The best part of Bhutan was the people, who were uniformly friendly and engaging. First here are some pictures of Bhutanese people. We stopped at a souvenir stand for a restroom break, and a school bus pulled over, letting students off. The kids were a lot of fun to talk to. These three pictures […]
Bhutan-6 People Pictures Read More »
We had three different hikes in Bhutan. The first hike was to Khamsum Yulley Namgyal Chorten, a Buddhist temple in Bhutan built to bring peace and protect the country. We started the hike by crossing a suspension bridge. The trail had wonderful views of the valley and its terraced rice paddy fields. There was a
We did see some animals on this trip, although it did not compare to what we saw in Puerto Deseado or Ushuaia, in Patagonia. Note the Golden Langur at the top of this post; I will discuss them further at the end of this post. We stopped at one of the mountain passes, Pele La
The Go Learn travel program always has an educational component. This trip focused on both Bhutan’s distinctive culture, and on health care in a unique developing country. Jeff, our tour leader, is a physician and a Professor at the University of Utah School of Medicine, and has studied Global Health, particularly in resource-limited settings. We
Bhutan-3 Buddhist Culture Read More »
I met the other people in our tour group at the Bangkok Airport hotel the night before our flight to Bhutan. I knew ten people from our Patagonia trip, and also met new travellers. A great group, really fun travelling companions! Several people told me I needed to go on the airline website and get
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Bhutan is an amazing place. A small country in Asia with stunning Himalayan landscapes, it is renowned for prioritizing the country’s Gross National Happiness over its Gross National Product. The concept of Gross National Happiness implies that sustainable development should take a holistic approach towards notions of progress and give equal importance to well-being. It
Bhutan-1 Bangkok Thailand Read More »
I had never been to the Sawtooth Mountains in Idaho, but I had heard good things about the area. I was traveling with my van, with no campground reservations. I knew that most National Forests allow “Dispersed Camping,” meaning that if I could not find a site at a campground, I could stop at almost
Idaho Sawtooth Mountains Read More »
Hiroshima was the first military target of a nuclear weapon in history, on August 6, 1945. Most of Hiroshima was destroyed, and by the end of the year, between 90,000 and 166,000 people had died as a result of the blast and its effects. We first went to the top floor of Hiroshima Orizuru Tower,
Odysseys Unlimited prides itself on the “Unique Experiences” it provides to travelers. I certainly enjoyed these experiences. Some of these experiences, such as visits to a Sake Brewery, a traditional Japanese washi papermaking place, and the 16th-century craft of applying gold leaf to objects (where we each made a bowl), were enjoyable but did not
Japan-2 Unique Experiences Read More »
After three thwarted attempts, I finally made it to Japan! In 2017, we toured India with our friends Knute and Mazal, using the Odysseys Unlimited tour company. We had a great time; our tour guide was wonderful, and the tour company did an excellent job. So we planned a 2020 trip to Japan, again
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