My Ideal Yatra to Bhutan

Its not been very long since I have been to a trip, technically a foreign trip and my destination was Bhutan, one of the the few countries situated amidst the green dales of Himalayas. Since my senses have flourished, my choice of vacationing has been strictly dominated by visits to hill stations, be it in India or abroad. Often I have had debates with my family members over the choice of a destination, where safaris, beach holidays, historical tours have been suggested, but I had been always partial towards hills and mountains. Be it the ice-laden peaks of the Himalayas or the lush green valleys of Scotland, the choice has been unaltered.

So, let me give a glimpse to my ideal Yatra, my kind of travel. Last summer, we had set out for a trip to the enchanting valley of Bhutan. There are a couple of International Flights plying from Kolkata to Paro and we took one of those that started in the morning. A sweet little flight trip that included a picturesque view of the Himalayas while approaching the hearts of Paro, marked the beginning of our sensational trip.
The check in to Bhutan took some time and then we boarded a trekker that took us to the capital city of Thimphu through the beautiful greenery. We had already done our booking online, thanks to technology and it took us a few minutes to get into our room. The weather of Bhutan is so pleasant that we were not even a bit tired of the journey. Our hotel, situated in front of the football stadium, gave us a decent view of the World-Cup pre-qualifying football match between Bhutan and China, a definite bonus.

We are not one of those who like to spend time inside the hotel rooms, so we set off our wings into the streets of Thimphu, discovering small shops selling different decor items. Walking is the best form of transport when you really want to know the locality of any country. So we walked and walked and went to the palace which was closed for some official holiday. A big disappointment on the first day, however, later within our 4 day stay, we went again and could enjoy the wonderful decor of the Royal Palace.

Bhutan has so many small and big places as tourist destinations, we almost went to all and some more, due to our adventurous walks that we would take every afternoon through the streets of Thimphu and Paro. Small food joints with local delicacies, the Bhutanese version of Indian paan, local art and craft works, communicating with local artisans- our trip included all these rare things, apart from visiting the usual tourist spots.
This has been my ideal yatra. Starting from the travel to the hotel stay, and to visiting places- everything went smooth and hassle-free. We encounter various kinds of stress in our daily lives- running the household, work related pressure, raising kids and coping with daily demands of the family life . So when we take a break we need a complete distance from this stress as well. The Bhutan trip has been totally stress free and I cannot imagine a better vacation than this.