Mr. Walsem

We have just returned from Bhutan yesterday evening and we are writing this while waking up a bit early in Amsterdam, after almost two fantastic weeks of travelling.   It is not easy to summarize our trip with so many impressions, experiences and getting a better feel for local cultures. It was fantastically organized on the ground by Leki (guide) and Karma (driver) in Bhutan. The knowledge, enthusiasm and patience and flexibility of Leki stood out.  He is a great guide! Very experienced and knowledgeable, pleasant and flexible. We will definitely recommend him to our friends. As you know we stayed in Bhutan for almost 9 days. The choice of hotels and itinerary was very special and well balanced. We especially loved Punakha River Lodge. What a beautiful place with great staff. During the trip we made some alterations to the program which was patiently and smoothly handled by Leki. The reception in every hotel and lodge was heart-warming and the coordination created by Leki and local staff worked extremely well.  ‘Happiness is a place, and it is called Bhutan’. This ‘slogan’ came to life while travelling, having our talks in the car, visiting temples and the black-necked crane centre,  climbing mountains, cycling uphill and downhill, rafting,  meals in different private locations (just the two of us, with anniversary surprises) ,meeting local hotel staff, monks and nuns. We also loved having a talk with a specialist of Bhutan on the implementation of Gross National Happiness and how it is measured. Seeing the weaving process in action wash also impressive. Our private session with the monk on how to meditate, followed by a prayer with all the monks in the temple, while there was an energy shutdown, created a special atmosphere.  The mandala session with three monks at the home of Sangay Wangchuck, was very educational and interesting. Sangay explained to us a lot about the mandalas and gave us his book “Seeing with the third eye”. That we had to destroy the beautiful mandala at the end was an impressive and a little heart-breaking experience: a good practice of non-attachment. What remained are the memories of the three dedicated and hard-working monks and a photo of the final work.  During these days we were also able to enjoy nature, going on very nice and sometimes exhausting hikes. Exactly what we wanted! The last day we hanged our prayer flag on Chele La (3988meters), where we sat in chairs, with a lunchbox with tea and snacks, on a hilltop overviewing the mountains. We wrote our personal messages on the flags. While the background of these flags, as seen in many places, was explained during the trip, doing this at that moment with our personal wishes had a lot of impact. “It is believed that when the wind moves prayer flags, even with the slightest breeze, these prayers and blessings become activated, and then are carried through the air in a spiritual vibration across the vicinity.”  Both Leki and Karma went out of their way, you should have seen it;-), to hang these flags at a prominent place from tree to tree. From our pick-up at the airport to our drop-off on the last day we were treated like special guests, thanks to all the great staff everywhere and especially Leki and Karma. We want to thank Leki for sharing all of his knowledge in a very interesting and stimulating way. While we were travelling, it was teacher-day in Bhutan, which we gladly dedicated to our teacher Leki.  Being at home, back to reality with many new perspectives, we have a lot of wonderful memoires of Bhutan.  A very big thank you to all of you. In Bhutan you don’t say ‘goodbye’, but you say ‘See you again’!