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Bhutan Himalaya Expeditions | We are Bhutan Travel Specialists Sharing Bhutan's Happiness since 1999 | Detailed Itineraries, Expertly Curated & Hand-crafted Journeys, with insider tips, feature articles, cultural insights, and more. Bhutan In-depth We offer meaningful hand-crafted travel adventures and cultural journeys in the last Himalayan kingdom and beyond. See our Signature Journeys Culture Curators We are your friends and guides through the rich mountain culture of Bhutan, each of our journeys led by insightful, indigenous local guides with deep ties of kinship across the kingdom. Start a conversation | PLAN YOUR BHUTAN TRIP Browse our small group adventures for 2026 & beyond | TRAVEL STORIES Some fun reads to whet your appetite | RECCOMMENDED READS What we're talking about Featured In the New York Times Read the NY Times article of the journey Recalculating Happiness in a Himalayan Kingdom by Seth Mydans See our journey designed to share the secrets of Bhutan's National Happiness policy at Heart of Happiness: Journey to Discover Bhutan's Gross National Happiness. We had the pleasure of arranging travel, research and interviews in Bhutan for NY Times Correspondent Seth Mydans & Times videographer Mariko Takayasu. Following the trip, Mariko produced a video with Christopher Flavelle of the New York Times called Measuring Happiness that appeared on the Times' website. The Raven Crown Royal Emblem of Bhutanese Kings — read about the significance of the Bhutanese crown, taken from a 2009 lecture at the San Francisco Asian Art Museum by Bhutan Himalaya Expeditions Travel Coordinator, Karma Dorji PART-I : 13:59 PART-II : 9:00 See all posts See all stories In-depth cultural exploration of Bhutan Celebrate the annual return of Bhutan’s endangered Black-necked Cranes The pristine high trek to Treasure Lake See all journeys Bhutan’s Wild Wild East: A fascinating temple whose walls preserve a painful history of migration Hatching in the Himalaya: How the brown trout, a native of the British Isles, found a home in Bhutan’s lakes and rivers Traveling to learn about Bhutan’s Gross National Happiness policy The people and the landscape of Bhutan’s Mountain Goddess: a Photo Essay The King’s Speech Top 10 reasons why you should visit Bhutan in 2020 _________ Travel Logistics Organizer for CBS 60 Minutes 2024 special report on Bhutan “First, thank you for making my trip to Bhutan run smoothly. Second, for explaining your culture and customs to me and our team in a way that helped our 60 MINS story come alive. Third, for making the visit seriously fun!” ~ Lesley Stahl, Correspondent, CBS 60 Minutes, September 2024 Search Travel Bhutan Abundance: A summer journey DEPARTURES Blessings of Bhutan Bhutan's Jomolhari Trek Heart of Happiness Trek to Treasure Lake On the Wings of Prayer Punakha's Pageant of Warriors Bhutan in the Time of Rhododendrons SEE ALL JOURNEYS Stories Hidden Lands of Happiness SPOTLIGHT Wild Wild East: How an ancient matriarch led her people to Bhutan Our top 10 reasons why you should visit Bhutan in 2023 How the brown trout came to Bhutan's lakes and rivers The top 10 mask dances to see in Bhutan Pomp & circumstance at Bhutan's warriors festival A journey to learn about Gross National Happiness SEE ALL STORIES Us The Bhutan Himalaya Difference ABOUT US Who we are The Bhutan Himalaya Difference What our travelers say Our Team Meet our latest hires CONTACT US

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Bhutan and Beyond: Our travel extensions in the region Bhutan & Beyond: Our travel extensions in the region Laid-back Laos: Where echoes of a French-colonial past lingers in the unhurried east DURATION 09 days Read More Triple gems of Cambodia DURATION 09 days Read More If you’re looking to make the most of your time in the region and venture beyond Bhutan, these regional extensions combine well with a journey to Bhutan. We work with reliable partners vetted and certified by their national tourism boards. We don’t offer every permutation of every regional trip here. Just what we’ve found to be rich in terms of travel experiences in each of these countries. If you’d like us to explore and put together an idea of yours please don't hesitate to contact us with your wishlist or a short description and we’ll put together a private journey for you, backed up by the depth, local insights, and expertise of our local partners. “ _________ Travel Logistics Organizer for CBS 60 Minutes 2024 special report on Bhutan “First, thank you for making my trip to Bhutan run smoothly. Second, for explaining your culture and customs to me and our team in a way that helped our 60 MINS story come alive. Third, for making the visit seriously fun!” ~ Lesley Stahl, Correspondent, CBS 60 Minutes, September 2024 Search Travel Bhutan Abundance: a summer journey JOURNEYS Blessings of Bhutan Bhutan’s Jomolhari Trek Heart of Happiness Trek to Treasure Lake On the Wings of Prayer Punakha’s Pageant of Warriors Bhutan in the Time of Rhododendrons SEE ALL JOURNEYS Stories Hidden Lands of Happiness SPOTLIGHT Wild Wild East: How an ancient matriarch led her people to Bhutan Our top 10 reasons why you should visit Bhutan in 2023 How the brown trout came to Bhutan's lakes and rivers The top 10 mask dances to see in Bhutan Pomp & circumstance at Bhutan's Warriors festival A journey to learn about Gross National Happiness SEE ALL STORIES Us The Bhutan Himalaya Difference ABOUT US Who we are The Bhutan Himalaya Difference What Our Travelers Say Our Team Meet our latest hires CONTACT US

Bangkok has a way of announcing itself the moment you step off the plane — the heat presses in like a hand on the back of the neck, the air smells of lemongrass and exhaust, and somewhere a tuk-tuk horn is already insisting you hurry. You can often see this glittering Asian metropolis that seems to be calmly bursting at the seams as a thing to be endured between two more meaningful points on a map. Over time, though, it can also be an overture — loud, fragrant, and generous — to the calm that awaits in the Land of the Thunder Dragon. A day or two here, spent well, does not compete with Bhutan's stillness. It deepens the arrival. Here are ten ways to spend a Bangkok layover as though it were the point and not the pause. Bangkok, the city that never sleeps, where neon challenges sunlight, and surprises wait around every corner. 1. Pedal into the Lungs of Bangkok Cross the Chao Phraya by a five-minute ferry from Khlong Toei and the din of the city simply stops. Bang Krachao — an artificial island formed by a horseshoe bend in the river, protected by royal decree from commercial development — unfurls into sixteen square kilometers of coconut groves, elevated boardwalks, and a nature park with a bird-watching tower rising above the canopy. Rent a bicycle for the equivalent of a couple of dollars near Bang Krachao pier and simply go where the narrow lanes lead: past stilted homes, small workshops, and roadside noodle stalls where no one is in a hurry. It is, improbably, still Bangkok — just the version the guidebooks forget to mention, ten minutes, and a world away from the city's crowded BTS 'skytrains'. Bang Krachao, the "Green Lung" of Bangkok is a quiet oasis in the middle of the city's frenetic pace. How to arrange the experience: 1. Bang Kachao bike ride Grasshopper Adventures (Bangkok Tour company) grasshopperadventures.com · +66 87 929 5208. Casual visitors need no booking — bikes can be rented directly on the island near the pier. Booking Direct: Trusted Contacts for Each Stop Wherever a direct establishment takes its own bookings, we favor that over a third-party ticketing platform. Details below are current as of this writing; please reconfirm before departure, as hours and contacts do shift. 2. Queue for Jay Fai In Old Bangkok's Phra Nakhon district, on a modest corner near Khao San Road, an octogenarian in ski goggles still cooks over roaring charcoal woks with her own hands — goggles to guard against the spitting oil, not for show. Khun Jay Fai (the name means something like “Auntie Mole,” due to the large mole on her right cheek) became, in 2018, the first street-food vendor in the world to be awarded a Michelin star, for a crab omelette so laden with fresh lump crab that it arrives at the table the size and heft of a football, crisp at the edges and molten within. There is no reservation system and there is always a line; come hungry and patient, and consider it a small pilgrimage. Jay Fai is featured in Season 1, Episode 1: “Bangkok, Thailand” of Street Food: Asia (about 30 minutes). Khun Jay Fai's signature dish is a giant crispy, savory, omelette oozing with fresh chunks of crab meat. How to arrange the experience: 2. Jay Fai Raan Jay Fai, 327 Maha Chai Rd, Phra Nakhon No reservations taken. Walk in and queue; check @jayfaibangkok on Instagram beforehand to confirm she's open that day. 3. Eat Where Love for a Mother Built a Menu The restaurant behind the name Pruek Phak Praw Rak Mae — literally, “growing vegetables for love of Mom” — began with three childhood friends who wanted nothing more than chemical-free vegetables for their own families' tables. What started as a backyard garden in Chiang Mai grew into Ohkajhu, now a nationwide organic restaurant group sourcing produce from small farmers across the north of Thailand under the promise “be organic from farm to table.” The Bangkok branch carries that same philosophy into the capital: bright, herbaceous salads and rustic Thai plates built almost entirely from what was harvested that morning. It is a meal that asks little of you and gives generously: farm-fresh, unfussy cooking that's tasty as well. 3. Ohkajhu (Pruek Phak Praw Rak Mae), Bangkok branch The restaurant's own site prukphakprawrakmae.com/menu for hours and location. We'd recommend confirming by phone closer to your date, since we couldn't verify a current direct line for this branch.

As we open our 2020 fall expedition to the base of Bhutan’s Mount Jomolhari (slated for October), our Travel Programs Coordinator, Karma Dorji, showcases in words and pictures why, despite the growing impact of tourism and the onslaught of modernity, a trek to the basecamp of the kingdom’s second highest peak remains one of the world’s great hiking experiences. ______ Photos & text by Karma Singye Dorji 1. Kado, 26, Mountain Man. Over the nearly two decades that I have been guiding guests of various nationalities on the trails crisscrossing the lap of Mount Jomolhari (24,038ft), I have fallen in love as much with the mountain as with her people. Having done it these many years, a trip back to the mountain feels more like a pilgrimage to me than a simple trekking expedition. This, even though, in my opinion, the route has become significantly degraded over the years by tourist traffic and a near-tragic clear-cutting of trees along the first section of the route in a mismanaged effort to bring electricity to the region. Many of the people I have guided over the years leave the mountain changed in some deep and profound ways by the power of the landscape, and the kindness, grace and strength of the people. I have personally been inspired by the incredible strength and tenacity of Mount Jomolhari’s children. The mountain has a way of stripping away the inessentials, exposing weaknesses, and demanding strength and endurance. I remember a time, in the early years, when we followed a young boy from Jangothang, a settlement near the mountain’s base who, at times half disappearing in the snow, trudged quietly and uncomplainingly with us, for hours going out of his way to guide us through an unexpected storm even though he got drenched in the subzero temperatures in the process. That boy, whose name I have sadly forgotten, is who I think of when I walk among people like 26-year old Kado who, similarly, was born and raised in the benevolent shadow of the mountain they call their protector. I met him at basecamp, where he spoke to me of his modest dreams: a new roof for his mother’s house, taking care of his elders and providing them a modicum of ease when they retire to the traditional Buddhist life of prayer and meditation. Talking to this quiet young man, listening to his rock-like resolve, I was reminded of one of the most important things we can do in life: be an anchor of strength for those we love. 2. Unveiling the Goddess When you get close to the mountain, the massive exposed rock face of Jomolhari’s base—streaked by waterfalls and fingers of perennial snow—gives no indication of the sheer magnitude of the peak. Black cliffs disappear under a sea of towering mist that reaches up to the sky, and it is only when the goddess “smiles” through a break in the weather that we see the immensity of her snowy crown. The semi-nomadic people who have lived here for centuries under her gaze believe that Ama Jomo, their Mother Goddess, watches over them and protects their world. Appraising the mountain from the Tibetan side (Bhutan was closed to outsiders then), the early 20th century English explorer F. Spencer Chapman wrote in 1939: “Chomolhari [aka Jomolhari] gives a greater impression of sheer height and inaccessibility than any other mountain I know. It drops in a series of almost vertical rock precipices to the foothills beneath. It is thought by many to be the most beautiful mountain in the whole length of the Himalaya.” 3. Beauty & Respect The powerful landscape of the valleys around Jomolhari always touches me in the deepest places of my heart. As I leave first camp at Thangthangkha, from where I see the top of Jomolhari's familiar snow cone summit playing peek-a-boo from behind the forbidding range, I can feel the mental chatter of my days quieting down, bringing me to the threshold of an awed silence. No room here for ego, for superficial words or for putting up defensive shields; nor too for the closing of emotional doors. The immensity of the landscape makes tiny specks of us all, and the vagaries of mountain weather reminds us to always tread carefully, respectfully, or else be reminded of our insignificance. As native-born Himalayan guides, it is our great duty and privilege to keep others safe. We take cues from the early mountain weather patterns as well as from the valuable indigenous knowledge that the region's semi-nomadic herders share so generously with us. We listen and we learn from local lore, gratefully accepting the advice of native elders who live in the region; we learn from the experiences of other guides, park officials, local authorities, native biologists and conservationists, always putting the safety of our travelers first. It is a tightrope walk, this partaking in the blessings of the mountain goddess and her people without adversely affecting the culture and the environment in this incredibly beautiful corner of our world. 4. Rich or Poor? Once we were camped near a yak-herder's settlement, a day’s walk from Jomolhari, at an altitude of some 12,300 feet. There we met the matriarch Keza Om (62, right), head of a family numbering three daughters, one of whom, Zom (30), is pictured here. A niece, two grandchildren, and two sons-in-law, who all live with her, round out the brood. From her seasonal stone-enclosure “roofed” by nothing more than a sheet of fraying tarpaulin, she survives on the milk and cheese produced by her yaks. Keza Om weathers snowstorms, freezing rains, and high winds with unwavering equanimity. “We do the best we can and leave the rest to fate,” she says. There’s not much here and everything is essential: the little plastic containers of cooking oil that have been cut away at the neck to be re-purposed as water buckets, the soot-blackened aluminum pots and pans for cooking meals and boiling milk, the churns for making butter and cheese, the prayer beads around her neck for remembering her daily Buddhist prayers; even the incongruously large tractor tire carried up the mountain by a son-in-law now reincarnated in the meadow outside her yurt as a feeding trough for the herd. Sitting amid such meager, cobbled possessions Keza Om's life seems hard and poverty-stricken. But the depth of her smile and the warmth of her welcome tells me otherwise. 5. Vital Elemental Things Crossing the high pass of Nyile La, in excess of 16,000-feet, you come upon this view. The first glimpse of the Lingshi Dzong, seen in the distance, always makes me simultaneously think of two very different things. A: that we are, in the overall scheme of things, truly insignificant. And b: that something about the snow-clouds drifting over the muscled slopes and ridges of the high mountains, the occasional roar of a waterfall in the distance, the moan of a calving glacier somewhere near the foot of a peak, the audible shrugging of great banks of snow from a massif (which always makes me think of a jet airplane passing overhead), and the way that we can almost touch the clouds in these rarefied heights of the world, tells me that we are each part of a much greater whole; that all of us are connected to the grand, unfathomable movements of nature even though we may not comprehend it all. Holding such thoughts in my mind, the superfluous melts away, replaced by vital elemental things: Gratitude. Breath. Beauty. And, of course, Weather, with a capital W! 6. Blue Sheep At the source of rivers, near the lairs of snow leopards, we often see stampeding herds of rare Himalayan Blue Sheep (Pseudois nayaur). These elegant ungulates were perhaps made most famous by the detailed studies of the celebrated biologist George B. Schaller, who wrote “Since blue sheep are the snow leopard’s principal prey…the two species are ecologically bound to each other.” In Bhutan, local conservationist friends of the snow leopards take heart from such sightings of healthy herds of blue sheep. Depending on size, maturity and season, their coats (“pelage” is the scientific term) range in color from brown to slate blue. The healthy populations of blue sheep, combined with some recent photographs of snow leopards captured using trip-wire cameras, and the increasing accounts of sightings by local yak herders in the Jomolhari region, provide encouraging circumstantial evidence. There are indications that the extremely rare and endangered cat, sometimes called the “ghost of the mountains” because of their elusive nature, continues to survive, and perhaps even thrive, in Bhutan where strong environmental policies protect their precious habitats. Traveling through this incredible landscape I am always reminded of the words of Peter Mathiessen, author of The Snow Leopard: “All is moving, full of power, full of light.” See a video clip of running blue sheep. 7. Precious Jewel of the Mountains No narrative of Jomolhari can be complete without mentioning yaks. In the high, arid region where agriculture is near-impossible, the area’s semi-nomadic herders depend on their yaks for survival. “Our yaks give us life,” Apa Penjor, a Jomolhari elder (now deceased), told me over 20 years ago when I first met him to write about a livestock disease depleting the local yak population. “They are like precious jewels for our people.” Cheese, milk and butter from the yaks are bartered in the lower valleys for grains, fresh produce, spices and other provisions in short supply at high elevations. Yak hair is spun into blankets, ropes and yurts; yak dung provides the fuel for fires. When we explore the spectacular slopes and valleys around Jomolhari we often meet local herders on their ancient grazing routes—men, women, children and elders—leading, or sometimes following, the animals they call Norbu Rinpoche, which, in their words, means “the gift that keeps on giving.” 8. The Grim March of Progress When I first hiked through the region nearly 25 years ago, it was still possible to feel like one had entered an untouched realm protected from the outside world by an invisible force-field, one of those hidden magical lands, the sacred bae-yul, that populate our Himalayan myths. A modern chair, which I saw used by the Drungpa or regional administrator, carried up the mountains by a porter, was the latest, most incongruous item of modernity I encountered back then. I remember being shocked by the sight, one morning, of the administrator sitting on that chair outside his tent, in front of the peak, reading his newspaper! Today, that office chair seems so innocent by comparison. What new things may yet soon become commonplace in the region? While it's easy for us to bemoan the visual pollution of electrical poles and lines cropping up amid such pristine surroundings, who are we deny or even judge the aspirations of Jomolhari’s people for what they deem to be better lives? For one thing, electricity means children can read after dark and do better in school. And yet if electricity arrives, can television—with the good and the bad of programming; advertising; and the generally soul-numbing selling and buying of consumer goods, with its concomitant environmental costs—be far behind? Ultimately, there’s no telling what indiscernible number of modern impulses that electricity will bring to the heart of Jomolhari. These men carrying the steel poles into the mountains were paid by local business contractors tasked by the government to build infrastructure for electricity in the region. The same businesses also cut down swathes of forest along the initial route to Jomolhari in the course of doing that, a sad and surprising oversight in a place where commercial logging is actually banned. Wearing cheap plastic boots and flip-flops, these men were earning Nu. 2,000 a day (less than 30 US dollars) doing the back-breaking work. "I am saving the money so I can help my parents in my village," one young man told me. More recently, helicopter services took to air-dropping these heavy metal poles into the remote interiors of Jomolhari, speeding up the process of change, bringing further intrusions to a place where the thud-thudding of rotor blades were previously unknown. 9. An Entreaty from the Mountains “When I was young our precious goddess [Jomolhari] was covered head to foot in robes of pure-white snow. Not so anymore,” says our longtime friend and caravan leader Ap Dawa, standing in front of the peak. “But there are many powerful countries in the world with resources far beyond our imagining,” he says. “I would like to plead with them to work together to find a way to reverse the negative impacts [of global warming] and help us protect our precious way of life.” While now in his 70s, Ap Dawa often puts men half his age to shame. Nimble and surefooted, the Jangothang elder likes to lead us on merry chases up and down the high slopes that provide some of the best views around basecamp. As a respected elder he also performs an ancient ritual that has now become a regular part of our treks. From a simple stone altar on the spreading yak meadow in front of Bhutan’s second highest peak (24,038ft), Ap Dawa conducts the time-honored rites worshiping the deity his people call “the Mother Goddess Mountain of the World.” As part of his invocations to the goddess, he seeks her blessings for the protection of all sentient beings in the world from suffering, and for peace and balance in the natural world. We can only hope that such heartfelt prayers will soon be heard in greater numbers all around the world, forcing our leaders to work toward some lasting solutions to save the future of the planet. 10. Protecting the Magic Despite encroaching modernity, in spite of the damage along the main trail to Jomolhari, the region still remains one of the most magical places in the world. We routinely enjoy such incredible experiences as starry nights in view of the sacred peak when it feels like you're looking up at the entire stretch of infinity. The challenges of preserving the last great untouched places in the world is a collective global responsibility and, in this, Bhutan punches far above its weight. As early as the 1980s, and perhaps even earlier, the kingdom has put its best foot forward with a series of far-reaching environmental policies backed by royal decrees and an overwhelming political will. We take heart from the fact that—as a country that sets aside more than 42 percent of its land mass in a system of protected areas—the Bhutanese government has introduced strong measures to reduce the impacts of tourism: campsites are clearly marked and delineated to reduce environmental damage on surrounding areas, everything brought in must be packed out, and special fees help pay for environmental cleanups. Agencies such as the excellent and wide-ranging non-profit Bhutan Foundation, with offices in Bhutan and the US, help protect endangered Snow Leopards while promoting sustainable livelihoods for local communities across Bhutan (https://bhutanfound.org/projects/snow-leopard-conservation-program/). Meanwhile, forestry and land use regulations and strict environmental protection laws help keep Bhutan a carbon-negative country. Places like Jomolhari have a great beauty and natural diversity that must be preserved as part of our sacred global heritage, an endeavor in which we all have a role to play—the visitors who are fortunate enough to walk these hallowed valleys beneath the gaze of the mountain goddess, the local governments and non-profits that seek to provide services and improved livelihoods while protecting biodiversity and precious natural resources and, ultimately, those of us who seek to share this amazing, glorious, life-changing landscape with the wider world. ___ To donate to a project benefiting environmental conservation and cultural preservation in the Jomolhari region, go to Bhutan Foundation's website: https://bhutanfound.org/ To learn more about our upcoming 2020 Trek to Mount Jomolhari, go to: https://www.bhutanhimalaya.com/bhutan-jomolhari-trek

Losar is a time for fun, family, and feasting in Bhutan. Unlike the West, where people may stay up all night to party, the start of the lunar year in Bhutan is a mostly daytime affair. People wake early in the morning to bathe and put on fresh new clothes they’ve put away during the past year in carefully locked boxes, trunks, and closets for just such a special occasion. The first meal of the day is usually thuep, thick rice congee with spicy mala seasoning flavored by bone marrow, soft cubes of cottage cheese, and tender, well-cooked chunks of meat, usually pork or beef. It’s a dense umami concoction that’s at once savory, tingly, and filling, a great way to start this celebratory day. In some families, the day also begins with thrue, a purifying bath or shower to rinse off the negative karma of the previous year, followed by thuen or moenlam, a short prayer or dedication to welcome a prosperous new year. Daytime festivities include da-tsey or archery, the national sport, played mostly by men, and khuru or throwing darts that are enjoyed by monks (there being no injunctions against games of marksmanship in the Buddhist clergy) as well as by lay people. If, in other parts of the world, New Year parties are a time to go out, in Bhutan, the holiday is more akin to an American Thanksgiving. It’s a time when families gather and stay home to eat delicious and endless quantities of food throughout the day. Lunch usually arrives with a great deal of fanfare, featuring the season's best cereals, depending on the elevation—rice, wheat, roasted barley, dough, or buckwheat. Yak, beef, pork or chicken, and sometimes fish are served in prosperous homes. In the more religiously observant homes, a gathering of monks will usually perform ceremonies for barchey lamdoey, “which may loosely be translated as “prayers for the purification of diseases, obstacles, and misfortunes.” In such homes, the esteemed monks are invited to take frequent breaks during the day to join the family in the feasting. Renewed by such delicious food and drink, the monks will often be seen to resume their chanting, the blowing of ceremonial horns and reed pipes, and the beating of their drums and cymbals with renewed vigor and energy. Afternoon tea, with Indian-style sweet milk tea as well as salty Himalayan butter tea or suja—which is more like a broth—arrives with khabzoey, or crispy, mildly sweet deep-fried dough cakes. Dinner is usually preceded by ara, home-brewed traditional rice wine, or singchang, fermented barley beer. By this time everyone will have grown considerably rosier in the cheeks and louder and much more convivial in their mannerisms, and a good old game of playing cards, or sho (a Himalayan game similar to mahjong played with dice) may well ensue. Even the monks, if they're still around and well-known to the family, may join the general rounds of speculation over the most strategic placements of the (sho) pieces in the game! More food is served at dinner—red rice, bright red chilies, and a variety of spicy stews including the national chili-cheese dish ema datsi, and long strips of shakam or dried beef, yak or pork—until everyone is stuffed. Copious amounts of drinking follows. The mostly home-brewed alcohol, imbibed by one and all finally brings the festivities to a close with the flushed red-cheeked faces of everyone giving evidence to their glistening hopes for a happy and healthy year! In the Lunar Calendar of the Himalayas, which largely corresponds with the Chinese one with some differences, 2024 is the Year of the Wood Dragon. According to traditional astrology, the foundational characteristics of the Wood Dragon Year are prosperity, daring, energy, and opportunity. Some people believe that Losar celebrations predated Buddhism in the Himalayas. The traditional practice of burning incense and juniper as a New Year's offering to the spirits and protective deities is believed to be an artifact of the animistic Bon practices that existed before the arrival of Buddhism. In Tibet, the celebrations are sometimes called Boed Gyalpoi Losar, which means “the Tibetan New Year of the King.” This is a reference to the belief that Losar was first celebrated following the coronation of Tibet's first king. In another story, Losar was first celebrated after a woman named Boed Ma (Tibetan Mother) invented the Himalayan lunar calendar. In some parts of the Himalayas, it was also believed to have been celebrated as an autumn festival at the time of "the flowering of the apricot trees." May the the dynamic dragon bring a happy and prosperous 2024 to everyone! As we say in the Himalayas at the start of each promising new year, Tashi Delek! May good fortune shine on all your endeavors! Like this article? Get similar features & travel information sent straight to your inbox with the Bhutan Himalaya Newsletter