3 October 2014 – Day 7 (Thimphu Tshechu)
The entire trip itinerary revolved
around this event and all the jigsaw puzzles we moved around on the fly was to
fit in this important festival in Bhutan. Tshechu means Day 10 (festivals are
held on 10th day of the month of the Tibetan lunar calendar) and in
a country that gauges its success by Gross National Happiness, festivals are
extremely important tools to keep people happy. Every dzongkhag in the country has
its own main Tschechu and Thimphu being the capital hosts the biggest one.
Festivity in the air
We decided to take the Chhophel
Lam since we were just down the road off Thori Lam. Whilst Google maps
suggested that it was a recommended route, we couldn’t spot anyone else around
and wondered if we were going down the wrong route till a Bhutanese traffic
minder guided us through the wilderness to a mud path where there were many
other kids headed to the same place. As we got closer and saw the crowds
entering the Tashichhodzong (The main Thimphu dzong), we could see the finest
splendour of this city on display. The golf course next door was empty though.People of all ages were dressed in their Sunday best in gaiety mood with snacks, refreshments and other roadside goodies on sale. Fortunately this was pre selfie era on the planet and people were talking, laughing and absorbing the festive spirit. Initially we went to the empty section but soon realised with the sun on our heads why it was so empty even as crowds poured in. The entire security and discipline of the event was being managed by citizen volunteers!
There were a couple of security guards at the main points but they were outnumbered 1 to 4 by citizen volunteers.
Tshechu time !
The
performances started with the clowns messing about with everyone and slapping
them with wooden phalluses followed by extremely good looking all women choir
which the clowns made sure to highlight. The dance performances soon followed,
coordinated, rhythmic synchronised movements on musical chants which ran
approximately 25 minutes per performance. The scale at which these performances
were been done added to the grandeur of the event as the kaleidoscope of colours
increased manifold. After 5 minutes of each performance, you’d kind of get it
and without any knowledge of dzongkha, there weren’t any more details of the
stories the song spoke of.I’d end up people watching and can’t blame you when such good looking people have dressed up for the occasion in their smartest ghos and kiris in resplendent fashion. After a couple of performances and an impromptu photo opportunity with one of the clowns who was taking a break and forgotten to carry his wooden phallus along, we decided to check out the rest of the Tashichhodzong.
Unnecessary hike to Zilukha Nunnery
We knew Thangthong Dewachen Nunnery also known as Zilukha Nunnery was in the vicinity so decided to find it. We asked a couple of passerbys and each one gave us a conflicting answer till a farm boy pointed that we’d find a muddy incline that would take us there. We found one which required us to crawl on our knees at points due to the steep incline and carried on till we got lost in the foliage. Contemplating to head back, we heard someone whisper. We found a monk snuck behind a tree answering a phone call. Shocked to see us first, he realised we seemed lost but figured we were looking for the nunnery and asked us to continue climbing up through a cutting.
We soon reached the road leading to the nunnery and then it struck us the incline the farm boy had
told us about was a proper tarred road started a kilometre away from where
we had started our climb. The nunnery was quiet and empty except for 2 nuns
busy in their meditation in the prayer hall. We spent some time amongst the
chirping of birds and the rustling of trees protected from the fiery sun of the
day searching for inner peace. After a quick debate on whether to walk down the incline and walk back a kilometre or climb down the shortcut we had discovered, hunger pangs decided the latter and we decided to pay visit to “the Zone” , bang opposite the stadium and is famous for their pizzas and free wifi (password: secretzone ). It has a very youthful vibe to itself, noticeable with the clientele present and after hogging on their pizzas running up a bill of 1100 Nu as we read through some of the coffee table Bhutan editions available there especially the one on phalluses.
Phalluses
I think phalluses now need a
paragraph to themselves. Phalluses often depicted as ejaculating in their wall
paintings are used to ward evil spirits away from an ornamental stand point.
They also signify fertility and have roots going down to the Divine mad man monk
of Chimi Lhakhang (near Punakha) who used his magical gifts for the spread of
Buddhism in the country as he subdued a demoness with his wondrous thunderbolt.
It started raining heavily giving
us an excuse to relax further in the café listening to the conversations of the
kids around us that involved boys checking out mutual friend girls on Facebook,
school kids cribbing about homework and tourists discussing the lovely views
from the flight into Paro.
The flea market
The entire Norzin Lam had been converted into a
vehicle free zone with temporary tents springing up all over with folks selling
their wares from neighbour towns and villages. The winter wear jackets whilst
not suitable for Bengaluru, but surely useful in colder places were going at
500 Nu. Shoes, toys, food, dresses, clothes etc were the essence of the market.
It felt like the entire country had come down onto that street as it was choc a
bloc packed. We bumped into Pemo (the same guy who the other Pemo fished in the middle of nowhere at Chozum on day one) and he was pleased to meet us and knowing we had no issues so far. Also managed to buy souvenirs ( embroidered doll size gho, gho & kiri keychains, woven bookmarks etc) You need to bargain like crazy and lucky for us, being a festival, we could test our bargaining power till it failed in one store and use that info in the next one to ensure we weren’t being fleeced. Also ask for festival price when you kick off discussions, it’s the same as “friend price” when bargaining in the Far East.
We decided to watch a bit of today’s
movie called “Selzin” starring Kuenden Norbu. The first half seemed to be a
love story. Since we were heading out early the next day for Bumthang, we
headed home earlier grabbing some momos and Bhutanese bhel at a road side stall
on the way. Leaving a note for Alma as he wasn’t around and not sure if we’d
see him in the morning, we thanked him for his hospitality and crashed for the
night ensuring we had packed up everything.
Key Points
Check if there are any tshechus happening around your travel plans and go for it. Perfect cherry on your cake.
If you get early to Thimphu dzong, head to the Royal gallery side and get a good spot as it'll be get sunnier later in the day and everyone will head to that side for respite fom the sun.
The Zone ($$) - Chang Lam. - Free wifi, pizzas are good. Brunch (2 pizzas + starters + drinks) = 1100 Nu
Whilst bargaining, start off with friend / festival / special price. Bargaining is essential. Can go down to 40% of original quoted price.
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