leave, I got a better view of the monks. You can see some of the tormas on the altar in the upper left of the photo.
As we trekkers assembled in the courtyard the ceremony picked up again.
Korphu was a high spot of the trek. We had been greeted warmly, as welcome guests, and serendipity had smiled again in the variety of experiences given us. Today's hike would be to go downhill, almost to the valley floor, and then back up, reclaiming some but not all of the downhill, and then a rolling "level" until a final climb through the village of Nimshong. Shortly after starting the descent, a view opened up that explained why the fields of the Nabji/Korphu area are often called "the peacock tail."
Along the trail, we came upon a golden langur. Check out the length of that tail.
As we stared in admiration, the family came up to join him.
Twenty minutes later, we were treated to three male rufous-necked hornbills chilling out in plain view. Binoculars were useful, as the birds were not immediately by the trail.
Another twenty minutes down the trail, and we encountered the female.
Jillian takes a stretch.
At this point, a pony and his boy catch up to us.
As we got closer to Nimshong, agricultural terraces began to appear.
We paused to study a spot that had a lot of bird activity. In this photo, the barred underparts point to a lesser yellownape woodpecker, while the crest suggests a greater yellownape. Life is uncertain.
The village of Nimshong is spread out vertically, as you see, and our camp is at the top.
As we climbed up through the village, we got permission to take a picture of this family processing this year's grain, winnowing and grinding.
A view of our campsite from the dining area.
That evening, around the campfire, we did some singing. Joan, always a showtunes fan, sang "Oh What a Beautiful Morning." Tsewang expressed a fondness for the Beatles' "Eight Days a Week," which the group limped through -- my eternal weakness is remembering only snatches of lyrics. So in case you encounter Tsewang in future, here's a study guide.
Ooh I need your love babe,
Guess you know it's true.
Hope you need my love babe,
Just like I need you.
Hold me, love me, hold me, love me.
I ain't got nothin' but love babe,
Eight days a week.
Love you ev'ry day girl,
Always on my mind.
One thing I can say girl,
Love you all the time.
Hold me, love me, hold me, love me.
I ain't got nothin' but love girl,
Eight days a week.
Eight days a week
I love you.
Eight days a week
Is not enough to show I care.
Ooh I need your love babe,
Guess you know it's true.
Hope you need my love babe,
Just like I need you.
Hold me, love me, hold me, love me.
I ain't got nothin' but love babe,
Eight days a week.
Eight days a week
I love you.
Eight days a week
Is not enough to show I care.
Love you ev'ry day girl,
Always on my mind.
One thing I can say girl,
Love you all the time.
Hold me, love me, hold me, love me.
I ain't got nothin' but love babe,
Eight days a week,
Eight days a week,
Eight days a week.
And that was a very eventful Christmas Day. Its glow increases in memory as I review it for this post.
